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VFA-127 F-5E "Top Gun"


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Ok let me set the record straight here for everyone. This is not a Top Gun jet and by typing those two words you are refering to the ficticious movie. The training program to which you all refer was actually Topgun, note one word and the F-5s used in the movie had no other markings apart from the star on the tail.

VFA-127 Desert Bogeys is based at NAS Fallon therefore their training regime falls under the NSAWC banner and NFWS aka Topgun no longer exists and hasn't since 1996.

So please oh please stop refering to stuff as Top Gun (the two word version) unless you are refering to something from the movie which this model, good as it is, is not from the movie.

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Ok let me set the record straight here for everyone... etc.

Ummm, we pretty much know that and you didn't have to go "Mach 2 with your hair on fire" over it. Besides, even though this jet is not from the film, the squadron obviously decided to go for some "PR" with this bird by painting it all black (I saw it at an airshow once and it attracted A LOT of attention. Besides, most anyone who builds F-5Es in adversary colors (especially if they are black in color) knows they will likely get some good natured ribbing about it. It doesn't mean we don't respect the build or the work (and frankly, this is a VERY nice build of that jet).

Nice work warthoglvr!!!

Edited by Jay Chladek
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Great Looking Build ! :worship:

Ya gotta love Black F-5s ... Gives them an even more shark-like appearance ...

<...>note one word and the F-5s used in the movie had no other markings apart from the star on the tail.

<....>

Not true, the movie's "MiG-28s" also had the pilot's names in Cyrillic just below the canopy rails ...

MiG28.jpg

I was told the day I took this photo that the names were the actual pilots that flew the jets in the movie ...

-Gregg

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Not once in my previous comment did I say anything negative about the build itself. Gregg whilst I appreciate what you are saying about no other markings, the photo you have posted is a ficticious scheme. Note the differences between the star on the tail and the one on Andy's build. I happen to know that two of the pilots who flew those black F-5s were Mike "Flex" Galpin and Dave "Bio" Baranek although Dave was a back seater in the F version.

Might want to consider your responses to someone who has been to Miramar and the former Topgun school.

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"MiG-28's!!! no ones been this close before" (even the designation wasn't real) sorry just couldn't resist :D .... Great job Andy, whether or not it is a replica of the fictitious jets in a circa 1980's movie about a very famous USN program for advanced ACM similar to one in operation by the USAF. Is it true the runners-up get their names on the wall of the little girls hangout :woot.gif: .

Edited by #1 Greywolf
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Nice build! Wouldn't calling it a VFA-127 F-5E in "Top Gun"-scheme be correct?I can't see anything inaccurate about that. I plan on doing both the VFA-127 and the Top Gun Mig when the Fightertown markings come out. And speaking of Bio, I recommend reading Topgun Days for anyone who hasn't. Interesting stuff about Topgun and Top Gun.

Brian

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Not once in my previous comment did I say anything negative about the build itself. Gregg whilst I appreciate what you are saying about no other markings, the photo you have posted is a ficticious scheme. Note the differences between the star on the tail and the one on Andy's build. I happen to know that two of the pilots who flew those black F-5s were Mike "Flex" Galpin and Dave "Bio" Baranek although Dave was a back seater in the F version.

Might want to consider your responses to someone who has been to Miramar and the former Topgun school.

Andrew, I was just pointing out there were indeed other markings on the "MiG-28s" from the movie ... That pic was shot on the Miramar tarmac just outside the then VF-51/-111 hangar that they shared with VF-24/-211 ...

-Gregg

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Nice build Andy! Got to see that bird at one of our shows one year and been wanting to do it ever since... you did it real justice!

Curious though... when I saw this jet (not the movie jets) I recall it had red/yellow Cyrillic on both canopy rails and you've modeled it without that... did that aspect of the markings change with time?

Ok let me set the record straight here for everyone. This is not a Top Gun jet and by typing those two words you are refering to the ficticious movie. The training program to which you all refer was actually Topgun, note one word and the F-5s used in the movie had no other markings apart from the star on the tail.

VFA-127 Desert Bogeys is based at NAS Fallon therefore their training regime falls under the NSAWC banner and NFWS aka Topgun no longer exists and hasn't since 1996. So please oh please stop refering to stuff as Top Gun (the two word version) unless you are refering to something from the movie which this model, good as it is, is not from the movie

Not once in my previous comment did I say anything negative about the build itself. Gregg whilst I appreciate what you are saying about no other markings, the photo you have posted is a ficticious scheme. Note the differences between the star on the tail and the one on Andy's build. I happen to know that two of the pilots who flew those black F-5s were Mike "Flex" Galpin and Dave "Bio" Baranek although Dave was a back seater in the F version. Might want to consider your responses to someone who has been to Miramar and the former Topgun school.

Oh brother! :rolleyes: No kidding Dick Tracy, congratulations on your authority, superiority and experience in the matter... oh please regale us with more! :worship:

:rofl:

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Dude... Mike " Flex" Galpin is a RIO. NOT A PILOT. You need to chill on this rant. VFA-127 had a black scheme to cash in on the movie publicity which is modelled here and very bloody well I might add. The one with the single star in a circle on the tail and matt black in the photo above was used in the movie and were TOPGUN jets I believe.

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Not once in my previous comment did I say anything negative about the build itself. Gregg whilst I appreciate what you are saying about no other markings, the photo you have posted is a ficticious scheme. Note the differences between the star on the tail and the one on Andy's build. I happen to know that two of the pilots who flew those black F-5s were Mike "Flex" Galpin and Dave "Bio" Baranek although Dave was a back seater in the F version.

Might want to consider your responses to someone who has been to Miramar and the former Topgun school.

Regardless of the build itself (which I think looks terrific, great job on this F-5 Andy), your initial and subsequent response(s) to this board are a below in headwork. Authority or not, your attitude immediately created a negative atmosphere which everyone here picked up on....and some have commented on.

Collin 'insert callsign' Last Name

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Andrew, I was just pointing out there were indeed other markings on the "MiG-28s" from the movie ... That pic was shot on the Miramar tarmac just outside the then VF-51/-111 hangar that they shared with VF-24/-211 ...

I think the particular jet was painted that way after Top Gun had been filmed (probably just for an airshow as I see rope offs around that F-5 and a USAF C-141 behind it). The Migs in the film had a fatter yellow ring around the star on the tail and I don't believe there was any cyrillic on the canopy rails either. The movie producers were trying to keep the country's identity of the Migs a bit obscure as originally they were going to be North Korean Migs, but in the 11th hour they changed the location to "The Indian Ocean". To my knowledge, once filming wrapped on Top Gun, the black F-5s had their coloring stripped off (not hard to do as they underwent nearly constant touchups after each day of filming as paint kept peeling off).

Getting back to this build, doing a bird in black looks easy, but it isn't always that way since black can show flaws mercilessly (decal silvering especially). But this one looks first class all the way IMHO. Nice work again Andy!

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I must appologise to everyone for my rant on the whole Topgun Top Gun subject and if it came out the way everyone took it then I deserve to be bashed for it. Sorry everyone.

All I was trying to point out that certain details that often get overlooked either with the movie or the real place.

:bandhead2::doh::hangingsmiley: :russian-roulette-smiley:

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I think the particular jet was painted that way after Top Gun had been filmed (probably just for an airshow as I see rope offs around that F-5 and a USAF C-141 behind it). The Migs in the film had a fatter yellow ring around the star on the tail and I don't believe there was any cyrillic on the canopy rails either. The movie producers were trying to keep the country's identity of the Migs a bit obscure as originally they were going to be North Korean Migs, but in the 11th hour they changed the location to "The Indian Ocean". To my knowledge, once filming wrapped on Top Gun, the black F-5s had their coloring stripped off (not hard to do as they underwent nearly constant touchups after each day of filming as paint kept peeling off).

Getting back to this build, doing a bird in black looks easy, but it isn't always that way since black can show flaws mercilessly (decal silvering especially). But this one looks first class all the way IMHO. Nice work again Andy!

Jay, that shot I took of the F-5 was in 1985, the Summer they were filming TOP GUN ... You can even see a bit of the black paint flaked off near the exhaust from flying ... That same day, they had "Iceman's" Tomcat in the VF-51/-111 hangar as it was undergoing maintenance ... It was roped off but I asked a Sailor in there what was with the strange logo on the tail, he just said it was for filming some movie with Tom Cruise in it ... So the pic was definitely snapped pre movie release ...

-Gregg

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Jay, that shot I took of the F-5 was in 1985, the Summer they were filming TOP GUN ... You can even see a bit of the black paint flaked off near the exhaust from flying ... That same day, they had "Iceman's" Tomcat in the VF-51/-111 hangar as it was undergoing maintenance ... It was roped off but I asked a Sailor in there what was with the strange logo on the tail, he just said it was for filming some movie with Tom Cruise in it ... So the pic was definitely snapped pre movie release ...

-Gregg

Hmmm, I wonder if they might have been tweaking the paintjob a little. Perhaps the producers didn't like the tail artwork and decided to have the yellow ring fattened a little more so it would "pop" better on camera. Very cool. Other pictures I've seen of the Top Gun F-5s (such as the ones in the C&M Adversaries book) don't seem to show any red cyrillic on the canopy though (probably because it didn't read in the film). You certainly managed to capture a nice picture of a pretty rare bird (right place at the right time moment). Muchos Gracias for sharing it with us.

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