Following the release of the official trailer of the most anticipated aviation movie of the year, Top Gun: Maverick, the questions on everyone’s lips have been: Is Tom Cruise a pilot? Did he learn how to fly a jet just to bring the character, Captain Maverick, to life? We all know that the veteran actor and movie producer is capable of doing so many things only in his movies but is flying a jet something he can do off our TV screens?
Yes, Tom Cruise is a pilot. You could book him to fly you around if he were not busy being someone else on set all the time. The actor enjoys flying, and thanks to his acting career, he has had the privilege of occasionally flying on set. Here’s what you need to know about his aviation skills.
Getting A Private Pilot’s License
When you play pretend for a living, it’s possible to enjoy being a character and wish you could live like this character. Viewers fall in love with the different versions of Tom Cruise that have come across their screens. Well, Tom also thoroughly enjoyed his role in the original Top Gun Movie released in 1986. The movie was a hit. It changed people’s perception of the military, as many Americans voluntarily enlisted in the army. For everyone nursing the idea of becoming an aviator, this movie was enough inspiration to chase that dream.
The same can be said about the award-winning actor as he fell in love with aviation while filming this movie and sealed his passion for aviation by getting a private pilot’s license in 1994, Before the movie, Tom had no flying experience. It was reported that when he got in the cockpit of a real F-14, he could not survive the maneuvers by the flight pilot and quickly reached for a sick bag.
However, the star felt less airsick as time went by. His nausea was quickly replaced with a love for flying and a desire to become a pilot. This spurred him to undergo training and get his pilot’s license in 1994. Speaking to Wired, Tom admits that he is a multi-engine instrument rated commercial pilot. In his words, “Yes, I can fly a plane.”
Flying Maverick
The sequel to the first Top Gun movie, Top Gun: Maverick, is set to hit our screens on December 23, 2020. The film has been delayed unavoidably, keeping fans sick with suspense. However, Tom Cruise, who is clearly excited about the movie, shares some lovely video clips to whet his fans’ appetite. What’s torturing is that we get to see a clip of Tom flying. He shared a video of himself flying on Twitter with the caption: Warning: Real flying. Real g-forces may make you puke. #TopGun
The video shows an excited Tom Cruise flying, and some members of the crew talk about how the flying scenes were shot. This time, Tom’s alone in the cockpit, and he is killing it without feeling airsick. However, Tom Cruise does not fly all the fighter jets in the movie. Paramount Pictures stated that he will not be flying the F/A-18 fighter jets.
Tom Cruise Spreads The Flying Bug
Tom’s love for flying can be contagious. He has had a swell time combining two things he loves – acting and flying. That’s sheer luck as only a few people get to combine their hobby with their profession. Tom is so excited about flying, and he shares his excitement with his fans when he tweets: see you in the sky.
Tom also encourages others to pursue this passion. His co-star, Glen Powell, shared that Tom Cruise paid for his flight school training school. The gift came in an iPad with lessons already downloaded. The star revealed this in an Instagram post of a video of him and his flight instructor.
Tom is not just a pilot, he loves flying and shares this passion with everyone through his movies and personally.