MovieChat Forums > Iron Eagle (1986) Discussion > Why Two F16s?

Why Two F16s?

posted 8 years ago by shoobe01-1
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This bugged me when I saw it as a kid in the 80s. Ignoring all the cheese, the models, the Israeli enemy, etc. Take it for what is stated in the movie:

He's got a club of flying friends based out of a an HAS on base, who seem to be able to get into anywhere, and get anything in the USAF inventory. At least one is demonstrated to actually fly. So...

Why not bring more of them on the mission? Or all of them? You can keep the same two F16s as the primary hero, but why not a more typical action squad thing, and his other friends fly (and crew), for example
- An AC130
- A helicopter for the actual pickup of Col. Masters

Yeah, they'd have to plan more and send the others over early, but it could be easily made to work out. Or being this movie, they'd have all just convoyed, and used the AC130 to refuel as well :)

Could even make things like Col. Sinclair getting shot down more integral to the film; the helicopter picks him up, so he gets to greet Col. Masters etc. Not to mention: More chances to have up close and personal fights. Machine gunning people from the air would have matched the tone of the movie just fine.

[–] Hendry_William_French 8 years ago

I think it's better for the story if it's just the son going in to rescue him. Makes it more personal and more about the main characters. A whole armada of people going in wouldn't make sense because Doug & Chappy's mission was all about a surprise attack that went totally under the radar and caught the bad guys cold.

You got slow ass choppers and C-130's cruising around and their gonna get spotted and shot down a mile off, not to mention over-complicating a simple mission (although what you described might work if it was an actual military operation, but not one done by a kid and an air force vet on a whim).

He was my C.O. in Nam. CIA listed him as MIA but the V.A. ID'd his M.O. and put out an APB.