Best and Worst Movie Pilots

[Coalcat1]

Most superhuman pilot of all time:  Dude in redtails being hit in a HO with the 262 and not getting his cockpit repainted red

I think that he had his 30mms replaced with 7.92s 

[Kenne]

well 'best' and 'worst' pilots in film is just a reflection of a technical advisor.(TA)

that being said the most cringing I have done is when fighter pilots fly without the mask and/or goggles on.
red tails comes to mind.

the best IMHO is BoB..they always had the goggles down and their mask on and the officers
wore white gloves and the NCOs leather gloves.
(however, when Archie bailed  out and landed in that green house, he should have been cut up.
however, that was balanced out because he lost his shoes in the jump

[Meatwad]

Ohhhh pilots.  I thought this thread was about best and worst movie plots

 

[kilo2]

Best: Oliva Wilde in Tron Legacy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhpqMWFbGC4

Worst: Jek Porkins of course

[caldera]

Porkins got it from behind.   

[Blinder]

Best movie pilot ever! HANDS DOWN!!




TED STRYKER



It wasn't Ted's fault. George Zip didn't know how to follow simple directions! .... We have documents.

[Brooke]

Among the best:

Ernst Kessler (The Great Waldo Pepper)
Pappy Boyington (Baa, Baa Black Sheep TV series)

[JimmyC]

Best..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJZ5x-zUx28



worst.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBvWoT_s-R8

maybe not skills wise..just a ferkin nutter...lol

come to think about it..they are both nuts!

[SlipKnt]

Best = Randy Quaid in Independence Day...  Will Smith a close second.

Worst = Val Kilmer in Top Gun.  EVERYONE knew that should have been Maverick's name on the plaque!

[Nathan60]

Best..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJZ5x-zUx28



worst.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBvWoT_s-R8

maybe not skills wise..just a ferkin nutter...lol

come to think about it..they are both nuts!

lol found this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRd0Qp7Fsn8

[guncrasher]

Just as in real life, in the movies everybody loves the fighter pilots. However not all fighter jocks are created equal. Who do YOU think are the best and worst fighter pilots out of any film you've seen?

This can include historical and modern films, SciFi, hell, even fantasy if you can argue it as being a fighter pilot.

Best: Wedge Antilles, the Star Wars Original Trilogy. Only one man in film survived attacking TWO Death Stars AND managed to take down an Imperial Walker. And in a series where some pilots get a little supernatural help, he did it completely on his own.

Worst: Trudy Chacón, Avatar. I'm ignoring the fact that Avatar was a godawful film that tossed Pocahontas and Fern Gully into a blender and strained out the best parts of both, and focusing on one particular character: Besides the fact that with all its special effects budget Michelle Rodriguez was STILL more lifeless than the CGI characters, she's probably hands down THE dumbest fighter pilot in the history of film. Despite having a faster and more maneuverable ship than the bad guys, she decides to spend the entire fight hovering her fighter RIGHT IN THE FORWARD KILLZONE OF THE GIANT GUNSHIP. Just like anyone dumb enough to HO a Mosquito or 110 in the Mains, she DESERVED to die. The aliens riding the giant space pterodactyls showed a better understanding of air combat tactics!

well see the thing about criticizing how pilots fly in a movie is kindda dumb.  for example:

trying to criticize Mellish from saving private ryan for not stabbing the german soldier on the leg or stomach when he pulled out his bayonet which caused him to die.  you can say he did something dumb, on the other hand the scrip called for him to do exactly what he did.  and he was supposed to die.

same thing with Trudy Chacon.  the reason she was in the kill zone is because that's how the scrip was written.  so it's not really that she was bad pilot, heck she probably has never flown any type of aircraft.  however that's how the scrip was written.

so basically when it comes to movies, it's not fair to compare how pilots flew but more like how the scrip was written.

another example.  in top gun, Hollywood had just graduated from top gun school and yet he lasted something like 2 or 3 seconds in a fight against the migs.  Iceman on the other hand fought 5 of them by himself while maverick was trying to figure out "his true self".  so the scrip made hollywood look really bad, Iceman really good, but maverick awesome.  even though the better pilot was Iceman.


semp

[Saxman]

well see the thing about criticizing how pilots fly in a movie is kindda dumb.  for example:

trying to criticize Mellish from saving private ryan for not stabbing the german soldier on the leg or stomach when he pulled out his bayonet which caused him to die.  you can say he did something dumb, on the other hand the scrip called for him to do exactly what he did.  and he was supposed to die.

same thing with Trudy Chacon.  the reason she was in the kill zone is because that's how the scrip was written.  so it's not really that she was bad pilot, heck she probably has never flown any type of aircraft.  however that's how the scrip was written.

so basically when it comes to movies, it's not fair to compare how pilots flew but more like how the scrip was written.

another example.  in top gun, Hollywood had just graduated from top gun school and yet he lasted something like 2 or 3 seconds in a fight against the migs.  Iceman on the other hand fought 5 of them by himself while maverick was trying to figure out "his true self".  so the scrip made hollywood look really bad, Iceman really good, but maverick awesome.  even though the better pilot was Iceman.


semp

This isn't about production, or the research put in by the crew (or lack thereof). I don't mean this as a meta commentary on the film-making process. This is meant to be a judgment based on what we see ON SCREEN.

Plot and script-induced stupidity is a whole other conversation altogether.

[Slate]

   John Wayne in flying tigers and then the boys of Baa Baa Black sheep really got me into WW2 aircraft.

   The worst would be John Belushi that boy was just dam crazy! 

[Muzzy]

Best:

Kara Thrace, who not only executed one of the best carrier landings ever seen (rammed a friendly fighter that was deadstick and flew them both back to the CV, landed on a crowded deck, walked away smoking a cigar) but also learned to be a good wingman (let her wingie take the shot on the cylon equivalent of the Red Baron even though they had a bet going). Close second for Lee Adama for his version of a Death Star trench run.

Hiccup Horrible Haddock for pulling off the best rope ever filmed. (weakened the wing root, dragged him vertical, reversed on him, HO, then made him auger in a dive. Extra cool points for flying the dragonized equivalent of a K4.)

Also Best: Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett in Pear Harbor, because anyone who can beat a zeke in a P-40 coming off the deck into a turn fight has gotta be one awesome pilot....right? right?

Also Also best: Will Smith for flying an F-18 through the Grand Canyon at high speed.

Just added to my list of wingmen: Rocket Raccoon, for constructing then flying his own getaway vehicle in the middle of an improvised jailbreak, and going out of his way to save the civilians he was dissing at the beginning of the movie.  Also because of raccoon.

Honorable mention: Movie Jim Lovell for flying with an elephant tied to his back in Apollo 13.

Worst: Luke Skywalker. Nice shooting but is only a good pilot because of magic. Also crashed twice in Empire Strikes Back.

Also worst: The entire Nova Corps. There's a time to hold on, and a time to disengage and reset, fellas.

Also also worst: Gold Leader in Episode IV...totally lost it under fire and really should have let Gold Five run the show.

[Stampf]

Best:  Pipz Priller over the Normandy Beaches in 'The Longest Day'. - "Ah the Luftwaffe has had it's glorious moment!" - while cackling like a madman.!


Worst: The Black Falcon - got himself capped by a handgun.