The name Top Gun is mainly associated with the films of this title. Hides underneath the elite American military pilots school. Its "graduates" took part, inter alia, in the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm.
Why was Top Gun school founded? In this case, the question "why" is much more important than "how". And all because of the Vietnam War, in which the United States engaged on a huge scale. During the hostilities, it was first of all noticed that despite the undoubted technological advantage, the American aviation suffered severe losses . Their scale was downright alarming. Numerous pilots and equipment were lost.
In addition, the effectiveness of the US pilots left a lot to be desired. While during World War II in Japan it was as much as 15:1 (shots down), and during the war in Korea it ranged from 4:1 to even 14:1 (depending on the source), in Vietnam these rates were frighteningly low. They were just 2.5:1, and in some cases even below 1:1! And this was in a situation where the opponents had outdated MiG-17 planes that did not even exceed the speed of sound! The world power could not afford such a disgrace.
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A school for aces is founded
Something had to be done about it. To this end, in 1968 the Naval Air Systems Command commissioned Captain Frank W. Ault, an experienced pilot, to investigate the matter and prepare an appropriate report. The captain did not play with sentiment. In its 480-page Air-to-Air Missile System Capability Review he ruthlessly pointed out all the shortcomings. The main problem was the air-to-air missiles that were being introduced at that time. In those years, it was intended to end the risky direct combat in the air. For this purpose, rockets began to be used on a larger scale. These, however, were tragically ineffective. For example, the AIM-7 Sparrow guided radar hit the target only once every 10 firings. A catastrophe.
But Frank Ault also noted significant shortcomings in pilot training . He suggested the need to make the entire training system more realistic. First of all - taking into account other types of enemy planes and the tactics they use. The foundations for the new training program were created. Classes began in March 1969. The students were placed at the Naval Air Station base in Miramar, California, sometimes called Fightertown.
The pilots delegated to the Top Gun school then returned to their squadrons and passed on the acquired knowledge to others.
Intensive training has paid off. The pilots delegated to the Top Gun school then returned to their squadrons and passed on the acquired knowledge to others. It took 3 years, but the indicators have definitely improved. In 1972, they jumped to 12:1. On July 21, 1972, a new school, named Navy Fighter Weapons School, became an independent unit. It is the NFWS that bears the "nickname" Top Gun . It was created during the first training sessions in 1969.
Read also:Why did the Americans lose the war in Vietnam?
Evolution of Navy Fighter Weapons School
Over the years, the famous school has adapted to changing circumstances. In 1994, missions to attack ground targets were included in the training program. Of course, purely "air" training was also not forgotten - for example with MiGs of Soviet production as opponents. Later, especially in the context of hostilities in Iraq and Afghanistan, the need to train pilots in air-to-surface missions was even more noticed. Increasingly, attention was paid to the need to adapt the training system to attacking enemy ships.
The students were placed at the Naval Air Station base in Miramar, California, sometimes called Fightertown.
1996 brought one significant change:the school had to move. Exactly On May 29, 1996 4 F-14 Tomcat and 12 F / A-18 Super Hornet departed from the base in Miramar . Their target was a new base:located near Reno Naval Air Station Fallon . It was a significant qualitative change. While in Miramar the pilots had only just over 23,000 acres, in Fallon the area was over 10 times larger:as much as 240,000 acres. Completely new possibilities were opening up for the pilots.
At the same time, the school was incorporated into the structures of the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center. Currently, it is the Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center, which, apart from Top Gun, also includes Carrier Airborne Early Warning Weapons School and the Navy Rotary Wing Weapons School.
What is the training like?
STFI courses ( strike fighter tactics instructor ) . The course takes approximately 9 weeks. It presents the current missions, both air-to-air and air-to-ground, and the tactics used in them (they are constantly updated). A total of 80 hours of lectures and outings in which students have the opportunity to test against the instructors are foreseen .
It must be emphasized, however, that no one graduates from this school "once and for all". Usually in the fall at Top Gun a kind of "postgraduate" program is organized. Even instructors then return to the classroom to update their knowledge and learn to use freshly learned information in the air. Interestingly, the school also offers exercises in the field of emergency operations, the so-called SAR - search and rescue .
Nobody leaves Top Gun School "once and for all"
The ongoing technological leap is making US pilots' machines increasingly complex. They are simply packed with electronics, which the first adepts of Top Gun could not even dream of. There are also newer and newer types of weapons. As a result, mastering a new plane may take more time than it used to be. Therefore, in the late 2000s, it was decided to extend the duration of the courses from 9 weeks to 13 weeks. Besides, for the same reasons, teachers also have to learn. Their knowledge is said to be comparable to that of engineers responsible for the production of fighters.
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What equipment do Top Gun students fly on?
During the decades of Top Gun's existence, military technology has advanced significantly. At the very beginning of the school's operation, flew airplanes such as the F-4 Phantom II, F-8 Crusader and A-4 Skyhawk . The beginning of their development dates back to the 1950s. All three types were used quite extensively during the Vietnam War. In the 1980s, , when the first movie "Top Gun" was released, among others, F-14 Tomcat although its first flight took place in 1970. Anyway, it was this fighter that we saw on the big screen. On the real battlefield, the F-14 took, among others participation in Operation Desert Storm and in activities in Bosnia.
The current times are mainly the F-16, F / A-18 Hornet, F / A-18 Super Hornet.
The present times are mainly F-16, F / A-18 Hornet, F / A-18 Super Hornet airplanes . The former, the F-16 Fighting Falcon, played an even greater role in the Desert Storm than the F-14. Technically, it can even withstand 9G overload.
We should also mention the F-35 known to us in the context of the interests of the Polish Ministry of Defense. It is a fifth generation multi-role aircraft weighing more than 13 tons without load and almost 30 tons with full load. Its maximum speed is Mach 1.6. It is one of the planes with the cover made in the stealth technology. It was equipped with AIM-120 AMRAAM and AIM-9X Sidewinder air-to-air missiles. It can also carry, among others laser guided bombs. Its latest version is F-35 Lightning II.
Read also:The most spectacular operations of Polish GROM commandos that you had no idea about
Top Gun:Maverick
In turn the "star" of the latest movie "Top Gun:Maverick" is the F / A-18 Super Hornet . The filmmakers paid US for the use of this aircraft. Navy over $ 11,000 an hour! There was, however, a catch. Just in case, it is stated that Tom Cruise is not allowed to touch any instruments! Maybe his name coincided with cruise missile ? Seriously, Department of Defense regulations prohibit non-military personnel from using military equipment, with only very few exceptions.
The name Top Gun is mainly associated with the films of this title. In fact, it hides an elite US military pilot school.
So in the film the actors were actually sitting behind the pilots. At the same time, they had to undergo training in catapulting and the art of survival at sea. The former explains why the F-35 was not used in "Top Gun:Maverick":it is a single-seater that the actors could not pilot by themselves in any way.
History has made it clear that air control is often the key to success. The United States is well aware of this, which is why it is constantly investing in the development of military aviation. But airplanes cannot win the war on their own. They need people. Perfectly trained pilots. Therefore - unless they are replaced by artificial intelligence one day - the Top Gun school can be sure of its position in a system that has been operating like a well-oiled machine for years.
Bibliography
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- G. Hall, Top Gun:the Navy's Fighter Weapons School , Presidio Press, Novato 1987.
- K. Lange, Ingrained Evolution:How TOPGUN Keeps Its Edge , defense.gov, accessed May 26, 2022.
- K. Lange, It Started in a Parking Lot:TOPGUN's History Revealed , www.defense.gov, accessed May 26, 2022.
- A. Lightbody, J. Poyer, The complete book of top gun:America's flying aces , Beekman House, New York 1990.
- R. Llinares, Strike. Beyond Top Gun , Zenith Press, St. Paul 2006.
- TOPGUN Edge of Aviation , defense.gov, accessed May 26, 2022.
- D. J. Zimmerman, Top Gun:50 Years of Naval Air Superiority , Quarto Publishing Group, Beverly 2019.