Stunts › Sequences › Top Gun: Maverick (2022) ›

F-14 Tomcat exfiltration + Su-57 dogfight

Scene: F-14 Tomcat exfiltration + Su-57 dogfight8.0 min on screenAerialCockpitMock-UpVfx-Handoff

Maverick + Rooster commandeer a parked F-14A from the enemy hangar and dogfight a pair of Su-57 Felons en route to home plate. No airworthy F-14s remain in service — practical photography used a static F-14A on long-term loan from the Naval Aviation Museum, mounted on a hydraulic gimbal at NAS Pt. Mugu. The F-14 + Su-57 in flight are CG composites by MPC over plate photography of Northrop F-5s and an L-39 Albatros standing in for the Felon energy state.

Rigging

Equipment + technique

aerial-cockpit-mockup
Static F-14A airframe at NAS Pt. Mugu; cockpit mounted on a six-DOF Scott Fisher hydraulic gimbal driven by a pre-programmed flight envelope keyed to the edited shot. Practical canopy + practical flight controls — no green-screen interior.

Coordinator notes

VFX handoff to MPC for the final-pixel out-of-cockpit composites; Bryan Litson supervising. The F-14's final approach + carrier-trap finale used the Theodore Roosevelt deck plates with the F-14 mock-up positioned on deck for foreground anchor.

Safety

Officer + bulletins

Bulletins observed

SAG-AFTRA Bulletin #14 (Stunts)↗
SAG-AFTRA Bulletin #20 (Aerial)

Rigging glossary

3 rigs used in this sequence

Each entry explains how the rig works mechanically and the safety bulletin that governs it. Click through for the full glossary detail.

descender

F-14 Tomcat exfiltration + Su-57 dogfight

Equipment + technique

aerial-cockpit-mockup

Officer + bulletins

3 rigs used in this sequence

Fan descender

Helicopter mount (external stunt platform)

Wingsuit BASE

Further reading