Voila! Finally, the Top Gun
script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the movie starring Tom
Cruise. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly
transcribed using the screenplay and/or viewings of Top Gun. I know, I know, I still need to get the cast names in there and I'll be eternally
tweaking it, so if you have any corrections, feel free to
drop me a line. You won't
hurt my feelings. Honest.
Morning, Scott.
Morning, Wells.
Ghost Rider, we have an unknown
aircraft. Vector 090 for bogey.
- Who's up there?
- Cougar, Merlin, Maverick and Goose.
Great. Maverick and Goose.
- Talk to me, Goose.
- Roger, I got them. 900 knots closure.
- Cougar, you hear that?
- Roger.
- Merlin, you got them?
- I've got radar contact.
- I'll get a visual ID. You hook them.
- I'll clean them and fry them.
Ghost Rider, . I have them inbound, bogey heading at miles.
- knots closure.
- Take angels left, .
- Are we expecting visitors?
- Negative, sir.
- Merlin, see if he's a single.
- Roger.
Do you see a trailer?
Looks like he's a single.
- I'm gonna go head-to-head with him.
- Take it easy. I'll see if he's really alone.
- He's coming right at us, Mav.
- Okay, buddy. What's on your mind?
- Shit, there's two of them. MiG- s!
- What? What's their position?
- miles out, sir.
- Get them out of here!
Cougar, you've got MiG one.
I'm going after MiG two.
I lost him in the sun! Shit, what's
he doing? You got him, Merlin?
He's coming around on our tail!
Goddamn it. This bogey's all over me.
What's their range now? If they break
miles, launch the alert five aircraft.
- Airspeed . Go get them, Mav!
- I'm going for missile lock.
Let's see if we can scare him
out of here. Lock up, baby.
I've got him locked. Bingo!
- We got him, Mav. He's bugging out.
- Mustang, MiG two is headed home.
- What's their position?
- miles and bearing sir.
- He's got missile lock on us!
- He's engaging me.
Goddamn it. Mustang,
this bogey's all over me.
- Do I have permission to fire?
- Do not fire until fired upon.
- There they are.
- The MiG's in perfect firing position.
- No way. He would have fired by now.
- Maverick, get this asshole off me!
Easy, Cougar. Bring him back,
hard right. Help me engage.
I'm on my way.
I can't shoot, so let's have a little fun.
Is this your idea of fun?
Greetings.
Watch the birdie.
Geez, I crack myself up.
Great shot.
I should be a photographer.
Cougar, your tail is clear.
MiG one has bugged out.
Cougar, we've had enough fun
for one day, don't you think?
I'm getting low on fuel,
so we're heading home.
We'll see you on deck.
We're running low on gas.
Cougar?
We're on vapour.
Let's do it.
Cougar, come on!
- Let's take it back to the ship, man.
- Get him on deck as soon as possible.
Cougar, we've got to land this thing.
We are way low on gas.
Are you all right?
- Maverick, call the ball.
- Roger. Maverick has the ball.
- Cougar's in trouble.
- Come on, we're getting low on gas.
- Let's land this sucker.
- Cougar!
- Goddamn it!
- We've got no fuel for this.
We're going after Cougar.
- Tell him to land. That's an order!
- You're instructed to land immediately.
Have you boys seen an aircraft carrier?
That MiG really screwed him up.
I don't think he can make it back.
You're okay, Cougar. Just stay on
my wing. I'll take you all the way in.
Easy, Cougar.
Just a walk in the park, buddy.
You're a little low. You're a little low.
Come on, buddy, pull up.
Pull up, Cougar.
That's it. Almost there.
A little below glide path. Call the ball. Roger ball. You're too low. Increase power!
Come in.
- What's on your mind?
- My wife and kid, sir.
I almost orphaned him today.
I've never even seen him.
- I was so scared.
- We've seen this before.
No, sir.
I'm holding on too tight.
I've lost the edge. I'm sorry, sir.
Cougar?
Thanks, Maverick.
- Maverick, Goose, come in here.
- What the hell's going on?
- I don't know.
- Shit.
Maverick,
you just did an incredibly brave thing.
What you should have done was land
your plane. It belongs to the taxpayers!
Your ego's writing cheques
your body can't cash.
You've lost your qualifications
as section leader three times.
Put in hack twice by me
with a history of high-speed passes -
- Over five air control towers
and one admiral's daughter!
- Penny Benjamin?
- You, asshole, you're lucky to be here.
Let's not bullshit. Your family name
ain't the best in the Navy.
You need to be doing it
better and cleaner than the other guy.
- Just want to serve my country, sir.
- Don't screw around with me.
You're a hell of a pilot. Maybe too good.
I'd like to bust your butt -
- But I have another problem here.
I have to send somebody to Miramar.
I've got to do something. I can't believe
it. I have to give you your dream shot.
I have to send you up against the best.
You characters are going to Top Gun.
For five weeks,
you're going to fly against the best.
You were number two. Cougar was
number one. He turned in his wings.
You guys are number one.
But you remember one thing:
You screw up, you'll be flying
a cargo plane full of rubber dog shit.
Yes, sir!
That is all.
Tell me about the MiG some other time.
Gentlemen?
- Good luck, gentlemen.
- Thank you, sir.
During Korea, we shot down
of theirjets for every one of ours.
During Vietnam, that ratio fell to - .
Our pilots were dependant on missiles.
Top Gun was created to teach ACM.
Air Combat Manoeuvring. Dogfighting.
- This gives me a hard-on.
- By the end of Vietnam, it was - .
- Don't tease me.
- Blinds, please.
Our commanding officer was the very
first man to win the Top Gun trophy.
You won't find a finer fighter pilot
anywhere. Commander Mike Metcalf.
- Call sign, Viper.
- Gentlemen...
You're the top one percent
of all naval aviators.
The elite. The best of the best.
We'll make you better.
You fly at least two combat missions
a day, attend classes and evaluations.
On each combat sequence you're
gonna meet a different challenge.
We'll teach you to fly the F-
faster than you've ever flown before.
Now, we don't make policy here.
Elected officials, civilians, do that.
We are their instruments and must
always act as though we are at war.
- What are you doing?
- Just wondering who's the best.
In case some of you wonder
who the best is, they're on this plaque.
The best driver and his RIO
from each class has his name on it.
They have the option to come back here
and be Top Gun instructors.
- You think you will be on the plaque?
- Yes, sir.
That's pretty arrogant,
considering the company you're in.
- Yes, sir.
- I like that in a pilot.
Remember, when it's over out there,
we're all on the same team.
This school is about combat.
There are no points for second place.
- Dismissed.
- Nice going.
The plaque for the alternates
is down in the ladies' room.
Jesus... You kill me.
You really do...
There's two O's in Goose, boys.
- This I call a target-rich environment.
- You live your life between your legs.
Even you could get laid in here.
I'd be happy to find a girl
who'd talk dirty to me.
You wanted to know who the best is?
That's him. Iceman.
He flies ice-cold. No mistakes.
Wears you down. You get bored,
do something stupid, and he's got you.
- I thought you wanted to be a pilot.
- Whose butt did you kiss to get here?
- The list is long but distinguished.
- So is my johnson.
- So you're flying with Iceman?
- Hey, Mother Goose, how's it going?
Tom, this is Pete Mitchell.
Tom Kazansky.
Congratulations on Top Gun. Sorry to
hear about Cougar. He was a good man.
- Still is a good man.
- Yeah, that's what I meant.
You need any help?
You figured it out yet?
- What's that?
- Who's the best pilot.
- I can figure that one out on my own.
- I heard that about you.
You like to work alone.
You're lucky. First the MiG
and then you slide into Cougar's spot.
We didn't slide into Cougar's spot.
Some pilots wait a whole career to see
a MiG up close. Lucky and famous?
- You mean notorious. See you later.
- You can count on it.
- They were abused children.
- We're gonna have a good time.
Okay, I guess it's my turn, isn't it?
All right, the bet is dollars.
You have to have carnal knowledge,
of a lady this time, on the premises.
- On the premises.
- Come on, a bet's a bet.
I don't know, it just doesn't seem fair...
for you, I mean. But...
She's lost that loving feeling.
No, she hasn't. She has not lost...
- She's lost it, man. Come on.
- I hate it when she does that.
- Excuse me, miss.
- Don't worry. I'll take care of this.
- Sit down.
- Thank you.
I love that song. That's a new approach.
How long have you been doing this act?
- I don't know. Since...
- Puberty?
- I'm Charlotte Blackwood.
- I'm Maverick.
- Did your mother not like you?
- No, it's my call sign.
- You're a pilot?
- That's right. A naval aviator.
- Actually, we've only done this twice.
- How did you do?
- Crashed and burned on the first one.
- And the second?
I'll tell you tomorrow.
But it's looking good so far.
Well, Maverick. My friend just arrived,
so it's been great talking to you. Perry.
I'll be with you in just a second.
- Can I ask you a personal question?
- That depends.
- Are you a good pilot?
- I can hold my own.
Great. Then I won't have to worry about
you making your living as a singer.
I'm gonna need a beer to put these
flames out. Great, Mav. Real slick.
- A long cruise, was it, sailor?
- Too long.
You want to just drop down on the tile
and go for it?
I actually had this counter in mind.
- That would be very comfortable, yeah.
- It could be.
I came in here to save you from making
a big mistake with that older guy.
Really? So I could go on to a bigger one
with a young guy like yourself?
Maybe.
- I have to get up early in the morning.
- What are you doing?
Your friend was magnificent.
You'll also be trained and evaluated
by civilian specialists.
They are our best source of information
on enemy aircraft.
One of the most qualified is call sign
Charlie, with a Ph.D. in astrophysics.
Listen to her, because the Pentagon
listens to her about your proficiency.
All yours, Charlie.
Hello. We will be dealing with F- s
and A- s as our MiG simulators.
As you know, the F- doesn't have
the thrust-to-weight ratio of the MiG- .
And it doesn't bleed energy
below knots like the MiG- .
However, the MiG- does have
a problem with its inverted flight tanks.
It won't do a negative G push-over.
The latest intelligence tells us
the most it will do is...
Excuse me, Lieutenant.
Is there something wrong?
- The data on the MiG is inaccurate.
- How's that?
Well, I just happened to see a MiG- ...
Sorry, Goose.
We happened to see a MiG-
do a four G negative dive.
Where did you see this?
That's classified. I could tell you,
but then I'd have to kill you.
I have Top Secret clearance.
The Pentagon sees to it
that I know more than you.
- Well, it doesn't seem to be the case.
- So, where exactly were you?
We started up on his six when he pulled
through the clouds. I went above him.
If you were directly above him,
how could you see him?
- Because I was inverted.
- Bullshit.
No, he was, man.
It was a really great move.
You were in a four G inverted dive
with a MiG- ?
- Yes, ma'am.
- At what range?
- About two metres?
- / . I have a great Polaroid of it.
- It was a nice picture.
- Lieutenant?
- What were you doing there?
- Communicating.
Keeping up foreign relations.
- I was, you know, giving him the bird.
- You know, the finger.
- I know the finger.
- I hate it when it does that. I'm sorry.
- Excuse me.
- So you're the one?
- Yes, ma'am.
- All right, we have a hop to take.
The hard-deck on this is feet.
There'll be no engagement below that.
Move it!
Lieutenant!
Don't be late again.
You look great, honey.
Why didn't you tell me
you were the famous MiG Insulter?
- Would it have made any difference?
- Not in the ladies' room.
I see new hotshots every eight
weeks. I'm sure you can figure that out.
I'd just really like
to hear about the MiG sometime.
You've got security clearance.
You can read about it.
Maverick?
I'm curious.
Who was covering Cougar while you
were showboating with his MiG?
Cougar was doing just fine.
This is your first hop. Thejets you'reflying against are smaller and faster, -
- just like the enemy MiGs. As of now we are keeping score.
- I lost him, Goose.
- Show me what you've got, kid.
- I lost him.
- I'm looking.
- He's on our tail, coming hard.
- I got him. Here we go.
- Talk to me, Goose.
- He's still back there. Closing in on us.
You can run, kid, but you can't hide.
All right, Jester,
I'll give you a run for your money here.
Watch the mountains!
He's still back there. Come on, Mav,
do some of that pilot shit.
- Come on, bring it right.
- I've had about enough of this shit.
- I'll hit the brakes, he'll fly right by.
- You're mine.
Jesus Christ!
- Let's see what you've got now, Jester.
- Let's turn and burn.
- He's going vertical. So am I.
- We're going ballistic. Go get him!
He's going for the hard-deck.
Let's nail him.
No way, Jester. You're mine.
I've got you now!
- Jester's dead.
- Jester's dead.
Get your butts above the hard-deck
and return to base.
Yes, sir!
- This is Ghost Rider requesting a fly-by.
- Negative. The pattern is full.
- No, Mav. This is not a good idea.
- Sorry, but it's time to buzz the tower.
Goddamn son of a bitch!
Great balls of fire.
- Jester's dead.
- You won? Bullshit.
- Didn't everybody?
- We got our butts kicked.
I said to Hollywood, "Where did he go?"
He said, "Where did who go?"
- And he's laughing at us on the radio.
- That was me, dickhead. We won.
- All right!
- They won too, man.
- That's not what I heard.
- We got Jester.
- Below the hard-deck doesn't count.
- We nailed that son of a bitch.
- You guys really are cowboys.
- What's your problem, Kazansky?
You're everyone's problem.
Every time you fly, you're unsafe.
- I don't like you. You're dangerous.
- That's right, Iceman.
I am dangerous.
Maverick? You and Goose
get your butts up to Viper's office, now!
Remember, no points for second place.
- You're a lot brighter than you look.
- You shut up.
Two of your snot-nosed jockeys flew by
by at over knots. I want their butts!
Damn it, that's twice.
I want some butts!
- That just about covers the fly-bys.
- Follow me.
Gentlemen. You had a hell of a first day.
The hard-deck for this hop was
feet. You knew it. You broke it.
You followed Commander Heatherly
below after he lost sight of you. Why?
Sir, I had him in my sights.
He saw me move in for the kill.
He proceeded below the hard-deck.
We were below forjust a few seconds.
I had the shot.
There was no danger, so I took it.
You took it,
and broke a major rule of engagement.
Then you broke another one
with that circus stunt fly-by.
Top Gun rules of engagement exist
for your safety and for that of your team.
They're not flexible, nor am I. Obey them
or you're history. Is that clear?
Yes, sir!
Dismissed.
I really enjoyed that, Mav,
thanks a lot. Holy shit.
Maybe I could be a truck driver. You got
the number of that truck-driving school?
Fitness report says it all.
He's a wild card.
Completely unpredictable.
- He got you, didn't he?
- Yeah.
Maverick. I flew with his old man.
Tell me, if you had to go into battle,
would you want him with you?
I just don't know.
- Still awake?
- Yeah.
- What's up?
- I can't sleep.
When I realised we were off to Top Gun,
all I could think about was that trophy.
I've got to be straight with you, Mav.
Right now, I just hope we graduate.
I got a family to think about.
I can't afford to blow this.
I guess that fly-by
wasn't such a big hit, huh?
I know it's tough. The Academy rejected
you because you're Duke Mitchell's kid.
You have to live with that reputation.
But it's like you're flying against a ghost.
It makes me nervous.
You're the only family I've got.
I'm not gonna let you down. I promise.
Get out of here.
A rolling reversal
would work well in that situation.
If I reversed on a hard cross,
I could go to guns on him.
But at that speed, it's too fast.
It's a little bit too aggressive.
Too aggressive?
I guess when I see something,
I go right after it.
- You didn't tell me who you were.
- I didn't get a chance. You deserved it.
I know... but you were tempted
to ask me out for dinner.
No. I don't date students.
I can see it's dangerous for you.
But if the government trusts me...
...maybe you could.
It takes a lot more than just fancy flying.
Crash and burn, huh, Mav?
Slider...
You stink.
Let's go!
Come on, Mav. Just one more game.
That evens it up.
- I got some things to take care of.
- Just one more game.
Please? For me?
Come on... For me?
Damn it.
Lieutenant?
- What? No singing?
- Look, I'm...
No apologies.
If you don't mind, I'll just take a quick
shower while you're finishing up here.
I do mind. I'm hungry.
And then I thought about it.
I thought,
"You know, he's a smart guy."
"Why don't you just tell him
why you've got him here?"
It's the MiG.
The MiG. You're the only pilot
who's been up against a MiG- .
I'm trying for this big promotion.
If I get it, I won't be here much longer.
Seems to me you've got it all figured out.
Except you did forget the wine.
Sorry.
- You always get what you want?
- No, not always. Yeah, maybe.
Then relax about the MiG.
This music...
An old friend?
My folks loved it.
I haven't heard this in years.
My mother used to call from her room
and have me play this over and over.
I got so sick of it.
But not her. She'd sit up there alone,
just listening for hours.
Just listening.
She died shortly after him.
What happened to your father?
I figured with your security clearance
you'd know more about it than I do.
Well, I didn't get that far.
It's a big mystery.
He disappeared in an F-
November th, .
The stink of it was... he screwed up.
No way.
My old man was a great fighter pilot.
But who the hell knows?
It's all classified.
- Somebody must know.
- Yeah, somebody knows everything.
Is that why
you're always second best up there?
You are direct, aren't you.
I'm sorry I was late.
- I'm sorry for being direct.
- No apologies.
This is going to be complicated.
- Where are you going?
- I'm gonna take a shower.
Thank you. I enjoyed being here.
It looks like you need another shower.
Right.
I'm gonna be honest with you.
Your MiG sighting
is really important to my work, but...
I don't normally invite students
to my house. You're...
But please understand,
I still have a job to do.
I'm glad we got that straight.
I told her how tough it is here.
My ass dragging like an old tired dog.
I told her you didn't even have a woman.
She said, "He probably
doesn't have one, but eight."
- Hi!
- Daddy.
Goose tells me you're in love
with one of your instructors.
I didn't tell her that. I can't believe
you said that. That was a secret.
The bogey has good position right here.
Freeze frame. A moment of choice.
The F- is defensive.
He has a chance to bug out right here.
Better to retire and save your aircraft
than push a bad position.
Charlie, jump in here any time. You stay
in that diamond another three seconds. -
- The bogey's gonna blow you away.
You take a hard right, select zone five...
You can extend an escape.
You made a bad choice.
- Charlie?
- Aircraft one performs a split S?
That's the last thing you should do.
The MiG's right on your tail.
Freeze there. The MiG has you in
his gunsight. What were you thinking?
You don't have time to think up there.
If you think, you're dead.
That's a big gamble
with a $ million plane.
Unfortunately, it worked.
The MiG never got a clean shot.
Maverick makes an aggressive vertical
move and defeats him with a missile.
The encounter was a victory, but we
show it as an example of what not to do.
Next.
Gutsiest move I ever saw, man.
Now then, this is a perfect example
of a textbook manoeuvre.
Lieutenant?
My review of your performance was
right on, in my professional opinion.
I can't hear you.
Jesus! And you call me reckless? When
I fly, my crew and my plane come first.
I'm gonna finish my sentence. My review
of your performance was right on.
I see some real genius in your flying,
but I can't say that in there.
I was afraid they'd see right through me.
I don't want anyone to know
that I've fallen for you.
- Hey, Maverick? Hear about Ice?
- What's that?
- He won another one.
- Really?
I fell the need...
the need for speed.
This is hop . Multiple aircraft, multiplebogeys. Your training is half over. The competition for the trophyremains tight. First place, Iceman. Second, Maverick, two points behind.
There they are. Three miles, o'clock.
I see them. Two A- s.
Left o'clock level. Continue left turn.
- Good morning. The temperature is .
- Viper's up here? Great. Oh, shit.
He's probably saying,
"Holy shit, it's Maverick and Goose."
- I've got my eye on the northern bogey.
- Roger, I've got the southern guy.
Hollywood, you lead. I'll cover you.
Break now, Jester.
We're losing Viper.
Let's just stay on Jester.
- Goose, find Viper. He's out there.
- Stay with Hollywood.
- There's Viper. Three o'clock low.
- We're Hollywood's cover.
- Don't you leave me.
- Hollywood, you're looking good.
I'm going after Viper.
- Goddamn you!
- Don't leave him.
Hollywood's okay. I want Viper.
Viper's coming down.
Holy shit. We're head-to-head.
Rock and roll! Here's our big chance.
Come on, goddamn it.
Come on, keep coming.
Okay, sidewinder missile selected.
Come on, baby.
Come around. That's it.
- Jesus, he's good. Where's he going?
- Come on, come on. Keep coming.
Come on, baby.
Damn, this kid's good.
He's too close for missiles.
I'm switching to guns.
Come on, come on.
Stick with it...
- Hold it. Check our tail.
- Shit, there's Jester!
Bingo, Maverick's dead.
You're out of there, kid.
The Defence Department regrets to
inform you your sons died of stupidity.
Knock it off, gentlemen.
Let's go home. Viper has the lead.
- seconds, Wolfman. I'm coming in.
- Shut up!
That was some of the best flying
I've seen yet. Until you got killed.
You never, never leave your wingman.
Maverick... It's not your flying,
it's your attitude.
The enemy's dangerous, but right now
you're worse. Dangerous and foolish.
You may not like who's flying with you,
but whose side are you on?
At least Viper got Iceman before
he got us. We've still got a shot at it.
That was stupid, I know better than that.
That will never happen again.
I know...
I know.
Go fetch him.
Doesn't he ever embarrass you?
- Hell no. Well, there was the time...
- Admiral's daughter.
He told me all about the time
you went ballistic with Penny Benjamin.
Did he? Great.
He tells me about all of them. My angel
Goose goes home early for church.
- You go home with the hot women.
- Thank you, Carole.
I'm gonna go embarrass myself
with Goose for a while.
I'd love to be able to warn you off about
Maverick, but I just love him to death.
I've known Pete for a lot of years.
One thing's for certain.
There are hearts breaking wide open
all over the world tonight.
Unless you are a fool,
that boy is off the market.
Hey, Goose, you big stud.
Take me to bed or lose me forever.
Show me the way home, honey.
Come on, brother, sing with the family.
Maverick, you big stud...
Take me to bed or lose me forever.
This is hop .Two weeks to graduation. The Top Gun trophyis still up for grabs.
The score is tied. Time for the big one.
- Are you up for this one, Maverick?
- Just a walk in the park.
Contact. Multiple bogeys. Two miles.
Looks like they're going away from us.
- I see them. Right, two o'clock. I'm in.
- I'm in.
That son of a bitch cut me off.
Come on. Jesus Christ, Ice.
Take the shot. Get the hell out of there.
I can't get the angle. I'm too close.
I'm switching to guns.
Fire or clear!
- Christ, I can take a shot right here.
- seconds and I've got him.
- I'm moving in. I've got the shot.
- Come on, Mav.
- He's getting impatient. Take the shot.
- more seconds.
Get the hell out of there.
Come off my right. I'm in.
- Five more seconds.
- I'm in.
I'm off. Shit.
We're in a jetwash. Shit!
This is not good. We've got a flame-out.
Engine one is out... Engine two is out.
I'm losing control. I can't control it!
It's coupling up. This is not good!
Mayday, mayday. Mav's in trouble.
He's in a flat spin heading out to sea!
Altitude ... ...
We're at !
I can't reach the ejection handle!
- You're gonna have to punch us out.
- I can't reach the ejection handle!
- Eject...
- Watch the canopy!
Goose... Oh, no!
Oh, God.
Sir, let go of him.
You've got to let him go, sir.
- How are you doing?
- I'm all right.
- Goose is dead.
- I know.
You fly jets long enough,
something like this happens.
He was my RIO, my responsibility.
In my squadron in Vietnam,
we lost of aircraft. men.
The first one dies, you die too.
But there will be others.
You can count on it.
You've got to let him go.
You've got to let him go.
I think maybe it was my fault.
I don't know.
I don't know what the hell went wrong.
I'd like to help. I know it's difficult.
God, I want him back.
I'll be here if you need me, okay?
God, he loved flying with you, Maverick.
He would have flown anyway...
without you.
He'd have hated it,
but he would have done it.
The spin was induced by the disruption
of air flow into the starboard engine.
This disruption stalled the engine. -
- Which produced enough yaw rate
to induce a spin -
- Which was unrecoverable.
There was no way Lieutenant Mitchell
could see or avoid the jetwash.
The Board of Inquiry finds that he was
not at fault in the accident of July.
His record will be cleared. He's restored
to flight status without further delay.
These proceedings are closed.
Get him up flying, soon.
- Come on, kid. Get in there. Engage.
- You've got a bogey at two o'clock.
Take the shot, kid.
You can engage any time, Maverick.
- Where the hell are you going?
- It doesn't look good.
What do you mean? It doesn't get
to look any better than that.
Hey, man. We could have had him...
I'll fire when I'm goddamn
good and ready. You got that?
- He won't engage.
- It's only been a few days.
- He just might not make it back.
- Keep sending him up.
Mitchell?
I'm sorry about Goose.
Everybody liked him.
I'm sorry.
Hi, it's Wolfman.
Maverick just quit.
Excuse me...
- May I?
- Please.
I'll have what he's having.
Hemlock, is it?
Ice water.
You weren't gonna say goodbye?
I heard you got that job in Washington.
Congratulations.
Thanks. But I wasn't gonna leave
without saying goodbye.
- It's good to see you.
- Thanks.
Where are you going?
You don't even have a ticket, do you?
I've seen all the evidence, and it's not
your responsibility. It's not your fault.
You're one of the best pilots in the Navy.
What you do up there... It's dangerous.
- But you've got to go on.
- You don't understand.
When I first met you,
you were larger than life.
Look at you.
You're not gonna be happy unless you're
going Mach with your hair on fire.
No, that's over. It's just over.
To be the best of the best means you
make mistakes and then you go on.
You don't think I know that?
I'm here to help.
Look, thank you. If I'd wanted help,
I would have asked for it.
So, I'm too late.
You've already left.
You didn't learn a damn thing, did you?
Except to quit.
You've got that manoeuvre down
real well.
So long, Pete Mitchell.
Hi, Maverick, come on in. How are you?
Sure you're feeling okay?
- Great.
- Jamie, come on. Can I get you a drink?
Make yourself comfortable.
Mike will be right down.
I flew with your old man.
VF- the Oriskany.
You're a lot like he was.
Only better... and worse.
He was a natural heroic son of a bitch.
So he did do it right.
Yeah, he did it right.
Is that why you fly the way you do?
Trying to prove something?
Yeah, your old man did it right.
What I'm about to tell you is classified.
It could end my career.
We were in the worst dogfight ever.
Bogeys like fireflies all over the sky.
His F- was hit. -
- He was wounded, but he stayed.
- Saved three planes before he bought it.
- How come I never heard that before?
The battle occurred
over the wrong line on some map.
- So you were there?
- I was there.
- What's on your mind?
- My options, sir.
Simple.
You've acquired enough points -
- To show up tomorrow and graduate
with your class. Or you could quit.
There'll be no disgrace.
That spin was hell.
- So you think I should quit?
- I didn't say that.
You feel responsible for Goose.
And you have a confidence problem.
I won't blow sunshine up your ass.
A good pilot is compelled
to evaluate what's happened -
- And apply what he's learned. Up there,
we've got to push it. That's ourjob.
It's your option, Lieutenant.
All yours.
Sorry to bother you on a Sunday, sir.
Thank you for your time.
No problem. Good luck.
- Gentlemen...
- Where's Maverick?
- I don't know where he is.
- You know what he's planning to do?
It's got to be hard on the guy though.
- Congratulations.
- Thank you.
- Congratulations.
- Thanks, Mav.
Gentlemen, I hate to break up the party
before it gets out of hand...
Some of you have to depart
immediately. We have a crisis situation.
Ice, Slider...
Hollywood, Wolfman.
- Maverick.
- Sir.
Maverick, you'll get your RIO
when you get to the ship. If you don't...
...give me a call. I'll fly with you.
The SS Layton has become disabled
and has wandered into foreign territory.
A rescue operation will soon begin.
Your mission is to give it air support.
There are MiGs in the area. If you
witness a hostile act, return fire.
They carry the Exocet anti-ship missile.
They can fire it from miles away.
This is the real thing.
This is what you've been trained for.
Make us proud.
Ice... Hollywood, sector two.
Maverick, you back them up with Merlin
on ready five.
- Yes, sir.
- Rise.
Excuse me, sir. This is not personal.
- But is Maverick the best pilot to ... ?
- I know what's on your mind. Get on it.
You've got a pair of bogeys,
o'clock, miles.
Voodoo One, radar contact
miles. They're doing knots.
Roger, that's your bogey.
Dead ahead, miles, knots.
They're at feet now, miles.
knots. Dead ahead now, eight miles.
Wood, you got them? They must
be close. I'm getting a hard-on.
- I'm taking the lead. Let's identify them.
- Roger. I'm on your left side, a little low.
Maverick's up and ready in alert five.
My bogey's still locked up. He's drifting to the left.
- Still manoeuvring, course .
- Let's bring it to the right.
Ice, we've got a problem. I have four
aircraft on radar. Four bogeys.
Wood, we've got four bogeys.
- Wrong, make that five!
- There's five, sir.
- Oh, shit!
- He's got a radar lock on us.
Get out of there, Hollywood!
I'm hit. We're coming apart.
I can't control it! We're going down.
Wood's been hit. Wood's been hit!
Voodoo One, Wood's been hit.
We've lost Hollywood!
- We've lost Hollywood.
- Launch Maverick.
Get a bearing on Hollywood andWolfman. Launch the rescue helicopter.
- Iceman, what's your position?
- at miles.
- They're coming in left.
- Three MiGs dead ahead.
I'm going after them.
I'm bringing it around to the left.
We have four on our tail.
That makes six of them!
- He's firing. Break right.
- This is Voodoo One. We are defensive.
- Launch the alert fighters!
- miles and closing in fast, sir.
Ready Willard and Simkin.
- I'll be there in seconds.
- I'm engaged with five. I'm in deep shit.
- Willard and Simkin?
- We can't launch any aircraft yet, sir.
How long? minutes?
It's over in two minutes!
One MiG o'clock high...
Watch your back!
- Break right!
- Shit, that was close.
- Maverick, get your butt down here!
- Hang in there.
Jesus Christ!
How about some help? Engage!
We've got a MiG on our tail.
Watch out!
We just flew right through his jetwash!
Get control!
- Good recovery.
- Let's get in there and help Ice.
- Let's get back in the game.
- No, it's no good.
- Goddamn it. Maverick's disengaging.
- I knew it. Shit!
Get in there, come on.
What the hell are you doing?
- Ice won't last down there alone...
- Talk to me, Goose.
Maverick!
Maverick's re-engaging, sir.
- I can't get him off my tail.
- I've got your MiG dead ahead.
I got tone. Firing!
- Where are they?
- miles.
- Two MiGs dead ahead.
- I see them. I'll take it left.
Oh, my God.
Ice is right below with a MiG on his tail.
He's firing. Break left!
He overshot!
Coming in, Ice.
I got two MiGs, dead ahead.
One MiG passing between us.
You've got a MiG on your left.
He's gonna fire!
Check the guy to the north!
Banking left.
- There he is. Get him, Ice!
- Okay, you guys, I'm coming in.
- A MiG's coming round on our tail.
- I can't leave Ice.
- He's gonna get behind us!
- I'm not leaving my wingman.
I'm on his tail. I'm going
for the shot right now. Roger, engaged!
- I've got radar lock.
- I'm taking the shot. Fire!
- Bingo!
- Watch out, there's a MiG to your right.
He's firing!
- I'm hit. We're hit in the right engine.
- I'm shutting it down.
Coming in, Ice.
That bogey's still behind you.
I'm manoeuvring for a shot.
- Take the shot.
- I can't get a tone.
Shoot. I can't get him off my tail.
- We're hit again.
- We're okay.
On the count of three, break hard right.
Three... two... one... break right!
Firing!
- Damn it, I missed.
- Don't let him go.
I got him. Here comes the shot.
Strike three.
- There's a MiG on your tail.
- We've only got one missile left.
miles, sir.
I got him. He's on our tail.
He's still with us.
- You're slowing down.
- I'm bringing him in closer.
- This is it.
- I'll hit the brakes. He'll fly right by us.
Now!
I've got a good lock. Firing.
Strike four!
This is Voodoo Three.
Remaining MiGs are bugging out.
- This is Maverick, requesting fly-by.
- Negative, the pattern is full.
Is there something I should know about?
Goddamn that guy.
You!
You are still dangerous.
But you can be my wingman anytime.
Bullshit. You can be mine.
Maverick? You're on the front pages
of all the English-speaking world.
Even though the other side
denies the incident, congratulations.
They gave you your choice of duty, son.
Where do you think you want to go?
- I thought of being an instructor, sir.
- Top Gun?
- Yes, sir.
- God help us.
Hello, Pete Mitchell.
I heard the best of the best
were gonna be back here, so...
This could be complicated.
You know,
on the first one, I crashed and burned.
And the second?
I don't know.
But it's looking good so far.