Splash The Zeros, Pt. 2

Part two of a two-part look at one of the best sequences of the movie "The Final Countdown" (© 1980, Polyc International, B.V.), showing two F-14 Tomcat fighter-interceptor jets, launched from the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Nimitz, identifying various contacts, and then engaging two of them (two Japanese Zero fighter planes) after being carried back in time by a strange storm. Awesome footage from an awesome movie (from the era of the cold war between the United States and the former Soviet Union)!

Hat's off to the naval aviators who did the top-shelf flying in this movie!

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• F-14
• Tomcat
• U.S.S.
• Nimitz
• Japanese
• Zero

[HuasoPodrido]

Harvey cant swim, but he can float!

[JerseyCaptain]

@HuasoPodrido Harvey had a life vest on, dude. That's obvious even in the video. If nothing else, Senator Chapman orders him to take it off and dive under the water, which refuses to do, stating that he can't swim.

[Dakers11]

@JerseyCaptain weren't the Mitsubishi A6-M's highly manoeuverable, but lightly armored? I'm not sure,do you know?

[JerseyCaptain]

@Dakers11 Sorry I didn't see this sooner, Dakers. I don't check as often as I should. I really don't know though.

[SonofCimmeria]

F14 Tomcat...such a beautiful machine!

[Kguy985]

If only Hollywood would make films like these now instead of all those dark gloom and doom films. And all those damn comic book characters i'm sick of seeing on the big screen. make one about real heroes.

[Barackaqueta]

5:47 The actual stall was witnessed by his wife on the carrier Nimiitz. It was not planned for.

[YouGottaPurdyMouth]

What's Charlie Sheen doing in this old movie?

[galoon]

I think a dogfight like this would be tricky for the Tomcat pilots as well as the Japanese. The Zero's best dogfighting speed was below 250mph; the Tomcat's is well above this. At these low speeds the Zero had optimal maneuverablility while the F-14 would be grasping for lift somewhat; the Tomcat's stall speed is 127mph. Probably what the Tomcat pilots would do is make "boom and zoom" passes with their cannon or missiles rather than try to turn with the Zekes.

[sritger]

Zero: RAT-A-TAT-TAT

F14: BRAAAAAP! BUH BYE!

Love that Vulcan Rotary Cannon!!! 20 mm rounds at 6000 rounds per minute!!!

I miss these old "rah rah America" movies from the Cold War.

[cannedplastic]

Thanks for uploading. Great movie!

[Leyland1964]

What's really amazing is that the "modern" jets in this clip are nearly as old and primitive today in 2012 as the Japanese zeros were when this movie came out in 1980. Today's B1 and F18 would cut these Vietnam-era jets in half.

[IMaDEM0N]

Ultimate Vengeance Moment - 6:45 - after the Captain of the Aircraft Carrier says "Splash the Zero's"....it shows those the F-14's wings folding back...know what that means?! AFTERBURNER TIME!!!! if the sheer gravity disturbance of these two fighter jets didn't knock those 2 Japanese Planes outta the sky, their Radar Locks DEFINITELY WILL

[puapake]

That one F-14 almost put it in the water, I'm sure it was a mistake to go below 500'