Fanspot
Top Gun Base
Producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, the real originators of Top Gun, are keen to give their film a realistic patina. They hurriedly asked for permission to shoot scenes on the real Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego and were granted the privilege without any problem. Continuing on, director Tony Scott wraps some footage from the NAS Miramar Officer’s Club at 4472 Anderson Avenue and within the Naval Training Center on Roosevelt Road in the main building at number 200.
Tony Scott has some difficulties to see his work constantly commented by the duo Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson. He was even fired three times but returned to his job each time, until the end of the shoot. He will find the tandem a few years later, despite obvious reluctance, on the occasion of Days of Thunder, still with Tom Cruise, and Beverly Hills Cop.
For the scenes taking place on the aircraft carrier, Tony Scott and the actors evolve on the USS Ranger for all the interior sequences. The exterior shots, including those in which the planes take off or land, are shot from the deck of the USS Enterprise. Two warships unfortunately dismantled since.
The Pentagon billed the Top Gun production $1.8 million for the use of real U.S. Navy jets.
Marine Corps Air Station Miramar
This air base located in San Diego is one of the largest in the western United States. It has been active since 1917.
Known to the general public for having served as the backdrop for Tony Scott’s film Top Gun, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar was home to several air squadrons of Carrier Air Wing Reserve Thirty between 1970 and 1994. It was once home to the United States Navy Fighter Weapons School, nicknamed TopGun. The very one that Tony Scott’s feature film popularized. It has unfortunately been the scene of several tragedies including a number of crashes.
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By Gilles Rolland
Passionné de cinéma, de rock and roll, de séries TV et de littérature. Rédacteur de presse et auteur des livres Le Heavy Metal au cinéma, Paroles de fans Guns N' Roses, Paroles de fans Rammstein et Welcome to my Jungle : 100 albums rock et autres anecdotes dépareillées. Adore également voyager à la recherche des lieux les plus emblématiques de la pop culture.