A-4 Skyhawk
The A-4 Skyhawk was featured as an aggressor aircraft in the film Top Gun. Producers reimbursed the US Navy $8,600 an hour for flight time used in the movie.
A Skyhawk from the Israeli Air Force is featured the opening scene of the film The Sum of All Fears and on the cover of the first and second editions of the novel the movie was based on.
A-6 Intruder
The 1991 film Flight of the Intruder centered around two naval aviators during the Vietnam War that take their A-6 Intruder on an unauthorized bombing raid on Hanoi.
A-10 Thunderbolt II
The Transformers toy character of Wingblade as a robot and A-10 Thunderbolt II by Hasbro
The evil Gobots character Bad Boy and the heroic Transformers character Powerglide both disguise themselves as A-10 Thunderbolt IIs.
The popularity of the A-10s in the 2007 Transformers film led to the toy company releasing a minor character named Wingblade and another called Powerglide, that turned into A-10s.
A-10s were featured as the aircraft used by the human resistance to the machines of Skynet in the 2009 film Terminator Salvation.
A6M Zero
The A6M Zero was featured in the movies The Final Countdown, Pearl Harbor, and Tora Tora Tora. The Zero was also depicted in the 1976 film Midway; however real Zeros were not used. Instead F4F Wilcats were painted as Japanese aircraft and used instead.
Adam A500
The Adam A500 was featured in the 2006 film Miami Vice and was intended to be the drug runners aircraft of choice.
Adam Aircraft CEO Rick Adam stated at the time the aircraft was cast in the film, in a self-promotional press release:
The Adam Aircraft A500 is the ideal airplane for 'Miami Vice'. The A500 signature twin-boom profile reaches the level of high style and high performance necessary to meet the standards of a Michael Mann production, and the footage we've seen shows off the airplane's extraordinary look, along with its superior speed and maneuverability.
AH-64 Apache
The AH-64 Apache had a major role in the movie Fire Birds (or Wings of the Apache).
The Transformers character Spinister disguises himself as an Apache helicopter.
Antonov An-225
For the fictional An-500 aircraft seen in the film 2012 see List of fictional aircraft
The Decepticon character Jetstorm from the 2007 Transformers movie line is based on the Antonov An-225. This toy shares its body design with Cybertron Jetfire, Classics Fireflight and Universe Air Raid.
Avro Ashton
An Avro Ashton, in its six-engined, Olympus testbed form appeared as the fictitious Phoenix airliner in Cone of Silence (1960), based on the novel of the same name by David Beaty, a former BOAC pilot. This concerned the take-off problems of the Phoenix, and the subsequent accident investigation; it was based on two take off accidents to the de Havilland Comet.
Avro Canada CF-100
The Tintin comic book character drawn by Albert Weinberg, Major Dan Cooper, was a RCAF test pilot, predominately flying the CF-100.
Avro Lancaster
Len Deighton's novel Bomber describes an attack by Royal Air Force Avro Lancasters on Krefeld, Germany during which a series of unplanned incidents leads to the carpet bombing of a small town nearby.
The Lancaster was central to the second half of the British film The Dam Busters. This film is a dramatisation of the real-life Operation Chastise, which included the forming of the real-life RAF 617 Squadron commanded by Wing Commander Guy Gibson, who was awarded the VC, and the real-life bombing of the Mohne, Eder and Sorpe dams in Germany to interrupt water and hydro-electric power supplies to Nazi munitions factories. The film is based upon the books The Dam Busters by Paul Brickhill and Enemy Coast Ahead by Guy Gibson.
Avro Vulcan
The Avro Vulcan figures in Anthony Gray's 1965 novel The Penetrators, in which an RAF officer attempts to demonstrate a weakness in the North American strategic defense system NORAD by launching a mock attack involving nine Vulcans and some Vickers Valiant tankers for inflight refuelling.
The Avro Vulcan is also used in the Bond film Thunderball.
B-1 Lancer
The 1983 James Bond film Never Say Never Again features a cruise missile launch from a B-1 Lancer (although a sequence in which cruise missiles are loaded onto the B-1 was filmed with a Concorde SST substituting for the B-1's undercarriage).
The Tranformers Decepticon named Windsweeper disguises himself as a B-1 Lancer.
The B-1 appeared in the movie Real Genius as the carrier for a laser.[citation needed
B-2 Spirit
The B-2 Spirit appeared in the films The Sum of All Fears and Independence Day.
B-17 Flying Fortress
The B-17 Flying Fortress was the subject of the movie Memphis Belle.
B-17s also figured prominently in the Oscar-winning 1949 film Twelve O'Clock High starring Gregory Peck. The film focuses on aviation leadership and the human toll in the USAAF strategy of daylight precision bombing. The US Air Force cooperated in the production of the film, loaning aircraft to the producers and allowing filming at Eglin Air Force Base and at Ozark Field. The film featured an actual crash landing of a B-17, piloted by veteran stunt pilot Paul Maniz. The film led to a TV series of the same name, again featuring the B-17.
The B-17 figures prominently in the book KG 200 by J.D. Gilman and J. Clive about the secret Luftwaffe unit KG 200, which tested and flew many captured Allied aircraft.
B-25 Mitchell
The B-25 Mitchell was the focus of the second half of the 2001 film Pearl Harbor, although critics complained that the bomber and its role were being depicted inaccurately.
The B-25 is featured in the 1961 novel Catch-22 translated into the 1970 Catch-22 (film) which had a large number of film unit B-25s in flying condition.
The B-25 also had feature roles in the movies: Thirty Seconds over Tokyo (1944) (one pilot's account of the Doolittle Raid), Hanover Street (1979) based a fictional B-25 unit stationed in England, Forever Young (1992), following a B-25 test pilot's story both in the past and present.
B-29 Superfortress
The B-29 Superfortress has played an important role in several Hollywood films, particularly as that dubbed the Enola Gay which dropped the first atomic bomb. The Enola Gay was depicted in Above and Beyond and The Beginning or the End. Film makers also used the only B-29 still flying in 1983 in the movie The Right Stuff to recreate the launch of the Bell X-1 for the first supersonic flight.
B-36
The Convair B-36 featured prominently in Paramount's Strategic Air Command (1955), starring James Stewart (a real life bomber pilot who was then still in the Air Force Reserve). The film features many good aerial shots of B-36s and was primarily filmed at Carswell AFB, Texas and in the Tampa, Florida area. One shot that was particularly difficult to shoot was where Stewart's character, a baseball player was standing on a baseball field and a B-36 flew overhead, casting a shadow over him and symbolizing his coming recall to active service. In the film this character is forced to crash land his B-36 in the Arctic.
B-52 Stratofortress
The 1957 Karl Malden film Bombers B-52 gives a fictional account of the B-52's introduction into service at Castle Air Force Base.
A B-52 was a focal point of the novel Trinity's Child, by William Prochnau, and the TV film adaptation By Dawn's Early Light.
The B-52 was also a key part of Stanley Kubrick's 1964 black comedy film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb and in A Gathering of Eagles.
Bell X-1
The Bell X-1 was depicted early in the film The Right Stuff. The movie showed the historic flight of the X-1 becoming the first aircraft to break the sound barrier. This achievement helped usher in the US space program that was the subject of the rest of the film.
Bell 47
The 1950s American television series Whirlybirds starred a pair of Bell 47 helicopters. The association with Whirlybirds continues to be used in order to promote helicopters and the Bell 47 in particular. A Bell 47 was also one of the 'stars' of the Australian television series Skippy the Bush Kangaroo.
The Bell 47, in its miltary configuration as a H-13 Sioux, was central to the television series M*A*S*H, as well as the movie of the same name.
Bell 206
Chopper Squad was a 1970s Australian television series about a Bell 206 JetRanger used for rescue work in Sydney. The helicopter used was an actual rescue helicopter operated by the Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter Service.
Boeing 314
The Ken Follett novel Night Over Water is the story of a group of people who are travelling from England to the United States in a Boeing 314 at the beginning of World War II.
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 serves as the platform for the real-life E-3 Sentry, an airborne warning and control aircraft. In the novel "Debt of Honor", the E-3s operated by the US were high priority targets for the air forces of Japan.
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 was featured in the film Executive Decision as the location of a terrorist hijacking. It was also prominent in the novel and the film The Sum of All Fears as the National Airborne Operations Center during a nuclear showdown with Russia.
A 747-146 was the title subject of the movie Air Force One, portraying the real 747-200 that transports the President of the United States.
The 747 was depicted several times in the best selling novel "Debt of Honor". Most prominently, the aircraft was used in a suicide attack on the US Capitol building, killing the President, most of the cabinet and the congress who were present for a joint session of the United States Congress. This event laid the premise for the novel "Executive Orders", another best seller.
Boeing 767
The Boeing E-767 (a commercial 767 configured as an airborne early warning and control aircraft), was central to the plot in the novel Debt of Honor. During a war between the US and Japan, the E-767s were considered valuable assets to be protected by the operating Japanese and high priority targets for the US military.
Bcker Bestmann
In the film The Great Escape, the characters played by James Garner and Donald Pleasance steal a Bcker B 181 Bestmann from a German airfield in a bid to fly to neutral Switzerland, however the aircraft develops engine problems and crashes.
CASA 2.111
Several ex-Spanish Air Force CASA 2.111s were used as "stand-ins" to depict German Heinkel He 111 bombers in the film Battle of Britain.
Concorde
The Concorde was a central feature in the disaster film The Concorde ... Airport '79. A French Concorde was leased for filming from the manufacturers.
The Transformers character Silverbolt turns into a Corcorde.
Dassault Mirage 2000
The Mirage 2000-5 featured prominently in the 2005 French film Les Chevaliers du Ciel (The Knights of the Sky in literal translation, released as Sky Fighters in English-speaking territories).
The Transformers character Needlenose disguises himself as a Dassault Mirage 2000.
de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver
The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver was central to the film Six Days Seven Nights. The actual flying in the movie was done by its star, Harrison Ford, who enjoyed flying the Beaver so much that he bought the plane after filming was completed.
de Havilland Fox Moth
The novel Round the Bend by Nevil Shute is the story of two men, both British Licenced Aircraft Engineers. A large number of different aircraft types, both fictitious and real, feature in the book. The narrator and one of the protagonists of the story is Tom Cutter, and the novel details his efforts to establish an air charter business in Bahrain immediately after World War II. His first aircraft is a de Havilland Fox Moth; it is later joined by several other aircraft as the business expands, mostly fictitious, but among them a Percival Proctor.
de Havilland Hornet Moth
The novel Hornet Flight by Ken Follett is a thriller of the Resistance against the Nazi occupation of Denmark in World War II. In the novel a de Havilland Hornet Moth is used by the protagonists to fly from Denmark to the United Kingdom with information about a German radar system. The author drew inspiration from an actual flight that took place during World War II.
de Havilland Mosquito
De Havilland Mosquitos feature prominently in the 1964 film 633 Squadron alongside actors Cliff Robertson and Harry Andrews. The film was notable for its use of genuine, airworthy aircraft, rather than models, for many of the scenes.
Mosquitos also play the title role of the 1969 film Mosquito Squadron, starring David McCallum and Charles Gray.
de Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland Vampire was central to the plot of the novella, The Shepherd by British novelist Frederick Forsyth, the story of an RAF pilot attempting to fly home for Christmas from RAF Celle, Germany to RAF Lakenheath on Christmas Eve 1957. The fact that the DH.100 was not fitted with ejection seats until about 10 years later, and hence was a major challenge to bail out of, is an important element of the story.
Vampire jets also feature in the 1966 novel Shooting Script by former RAF pilot and thriller writer Gavin Lyall.
A French Air Force Vampire appears in the 1954 French-language comic La grande menace by Jacques Martin, the first featuring investigative journalist Guy Lefranc; it was destroyed while engaging an unidentified helicopter.
EB-66
The film Bat*21 featured an EB-66 being shot down over North Vietnam in the beginning of the movie. The rest movie depicted the real life events surrounding the rescue of LTC Iceal Hambleton, who was the only survivor of the 6 man crew.
Eurocopter Tiger
A prototype Eurocopter EC 665 Tiger attack helicopter played a starring role in the 1995 James Bond movie GoldenEye. In the movie, a prototype Tiger is stolen by Gen. Arkady Ourumov and his associate Xenia Onatopp as part of a plot to steal the GoldenEye control disk for the Janus crime syndicate.
F-4 Phantom II
The Gobots character Mach 3 and the Transformers character Fireflight both turn into F-4 Phantom IIs.
F4F Wildcat
F4F Wildcats left over from World War 2 were used to film the critical aerial battle scenes in the movie Midway.
F4U Corsair
The Chance Vought F4U Corsair was a regularly featured aircraft in the television series Baa Baa Black Sheep (later renamed Black Sheep Squadron).
F-5 Tiger
The F-5 Tiger played the part of an enemy aircraft in Top Gun.
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat was the central to the movie Top Gun. The aviation themed film was such a success in creating interest in naval aviation that the US Navy, who assisted with the film, set up recruitment desks outside some theaters. Producers paid the US Navy $886,000 as reimbursement for flight time of aircraft in the film. An hour of flight time for the F-14 was billed at $7,600.
It also appeared in the film The Final Countdown and the television series JAG. The Tomcat was a central part of the Stephen Coonts novel Final Flight. Four F-14s were later shown in the movie Executive Decision.
F-15 Eagle
The Transformers characters Thundercracker, Skywarp and Starscream as F-15 Eagle jets in a Marvel Comics story
The F-15 Eagle is one of the most recognized modern fighters; this has led to, or perhaps even been aided by, its common use in children's toys. The Transformers toy line and media has featured numerous characters who turn into F-15 Eagles, the most notable being the villain Starscream in 1984 and a group of similar Decepticons, the Seekers Acid Storm, Thundercracker, Skywarp and Sunstorm. Although completely unrelated design to the others, the Autobot Air Raid also disguises himself as an F-15.
The F-15 is featured in the film Air Force One. The Eagle was also shown in advertisements for the film Thirteen Days. The ads were withdrawn when it came to the attention of New Line Cinema that the F-15, which first flew in 1972, was out of place for a movie set in 1962. This was problematic for New Line who had termed the film a "by-the-numbers recreation" and "close to perfect." "Every ship, plane, truck and craft that moves in the film is absolutely authentic to the time period," said Steve Elzer, a spokesman for New Line. Mr. Elzer said the advertisement was created by an outside agency.
Air battles between F-15s were depicted in the novel Debt of Honor. The battles were not only significant to the plot, but unusual in that both sides were operating the same aircraft against each other.
F-16 Fighting Falcon
The F-16 Fighting Falcon was featured in the film The Sum of All Fears. The Falcon was also one of the stars of the movie Iron Eagle. The U.S. Air Force refused to assist with production of the film because they found the plot about a teenager flying the F-16 into a foreign country to be "a little off the wall".
The Transformers Aerialbot Skydive and Decepticon Dreadwind disguise themselves as F-16s.
F/A-18 Hornet
The F/A-18 Hornet appeared multiple times in the film Tears of the Sun, most notably in the final, climactic battle, helping to save the surviving SEAL team members.
The F/A-18F, a two seat variant, was featured in the film "Behind Enemy Lines". The movie centers around a Super Hornet being shot down over Bosnia. The film led to a lawsuit by Scott O'Grady, a US Air Force pilot who was downed over Bosnia and spent several days evading capture as did the movie characters. O'Grady alleged that the film was based on his experience.
F-22 Raptor
The F-22 Raptor has been featured in numerous books, such as Tom Clancy's Debt of Honor in which a lengthy mission by F-22s dominates the last part of the book; and Clive Cussler's Dark Watch. In Cussler's book, an F-22 embarks on a secret mission to take out a Syrian foe. In Debt of Honor, the F-22 represented the newest in stealth technology being used by the United States against advanced Boeing E-767 AWACS aircraft that were being operated by Japan.
The Raptor has appeared in movies as well. Despite appearing in the 2003 Hulk film, the F-22 made its major Hollywood debut in the 2007 film Transformers as the form taken by the Decepticon character Starscream in addition to numerous USAF fighters that engaged during the initial and climactic battles. The movie crew was allowed to film actual Raptors in flight, unlike previous computer-generated appearances, because of the military's support of director Michael Bay. The Raptors were filmed at Edwards Air Force Base. The real Raptor made its next big screen appearance in Iron Man.
Movie Flight Plan
