Much respect. I was a "Tomcat fixer" (IWT) in the 80's. We lost a beloved RIO, LCDR Jim Bob "Nacho" Segars, in a F-14A flat spin crash. They were running Phoenix rails and fairings sans missile (NATOPS warning now). They were in a 1 v 1 and had compressor stall on port engine that created excess yaw and stalled the starboard engine. The last thing we heard on the radio was him calling out "Eject! Eject! Eject!". The canopy twisted as it came off, due to the flat spin, and bent the mechanism on the top of the RIO's ejection seat as it came off. His seat fired, but only traveled half way up the rails as the top "pin" would have signaled the canopy was gone, but in it's bent state, signaled the canopy was still attached. He and the bird impacted the ground together. We all cried. He was a much loved officer that had the respect and love of all the crew. I still think of him all the time and it's been many decades ago.

The F-14 had its issues but it is undeniable it is one of the most iconic and influential planes ever. And, even to this day, one of the best looking planes out there.

My dad, a Vietnam vet, did two tours. One on the USS Constellation and one on the USS Kitty Hawk. He was getting out of the Navy as the F14 was just coming into service. All of his time was spent with the F4.

Great explanation -- thanks. The clip you showed of the ejection sequence is of a mishap we had when I was onboard USS Independence -- 95/96 timeframe if I recall correctly. Thankfully, both aircrew survived with little more than a good case of being pissed at the event. The bird was brought "downstairs" and repaired and a handful of deck guys received awards for their handling of the jet after the punch. Rumor had it that an ABHC climbed into the cockpit to shut it down since the engines were still going when the crew punched. IIRC, both landed in the water and were recovered by HS-14. Thanks again -- would love to chat with you sometime!

My grandfather used to take me out on the departure end of the runway at NAS Miramar in the 80’s when I was a kid. Those F-14s were a sight to see. The roar as they ripped overhead was deafening and my grin was as big as it could get.

If a kid hasn't seen Top Gun, his parents should be charged with neglect 🤣

Thanks for the great explanation. I was on the Carl Visnon from 1983 to 1987 as an ABF (grape). The F-14 was my favorite aircraft. Most people have not had the opportunity to stand next to one of these aircraft, and to realize just how massive they are. A loaded F-14 was 22 tons, and roughly the size of a Greyhound Bus. It is a wonder that they could move around the sky the way they did. I never tired of watching them take off and land. I remember that, despite their size and power, with the relatively high bypass engines and variable geometry exhaust nozzle they were the gentlest aircraft to stand behind on a cold day when they were idling on the deck. I witnessed 1 ejection event while onboard. It was during a night time recovery. I was at one of the starboard aft fueling stations. An F-14 came in and caught one of the wires, and then I saw the afterburners light up. Just about the time I was thinking "Hmm, that's odd" I heard the frump frump of the ejection seats. My jaw dropped open, and I received a mouth full of wadding from the ejection seat rockets. The RIO landed on the deck suffering a broken collar bone, and the pilot was safely recovered from the water with no injuries by one of the helicopters. I later found out that the arresting hook broke but had slowed the aircraft too much to take off again. I remember that an F-14 was sort of like a Harley Davidson in that it leaked every fluid that it contained. Twice I can remember being pissed on by a Tomcat during fueling. It was during the time that I was a fueling crew leader, and it is the crew leaders job to stand in the catwalk and operate the fueling station while your two man crew were on deck fueling aircraft. If the plane captain didn't signal you to stop fueling in time, the tanks would over pressurize and dump out the fuel jettison ports. If the tail of the aircraft happened to be directly over the fueling station, guess where that fuel went? Right on the operator. It would soak you to the point that your boots would even be full of fuel. You would then have to run in to take a shower and change clothes. We were only issued 1 pair of boots, so we just had to dump them out and wear wet boots. None of this effects the fondness I have for the F-14. The first I knew of the model being removed from service was when I ran across a KZfaq video showing the decommissioning ceremony of the last F-14 in Naval service. I had no idea that this was happening. By the end of the video I was in tears.

I was a Structural Mechanic in VF32 from 1990 to 1994. We worked on the A models and they were a maintenance nightmare. I love the F14, my favorite fighter but working on them was hell. I worked for Northrop Grumman when they discontinued the F14, sad to see the go even though they took up a lot of my time keeping them flying. Retired in 2020 working on Blackhawks for the Army, but my true love was the F14.

I've been obsessed with the Tomcat since seeing Top Gun as a child. Even at 44 I still enjoy watching KZfaq videos about them.

I work for the railroad as a locomotive engineer. I view Unstoppable the same way you view Top Gun.

There's nothing better in a video than listening to someone who knows what he's taking about. And Ward does it perfectly. Opposite to some youtubers around. Congrats Ward.

My husband was a RIO in VF1 - his squadron was in Top Gun. It was a fun time in our life for sure. Your video popped up, I suppose because of Top Gun Maverick. We saw the movie yesterday and loved it.

AT1 Woods, NAS Miramar, VF-124 Gunfighters, F-14 Tomcat. "Any Time Baby" I miss those days :)

We lost a bird due to a flat spin while dog fighting an a-4. They were in a scissor maneuver when it happened. The bird only went 50 ft when it hit the ground. Unfortunately we lost our RIO on that flight. When the canopy jettisoned it bent the release pin for his ejection seat. The rockets did fire but the seat never released. The pilot made it our safely. Still remember that day very vividly.

Hi Wade. I only recently found your videos and thank you for posting them. I'm a civilian pilot (as a stubborn teen I didn't join the military) and had a good friend that flew as a RIO in your squadron, VF 34. He was a good guy and was unfortunately killed off of Cape Hatteras in 1994 right before deployment. His plane experienced a mid air collision and he and his pilot were killed instantly. The other fighter landed safely. Your videos made me think of him and how much we mourned his loss. Thanks for what you did, most people forget how dangerous it is because of the majesty it holds in the flying world. Keep the blue side up.

Being a navy special operator.. I am proud of you too sir you accomplished a lot 2000 hours and the F14 is a hell of an accomplishment.. God-bless you sir and maybe you continue to have Many hours in the air and you enjoy them awesome Sir God-bless and God-bless this nation and God-bless all our vets and our active military because they are the ones that keep us safe.. God-bless

I was active duty in the 80s. Battleships and Tomcats. What a navy it was!

Fascinating Ward! Now I need to re-watch Top Gun. It must be about 25 years since I’ve seen it :)

Nothing but respect here for a Tomcat pilot. My favorite fighter ever. And very good explanation of the scene and the actual flying. My flight instructor always says, "forget the hand, use rudder" for almost everything.

First of all, Thank You For Your Service Sir. Radar Intercept Officer. "C'mon Mav, do some of that pilot sh!t!" When by BFF of 43 years, since we were 13 years old, went to see Top Gun at the theater when it was first released, she went to see the guys...I went to see the F14's, tha take off and landing on an aircraft carrier and the dog fight scenes. Dad was a Marine and said the time he spent aboard an aircraft carrier and watching the intricate ballet of fighter jets being brought up to the flight deck, how disciplined the flight deck crew was every single take off and landing and just watching those bad ass pilots take off, do touch and go's and land was AMAZING. I miss my Dad and his stories. For the past 36 years i have wished for and dreamed of going up in the RIO seat just one time in my life. Wishing doesn't make it so...Thanks for sharing! ~ APRIL LIPKE

Your insight and expertise are priceless to anyone interested in aviation, aerodynamics, high-performance aircraft, or anyone who has ever dreamed of being a jet pilot had they not lost an eye at eight years old.

You want to hear something sad…. After I got back from my time in Afghanistan (VAW-117), i was invited to my high school to give a talk to seniors on what we did over there from 9/11 to just before Christmas 2001. I tried to use Top Gun as a reference. Not one kid knew what Top Gun was. Never felt so old.

Ward, I have completely fell into your rabbit hole and I just can't seem to get enough of your content. You're a natural presenter and explain things very clearly with outstanding tact. I'm thoroughly enjoying your channel. Thank you for your service sir, much respect.

I stumbled across your channel and ended up binge watching about four or five presentations at that time. I really enjoy the way you present things and find your take on things very interesting, informative and professional. I am a Vietnam era army veteran but was subsequently involved in Air Force and Navy related matters when I later worked on the Paveway II & III and other derivative programs for many years. Due to my civilian relationship with Air Force and Navy matters, I find your channel very intriguing and enjoy your presentations very much and have subscribed and look forward to more ‘war stories’.

You sir are reminiscent of the professional jet jocks who flew Red Flag training missions at Nellis during my time supporting in the mid 70's. I was a first term enlisted and looked up to you guys as the pinnacle our profession. Your stories bring life to those guys in my youthful memories.

I made the first F-14 flat spin ejection at Pax river in March 1976. Great description of Tomcat flat spin, only comment is the canopy did not hit my helmet. The canopy hovered over the aircraft for several seconds and tore 2 panels out of my fully inflated parachute canopy! I descended a bit faster than my pilot and we drifted over Hoopers Island on the eastern shore and I fetched up in a pine tree. I had a big rubber survival suit on and slide 70 feet to the ground and ran to a clearing where a Pax helo cabled me up 150 feet into the helo. We made 38 1/2 high eyeball out g turns before we ejected around 12,000 feet

Love revisiting old episodes. Thank you for your service. God’s blessings Ward. We love your content and perspectives.

As the daughter and only child of a WWII Vet thank you Sir for your service. My husband Frank(whose acct I post on) and really enjoy watching and listening to you! God bless you,,,, Patricia Gambino Harrington

I never will forget being a young sailor and watching my first Tomcat Landing. Having never seen one, I was astonished at the size and power of them.

Aussie fan, thank you for your service from a grunt who appreciated air support and loves the F-14. Even if I’ve never seen one up close and never would in my role, it was always the most fascinating fighter aircraft to me.

Thank you for your service and spending time teaching us your knowledge of the F-14 Tomcat that you’ve flown. It’s by far my favorite aircraft and not just because of top gun lol. I genuinely love the look and how it can fold/unfold her wings. Awesome stuff

Thanks for the DFCS mention - I was the Project manager for the development team @ GEC-Marconi ;-)

My husband was actually on the ship when the Tomcat crashed! It is something that he will never ever forget

I was a Plane Captain/AD on the A6-E Intruder when Top Gun came out. I pick that movie apart every time I watch it.

Great video. I was born in the 80s and as such the F14 was always one of my favourite aircraft. Saw Maverick last night, and the old girl has a proper star turn in the film! Was great to see.

This popped up randomly, but it's informative. Thank you for your service

My days in the Navy, among the F-14's aboard USS Nimitz as an AO, are among the best I ever spent. Watching the other aircraft from close up, none had that roar, that sexy look, the appearance that they ruled the sky's, and struck fear into the heart of any 'bogey' that they'd come up against. Photos I had taken of numerous launches and recovery's from Vulture's Row, are always the first thing people comment on when walking into the room. They remind me of days when I was young, and being in the Navy was all new and exciting. I was very sad when the political climate during Bush 2 pushed the F-14 into what in my mind was an early retirement. Having seen what Grumman had in store for the second generation F-14, the F-20 IIRC, I still think it was a monumental mistake in retiring them totally, letting the F-18 take their place. Certainly ground troops preferred the F-14, of for no other reason the fact that it could spend a lot more time on station in support roles, covering the boys from on high. While the F/A-18 is a decent aircraft it's no F-14. I served from 1985 to 1990, so I spent time among them both, along with the Harrier, A6, A7, E2-C, but the F-14 will always be my favorite aircraft of them all. For the record, I've seen Top Gun 100 times if I've seen it once, and corny as it is, I always enjoy watching it over and over. I can remember it being a new release in theaters when I was still in boot camp. Thanks for sharing your time and insight breaking down the specifics of the Flat Spin Goose death scene, Commander Carroll, and thank you for your service as well.

I were a crewman onboard USS Enterprise in 1986 during the Top Gun filming.Then in 1991 I became a member of VF-211 Fighting Checkmates flying the F-14B Tomcat.No I'm not aircrew,but enlisted.A great moment in my Navy career.

First off, thank you for your service to our country, most have no idea what happens behind our daily lives in regards to our security. Second, you did an excellent job of explaining in layman's terms the dynamics of the aircraft.

you give such amazing accounts of the golden age of fighter pilots in my eyes. thank you.

I absolutely love that I happened upon this video, because I've been referring to "79 Cringeworthy Errors in Top Gun" for years (I'm RCAF). "Um, tower, there’s some dork riding a motorcycle down one of the taxiways shaking his fist at us."

Growing up I was obsessed with TopGun and going to air shows. I love aviation and hearing your stories. Thank you for taking the time to make these videos. Fascinating! And thank you so very much for your service ♥️

As a content creator myself, it's so impressive to see you do this entire video in a single take. Aside from how good the final product is, I'm so envious of how little editing you must need to do on each one of these awesome videos 😀

Your passion for the F14 is the reason I subscribed to this channel. Thank you for doing all this work.

(Mavrick) "Ice, come off high right" ... Iceman comes off high left! Iceman is at fault and responsible for Goose's death!

Thank you for you service sir. I worked for Grumman back in the 80's. Was an avionics wire rat for the E2C and F14"s. Did some referbs in Rota, Spain and Norfolk, Va.. The Tomcat was always my favorite to work on.

Thank you for your service. The F-14 Tomcat was always my favorite jet fighter, ever since I was a kid. This was well before the top gun movie came out. My dad worked what was called Grumman at the time. My dad told me all about the F-14 even though he worked on the EA-6B Prowler. Keep up the great videos.

Thank you for your service and memorializing your experiences in this amazing plane. Top Gun was a movie that I took my wife of over 30 years on for our first date - Never forget.

You were a fighter pilot and a rock n' roll hero. What a life!

Thank you for your service Ward. I have two cousins, both retired Academy grads and Naval aviators. Very proud of them, as I am proud of my father who served and survived both WWII and Korea in the US Army and my grandfather who served in WWI. Because of our current government, I would never encourage a young person to join the military.

When I was stationed at the Fleet Combat Training Center Pacific (Point Loma, San Diego, CA), I took a drive over to NAS North Island one evening on a weekend as I had nothing better to do. I was driving my 1976 Pontiac Firebird Esprit, which sat low to the ground and was not a tall vehicle. I ended up down by the hangers where guys were working on some F-14s. The first thing that go my attention was how large they were (especially compared to my car). I don't know what the distance was between the underside of the fuselage and the ground, though it looked like I could've just about driven under one, with maybe the CB antenna on my trunk lid tickling the underside. NAS North Island (so does Point Loma) had some history behind it. I met the guy who was the personal pilot for Admiral Halsey and was a test pilot for the PBY Catalina (cool seaplane). I can't recall his name, but he was an interesting man for a (then) young squid to meet. While on a WESTPAC/IO cruise ('81-'82), I was a "topside" ET (Electronics Tech) on the U.S.S. Truxtun, CGN-35. Since we were a nuke ship, we often got to do picket for the Connie's battle group. One time, there was a Tomcat having mechanical problems--losing hydraulic pressure and was also low on fuel, and we were guiding him back to the Connie (for others, that was the U.S.S. Constellation, CV-64). The ET shop got an urgent call from Radio Central saying the radio that CIC was using to talk to the F-14 had gone down, since I had the most experience working on the AN/SRC-20 UHF transceiver, I quickly removed the chassis and put it on the bench, found the problem and fixed it, and had the unit back in operation in under 9 minutes. The guys in CIC were able to re-establish comms and he was able to land safely. I had heard the plane was quite low on fuel, though the pilot managed to get down in one piece. 👍 There were other times when Ivan would show up out in the Western Pacific. We had a TU-95 "Bear" bomber fly over with its bomb bay doors open. We called the Connie and they sent a couple of Tomcats out to encourage Ivan to "be elsewhere". Quite a sight (one of our guys got some photos that ended up in our cruise book). There were all sorts of "cat and mouse" games going on back then with the Soviets that most folks don't know about. Might make for an interesting topic one day.

Thank you for your service. The F14 will always be my favorite war bird along with the F4U Corsair

My dad had a hand in the design of the super hornet and was the final inspector for the line after its release into full production. Before that he worked on the eagle. He did love the tomcat though for many obvious reasons. During his service in the Air Force in the mid to late 60s he got to work on the blackbird which he told me about only a couple years ago. Super cool to hear from a guy who has the knowledge and experience from the other end of the aircraft’s operation.

Great video! As a Marine I had the pleasure of working on the F-14a being a member of VF-124 MAD Miramar (Marine Air Detachment 74-75). My saddest day was when they took the F-14 away from the Corps and I had to go into the A6a community. Keep up the great work!

Thanks Ward for the great explanation and of course your service! I immediately noticed your flight jacket. AW1... I was part of HS-11 during Desert Storm and spent a LOT of time on the America!

Thank you so much for your service. I myself wanted to be a Navy pilot, but that didn't work out. I am happy to say that I did join the Navy, but as an Electricians Mate. I enjoyed your explanation of the F-14 Tomcat.

My favorite Navy fighter of all time! As an aviator and a past Navy Plane Captain I just never really enjoyed Top Gun. It was definitely Hollywood. I appreciate someone calling them out. It was a pleasure to serve. VA-146 Blue Diamonds and VP-26 Tridents. Fair seas!

I’ve watched several of your videos because like many old salts, I’ve always had a real appreciation of the Tomcat. One of my good friends was Trey Higgins (Sting) who I flew with several times in private planes and was always an enjoyable outing. When the Navy decided to retire the F-14 and go with plastic planes as he called them (F-18’s) , he decided to get out and started flying planes owned by government organizations with three letters. He tragically died in a hang gliding accident six years ago and now I learn more about the actual hands on flying to try and see what life was like aboard the Tomcat. Thanks.

I could listen to you talk about paint drying for hours. Very humble, very knowledgeable and somebody everyone needs to subscribe to. Thanks for the work that goes into making these videos. New subscriber here 👍

Thoroughly enjoyed this video. Thank you, Commander Carroll, for your years of dedicated service and for making this video. I always loved the F-14 Tomcats. It was retired too early but of course, there were a lot of bad decisions during Dubbya's years. God bless.

I had the privilege of serving aboard aircraft carriers with the F-14 Tomcat. In my opinion, one of the best aircraft ever built. She was a big aircraft. Remember her dwarfing the Hornets, and even the COD aircraft (c-2 greyhound), and E2 Hawkeyes. Rip F-14’s your forever in my heart.

Thanks for your service to our country. I'm forever grateful for it 🙏Go Navy. I have a lot of sailors in my family going back from world War 2. My brother retired around 5 years . He was a mustang I think that's what it's called. I really appreciate all you guys.. To all who never made it back I always say a prayer for them .

Great video. Your storytelling style is really effective for conveying the basics of how the F-14 works for someone who doesn't know a lot about modern (ish) aircraft.

I think they just stuck the phrase "out to sea" in there to fix the continuity error that they'd filmed the dogfight over the desert range and their recovery scene had perhaps already been filmed clearly in a mid-ocean setting.

You made me VERY PROUD to find you and your channel sir! I'm sitting here mending my 4th back surgery in as many years (12 screws, a cage, and 3 fusions) and LOVE aviation and OMG, the F-14 (A,B,C,D...lol). This was such as blessing to watch this morning as last week was 35 years since his passing when I was 10. He was a retired Air Force Colonel and injected years and years of aviation into me in those short 10 years I had with him. Next to the P-51 Mustang, the F-14 was his favorite aircraft. Yeah....who knew that both of these would be in the new Top Gun movie. I never got to watch the original Top Gun with him as he passed before the summer of '86 but I think the Hollywood aspect of it would have kept him from watching it. I saw this from him during several other movies we watched together as he (and why would he not?) would correct and educate me with what was wrong with what was going on on-screen. My dad (RIP also) was a 3 tour Vietnam Army veteran and he did the same thing with movies like Rambo and Platoon. I remember having to leave the theater while watching Platoon actually....as mom grabbed me and my brother up from the crowded theater to run after dad who had decided to exit his seat rather rapidly other try to sit and get frustrated and possibly "triggered". There's nothing wrong with veterans like yourself educating us, the civilians you put your life out there for, with what is wrong and correct in movies for the sake of entertainment. Thank you for making this channel and I look forward to watching more of your videos sir!!! Oh yeah.....was there a special place to keep the Polaroid camera in the back seat? LOL!!!!

I love your Videos & Honesty about Military Life. My Dad recovered from a flat spin in a F-100 in the early 60s, He let go & set trim for take off..... the nose finally dropped & he recovered. Thank God he had enough altitude for that to happen, keep up the good fight Sir, wish you well

Saw one F-14 in flight at an airshow- I was stunned at the huge size- the sound- really a marvelous thing to see. Can’t imagine the thrill if being in it.

Thank you for your service and sacrifices. I was a Jet Mech in the 70's on A-7's in VA-174 Cecil Field Florida , the Hellrazors ATKRON 174. We were a training squadron so we had A-7 A and B's because there were some squadrons that still had the older aircraft the A's and B'S HAD the TF-30 engines in them.

Thanks for that explanation. Since seeing the movie waaaaaay back when, I always wondered about both these items. I never flew anything with an ability to spin flat, so it was nice to see a bit of the mechanics involved with that problem. My last jet (A-37) just about had to be forced into a spin and then was super easy to recover. We had a 2Lt come face to face with a buzzard in the base turn in his A-37 and reacted by ham fisting himself into an erect spin. He bailed right away. Both he and his jet went into the water off the end of the runway. He was OK. The buzzard and the jet scored a tie.

I was an AE2 (AW) in VF-14 from 1995-2000 and I miss that airplane! I hated to see her go. Thank you for taking the time to make such a great video.

Thank you for posting the video. I do not know why it finally showed up in my feed after a year but I am happy it did. My dad was an electrician at Miramar for decades, and was used as an extra in a few scenes in Top Gun, so the movie means a lot to me, and it was extremely nice to see someone explain so well parts of that show.

Thanks for the video! I'm a 10+ year Hornet Airframer (from the Green Side, now contracting) and eventually ended up at VMFAT-101 at Miramar (twice actually :( ), but the first time we had all these Chiefs and a few First Classes who had worked on the ol' Grumman Iron Works Tomcat, and got to leverage some sea stories about their maintenance (apparently they were absolute cows if you were a AMS). I remember Senior Sarao pretty well, he was an AMECS and while he was hanging around on a CQ Det (he was in charge) I asked him about the Tomcat canopy. Having only really had a lot of close up time with the Hornet, I figured canopies on all modern birds were equipped with rockets to get them out of the way. And yeah he corroborated what you said here in that very unique way only a CPO can :D and related the the real event you mentioned. He still had a lot of love for the Tomcat and kept a lithograph of one kicking rooster tails off the ocean above his desk in Control. It makes sense to me now as before I was under the impression the canopy is rocketed off, even in a vacuum it's going away and not lingering above the crew. Anyways, thanks for sharing. This is a fun and informative channel for a maintainer, aviation geek, and DCS player (when I can between work :D ).

I was at Top Gun on det {A-4's, East Coast Adversary} when they filmed this recruitment video. We, the enlisted, were told to stay off the ramp whenever they were filming. They didn't want that much reality it seems. So we stood back and laughed at some of what they were doing. Senior Chief was NOT amused. Then we were in Fallon when it came out. They actually bused us up to Reno for the debut. Last thing the Skipper told us before we got off the bus was, "Under NO circumstances are you to comment on the accuracy of this film. We have a public relations department for that." Seems the Navy learned a valuable lesson about that after the movie "Final Countdown". Once again, Senior was NOT amused by the laughter.

Hey Ward, thank you for your stories and information. It really is a treasure trove. To your point about being surprised that younger folk haven't seen Top Gun: think about a movie that was 20 years old when you were born. As far as your 20-something year old self is concerned, that's ancient history and, as I'm sure you know, many, many people absolutely ignore history completely. It's up to us as stewards of the upcoming generations to ensure that history isn't ignored or forgotten.

Sir, I love the F14 & I personally thank you for your service. The plane debut was on my birthday in 1970. God bless!

Thanks for these videos Ward. I grew up in the '80s between RAF bases Lakenheath, Midenhall and Bentwaters in Suffolk, England which, at that time, was tenanted by the USAF. Watching the aircraft taking off and landing - or screaming overhead, was a fascinating and magical experience, so it is great to hear real-life accounts of what it was like to fly and handle a 1980s fighter jet.

Hey, that was a terrific explanation of Tomcat characteristics. Look forward to more videos and a review of earlier reports... Thanks

Outstanding Ward! I appreciate your non-biased and factual approach in these videos! I will definitely be following you and your videos. Thank you

Wonderful insights into the accuracy (or lack thereof) of Top Gun, as well as into the F-14 in general! Thank you for sharing! I will definitely be checking out some other videos on this channel!

About that whole he's headed out to sea line... When I was younger, I had a pretty good idea about the way jets flew. My grandfather was a bomber pilot during WW2, so kind of learned things about planes early on. When I watched Top Gun and got to the flat spin part of the movie, I recognized the fact the plane had to be falling like a rock, not moving in some other direction as the tail vertical stabilizers would either sheer off or slow and eventually stop the spin. Since they didn't sheer off, and the spin never stopped, rock it must be. My interpretation of the "He's headed out to sea!" comment was that they were ejecting and going to be parachuting into the water, not that the plane still had forward momentum carrying them from over land, out to sea. Its been forever since I've watched it so I can't remember the visuals exactly, but from memory, I don't recall seeing anything visually that would suggest there was still horizontal movement in the plane during the flat spin, or anything to suggest they weren't already off the coast other then a side angled camera shot where you see land in the background not what they're over and dropping into, which is water, because I remember that clearly with the color die in the water so the helo can spot them. It wasn't until years later that I watched someone incorrectly demonstrate a flat spin and when I corrected them they cited Top Gun as their source and that confused me because I had never interpreted the scene that way. Everyone assumes horizontal movement purely based off of a comment that the viewer is likely misinterpreting the meaning of. Also Hollywood has been known to make edits of sequencing for greater effect while the script remains unchanged because reshoots are expensive, so it's not like it's not possible that in the script Iceman says that line after they eject, but in editing it got moved to before, which if he says it after they eject, it kind of makes a lot more sense.

I was in the Navy with the A-6 and later worked for Grumman until they were bought by Northrop. I’m was fortunate enough to have programmed the A-6, F-14 and the EA6-B. One of my friends at Grumman was a rear seat photographer who was involved with making Top Gun. His stories about the back seat experiences he had were very interesting.

Just love listening to your stories as well as others here in the comments. Have great memories of the Tomcat at a few airshows with my dad. I’ve got pictures somewhere of Dale Snodgrass next to his F-14. I was always in awe of the size of the f-14 in real life. I don’t think Top Gun portrayed that well enough. Thanks for your great videos. I plan to watch them all.

Thank you for your service to all of us and this country, this was amazing to watch and learn from. Thank you!

It should be noted that in the scene in question when Maverick gives the command to "eject eject eject" he also says "watch the canopy!", which could be an attempt to warn Goose about the canopy jettison procedure but he was too late as Goose grabs and yanks the overhead ejection cords on his ejection seat less than a second after Maverick says that.

Cool. I was on the Big E as a crew member for a 6 month cruise in '96 plenty of F14s at that time. That was the last deployment of A6s. Thanks for your expert commentary. Very interesting.

Thanks! I’ve always been wondering about these questions ever since seeing the movie in theaters when it came out. This is a great video. Thank you for your service.

I'm glad you can give a technical explanation in layman's terms so civilian viewers won't be confused. I imagine experienced viewers would find some fault in your explanation. I have no Navy experience, or any military experience, but I can definitely appreciate your explanation and your service time. Thank you!

Thank you for your service brother. And thank you for breaking these things down for us. Top gun made me want to join the navy but I went Army because my dad was a soldier. I still love the movie but it also great to ALWAYS get the real world experience of a true professional that did what was portrayed but in real life. Just subscribed and very happy I did!

Wow, who knew?! I always thought the ejection mishap was total movie BS. At the same time I'm sorry to hear it did happen to someone. Thanks for sharing!

I had a GREAT work-life with F-14A! The CSDC, CADC, VDIG, AFCS, and the Left & Right Wing Flap Glove Vanes were some of my favorite WRAs to work on in the NADEP VAST Shop. Maintained the CADC & the AFCS SRAs and others on the CAT-IIID. I worked on those and the whole F-14A suite of VAST avionics at the Naval Air Rework Facility (NARF Norfolk) from 1979-1984, then they changed the name to the Naval Aviation Depot (NADEP Norfolk). I worked in the F-14A TPS In-Service Engineering Department (1984-1990), where we investigated the reason(s) why the VAST WRA TPS didn't correctly identify the defective SRA. Then advanced to the VAST Offload Division (1990-1994), where we worked for NAVAIRSYSCOM to offload the VAST F-14A TPSs to CASS (NAVAIR RedTeam). Then in 1994, the BRAC closed NADEP Norfolk in 1996! So sad ... 😢

Blown away! Thanks Ward your info is much appreciated and has been absorbed!!

Speaking of "young kids these days haven't seen the movie Top Gun"...I'm a Navy Primary Flight Instructor who was one day out on an early syllabus flight with a young ensign flight student. We were departing the MOA and about to go practice pattern work when he asked "Sir, what's the best way to descend through the area and set up for the pattern?" My answer was that it depended on where you were, sometimes option A was the best and sometimes option B was the best and sometimes you just have to "do some of that pilot shit". His response was "what do you mean by that?" After I explained that it was a reference to Top Gun he admitted he had never seen it! Our debrief consisted of me telling him it was a lawful order that he had to watch Top Gun before we flew together again.

Goose didn't die, he faked his death to get away from his family. He now lives in Kentucky under the name Jeremy Fischer and runs a small sporting goods store.

Interesting stuff! Thanks for taking the time to relay this information and explain it in a way non aviators can understand :) Subbed

Hi Ward. I was an AEC in VF 32 during Desert Storm on the USS JFK . I enjoyed TOP GUN. Some of the screen shots were of my old stomping grounds. Your explanation of the facts about the Tomcat, are. right on. Thanks. I enjoy watching your channel and some of the topics. Keep up the good work.

Ward, thank you for your insight!!! I love the techie part of aircraft, been around it my whole life. As a kid I help dad restore a couple of single engine Pipers, a J4 and a Tripacer. After seeing top Gun, me and a buddy of mine went straight to the Airforce recruiters office, without college, it wasn't likely we would fly, passed on that idea!!! Thank you for your service!!!

First off, thank you for your service. I can ALMOST relate to you in the fact that I am the RIO for the F-14 in DCS in our squad. I've come to love the back seat MORE than the front seat, quite honestly.

Thank you for sharing that. I still get chills at the opening scene of Top Gun. There's no cooler job than being a fighter pilot/RIO. No question.

Good evening, Sir, from just east of Pensacola, Florida! Last night I read your article and was astounded. I watched Top Gun many years ago, but watched it again after enlsiting in the military in 2009 at the age of 37. While prepping for deployment in 2014, I was given an additional task along with two senior NCO's. As an additional duty, we were tapped as COIST NCOs. At FT Hood, prior to leaving for Kandahar via Romania, we watched Top Gun as a special assignment. Although we weren't in the Navy, much less in the Avation community, we all caught the part where "Maverick" told "Charlie" that the MIG encounter was classified, but yet he blabbed certain aspects of that flight in front of everyone. A fellow SGT and I stopped dead in our trakcs because that very day, a LT. Colonel had just told us "If it's classified, I don't give a $#it if the president thinks he should know, keep your trap shut!!" Not to mention other scenes of the movie that we wouldn't know, we also pointed out that if an officer shows up at a briefing wearing unauthorized headgear, someone's ass was in deep shit. Anyways, I reallt enjoy your vidoes. My late father served on the USS Ranger CV-61 from 63-66, V-2 Division. He was aboard during the "Rescue Dawn" incident involving LT Deiter Dingler. Thank you for your service, Sir.

I've never been in the service. My total flight time is about 30 mins at the controls of a Cessna 152 with an instructor right beside me, but I sure enjoy your channel. You not only have done it, you can explain it so someone like me can understand it. Thanks.