Future NASA astronaut Scott Altman was among the pilots of VF-51 [30] who flew F-14 aircraft for many of the film's stunt sequences, having been recently stationed at NAS Miramar at time of filming. Altman was the pilot seen " flipping the bird" in the film's well-known opening sequence, as well as piloting the aircraft shown "buzzing the tower" throughout the film. [31] [32] The infamous "buzzing the tower" sequence raised concern among residents who called the base and local news media to report a "berserk pilot". [33] Bierbaum, Tom (March 4, 1987). " 'Top Gun' Cassettes In Record Takeoff: 1,900,000 Units". Variety. p.1. The 'Top Gun' House Is Now a Stylish Restaurant—See Inside". Architectural Digest. May 19, 2022 . Retrieved June 12, 2022.

Campbell, Duncan (August 29, 2001). "Top Gun versus Sergeant Bilko? No contest, says the Pentagon". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 17, 2007. National Film Registry: "Ghostbusters" Gets the Call". Library of Congress . Retrieved December 16, 2015. Film producer John Davis said that Top Gun was a recruiting video for the Navy, and that people saw the movie and said, "Wow! I want to be a pilot." The Navy had recruitment booths in some theaters to attract enthusiastic patrons. [84] After the film's release, a popular claim arose that the number of young men who joined the Navy wanting to be naval aviators went up by 500%; [85] however, its accuracy has since been disputed, with modern analyses indicating a more modest total Navy enlistment increase of 8%. [86] [87] VF-51 Screaming Eagles". HOME OF M.A.T.S. - the most comprehensive Grumman F-14 Reference Work - by Torsten Anft! . Retrieved June 21, 2023.Pingitore, Silvia (April 1, 2022). "Remember Top Gun's song 'Take My Breath Away' in 1986? Exclusive interview with John Crawford of Berlin". the-shortlisted.co.uk. Archived from the original on April 2, 2022 . Retrieved May 23, 2022.

RIAA Searchable Gold and Platinum Database". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved July 6, 2012. (may have to press the Search button) Top Gun also spawned a number of video games for various platforms. The original game was released in 1986 under the same title as the film. It was released on Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, and Atari ST. Another game, also titled Top Gun, was released in 1987 for Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and Nintendo VS. System arcade cabinets. In the 1987 game, the player pilots an F-14 Tomcat fighter, and has to complete four missions. A sequel, Top Gun: The Second Mission, was released for the NES three years later.Blauvelt, Christian (March 27, 2013). "Disney's 'Planes' Taps Val Kilmer and Anthony Edwards for 'Top Gun' Homage - PIC". hollywood.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017 . Retrieved November 5, 2017. Ortiz, M. (July 5, 2022). "This original Top Gun stunt pilot became an astronaut". We Are The Mighty. Tazewell County Photo of the Month - December 2000". www.tcghs.org. Archived from the original on July 23, 2020 . Retrieved January 17, 2021. Lussier, Germain (December 11, 2012). " Top Gun Gets IMAX Re-Release in February". Flash Film. Archived from the original on August 8, 2020 . Retrieved December 11, 2012.

Ebert, Roger (May 16, 1986). "Top Gun". Roger Ebert.com. Archived from the original on April 20, 2016 . Retrieved April 20, 2016. Zenou, Theo (May 27, 2022). " 'Top Gun,' brought to you by the U.S. military". Washington Post . Retrieved June 7, 2022. Most of the sequences of the aircraft maneuvering over land were shot at Naval Air Station Fallon, in Nevada, using ground-mounted cameras. Air-to-air shots were filmed using a Learjet, piloted by Astrovision inventor and legendary [ according to whom?] pilot Clay Lacy (his name is misspelled in the closing credits, as "Clay Lacey"). Grumman, manufacturer of the F-14, was commissioned by Paramount Pictures to create camera pods to be placed upon the aircraft [34] that could be pointed toward either the front or rear of the aircraft providing outside shots at high altitude. [ citation needed]Burum, Stephen, ed. (2007). "optics+allow+this+is+one+of+the+reasons" American Cinematographer Manual, Volume 1. ASC Press. p.40. ISBN 9780935578317. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021 . Retrieved May 4, 2021.