2018 — Top Gun

In memory of those who punch out so others may fly home.

Jake breaks down. Maverick pulls him into a one-armed hug.

They engage the drones. Maverick takes two, but his aircraft takes a shrapnel hit—canopy cracks, oil pressure plummets. He's bleeding from the scalp.

Jake freezes. His father's voice in his head: "Maverick will leave you." top gun 2018

Jake refuses to believe it. His hatred for Maverick deepens. A real-world crisis emerges: A rogue state (fictional: "North Kheria") has stolen five advanced stealth drones armed with bunker-busters. The only way to destroy them before launch is a low-level canyon run through a defended mountain pass—no satellites, no GPS. Pure pilotage.

Maverick ejects. On the ground, he grabs Jake by the flight suit. "You're right. You won't be me. You'll be worse. You'll be dead. And your father will have to bury his son—because he taught you to fear the sky."

Maverick looks at Jake. "Your dad came to see me. Last year. Before he... passed. He told me to tell you something." In memory of those who punch out so others may fly home

His RIO (unnamed) sighs. "Sundown... you locked up."

Jake's eyes well up.

Jake slams the stick. A 9G turn. Black encroaches on his vision. He pulls lead, the piper on the drone's engine exhaust. He fires. They engage the drones

Phoenix confronts Jake. "He's not your enemy. Your enemy is the story you're telling yourself." EXT. CANYON RUN - DAY

Jake is assigned to Maverick's "adversary" squadron—flying old F-16s painted in Russian red-star schemes. Maverick's mantra: "Speed is life. Hesitation is death. Your father forgot the first and chose the second."

Jake, bruised, stands outside Maverick's room. Maverick has a broken arm and stitches across his forehead. Iceman is there, holding Maverick's other hand.

The last drone locks onto a civilian dam. Maverick has no missiles left. He orders Jake: "Boresight merge. Guns only. I'll draw his fire."