Top Gun Maverick Reviews

Capt MJ said:
Great reading. And his prototype helicopter mom badgered the President for a nom to USNA for him!
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Thank God she did. He was the right person at the right time in history.

I love this quote from his wife about flying.

While he had approval from his wife to train as an observer, she learned from a letter after the fact that he had changed to pilot training, and she told her daughter, "What do you think the old fool is doing now? He's learning to fly!"
 
OldRetSWO said:
Yes, I'm aware of Iran's mountains but the snowy mountain forest that go right down to the sea are more a feature of areas far from the Middle East. It looked a lot like Northern Norway/Sweden which I saw a number of times on NATO exercises.
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Most snowy scenes (including the bad guy airfield) were shot near Lake Tahoe. Other mountain flying scenes were shot in Cascades in Washington. Whidbey Island aviators will recognize the world famous VR 1355 low level route.

I agree that those scenes look like Scandanavia (or maybe Alaska).
 
Capt MJ said:
Great reading. And his prototype helicopter mom badgered the President for a nom to USNA for him!
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He entered USNA around 1900. As far as I know, functional helicopters did not exist in 1900.

A helicopter mom in 1900. How is that possible? That makes me wonder... Which came first? The chicken or the egg?
 
brewmeist said:
He entered USNA around 1900. As far as I know, functional helicopters did not exist in 1900.

A helicopter mom in 1900. How is that possible? That makes me wonder... Which came first? The chicken or the egg?
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I am fully cognizant of veering wildly off-topic; I shall desist after this, given this is Mav’s ready room. And to think we got here because someone asked if pilots could become admirals…

Precisely why I called Mamma Halsey a prototype helicopter. Perhaps we should ponder an era-appropriate piece of machinery, no whiff of anachronism. That means Lawnmower Parent, Snowblower Parent and Drone Overwatch Parent are ineligible. A bit of research has produced an option: Steam Tractor Parent (farm equipment was becoming ncreasingly mechanized in the late 1800’s, but gas tractors didn’t show up until 1910 or so) complete with a new-fangled McCormick Reaper in tow. I think that should suffice for a mental picture of relentless power clearing the way, especially if Mrs. H. was known to be Grim 😉.

Of course, didn’t daVinci7E0EFECC-040A-4160-BE2E-4DB3C8A038A5.jpeg draw a helo?
 
I listen to a wide variety of things, but primarily instrumental with no words to distract, when I am working out or at the laptop.

Enjoy this arrangement with your earbuds in while you watch. Good YouTube channel to follow for instrumental covers.

 
That review killed me. I scared the dogs laughing at the 'guess he's lost that loving feeling'. I also had to look up jingoistic. Generally, I think I have a decent vocabulary but not reading that review.

I did like it. Was it realistic? No, like Top Gun pilots wouldn't recognize the name Maverick on his aviator jacket right before they manhandle him out of the bar, come on. But it DIDN'T matter. It had no politics, unlike the review, and it wasn't asking me to be intellectual or seek some greater life lessons. It was purely fun. And the camaraderie was excellent. I can't wait to see it again.

Check out VAL on Prime Video. I didn't know anything about Val Kilmer's medical condition in real life. My sister pointed out how well they were able to bring him in as an actor despite the fact that he couldn't really speak at the time. As soon as we got home from the movie, we watched the documentary which is narrated by his son. It is excellent.

Remind me not to invite Brett to any get-together, that guy is a wet blanket.
 
Just for fun -


I showed DH this video, and he noted one of the comments about “this never gets old.” He agreed with that, that it never, ever got old. Of all the cool accolades and things he accumulated over the years as part of the “I love me” collection (universal military term for plaques, shadow boxes, framed citations, etc.), the sole thing that sits on his desk is the hook from the tail hook assembly from the F-14 he got his 1000th trap with. He got quite a few more after that.

Thinking about all the student naval aviators in the pipeline and wishing them luck tonight, and for no particular reason, the will to persevere and get through the inevitable waiting periods. It will be worth it.

For our wannabees here, there is a reason for all the colored shirts and vests on the flight deck. Have some fun and research the color codes and nicknames. (Here’s a hint: https://allhands.navy.mil/Stories/Display-Story/Article/1840350/grapes/)
 
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Capt MJ said:
Just for fun -


I showed DH this video, and he noted one of the comments about “this never gets old.” He agreed with that, that it never, ever got old. Of all the cool accolades and things he accumulated over the years as part of the “I love me” collection (universal military term for plaques, shadow boxes, framed citations, etc.), the sole thing that sits on his desk is the hook from the tail hook assembly from the F-14 he got his 1000th trap with. He got quite a few more after that.

Thinking about all the student naval aviators in the pipeline and wishing them luck tonight, and for no particular reason, the will to persevere and get through the inevitable waiting periods. It will be worth it.

For our wannabees here, there is a reason for all the colored shirts and vests on the flight deck. Have some fun and research the color codes and nicknames. (Here’s a hint: https://allhands.navy.mil/Stories/Display-Story/Article/1840350/grapes/)
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Can we see the hook?? That’s AWESOME!
 
I have lots of "gear" from the annual Tailhook symposium which primarily consists of shirts.

Yeah I'm a SWO but work is work and working at a symposium with good parties is tough duty but
someone has to do it.
 
OldRetSWO said:
I have lots of "gear" from the annual Tailhook symposium which primarily consists of shirts.

Yeah I'm a SWO but work is work and working at a symposium with good parties is tough duty but
someone has to do it.
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Perhaps a SAF resource table is needed. I’d volunteer, because I think the culture is past the “bad stuff” from several years ago.
 
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