Top Gun 2018 May 2026

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

"Lesson one," Jake says, looking up at a vapor trail streaking across the sunrise—Maverick, cleared to fly one last time. "The plane is just metal. The pilot is the weapon. And the heart... is the afterburner."

Maverick: "He said, 'Tell my son I was wrong. And tell Pete... thanks for the save.'"

Maverick looks at Jake. "Your dad came to see me. Last year. Before he... passed. He told me to tell you something."

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.

Maverick's voice, breaking up: "That's a kill, kid. That's a goddamn kill."

Turbulent Pacific. The USS Theodore Roosevelt . Lt. Jake Kerner sits in his F/A-18E Super Hornet, night-vision goggles down. A red target drone blips on radar. He has the shot.

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

Maverick: "He said, 'Tell my son I was wrong. And tell Pete... thanks for the save.'" Jake breaks down

Maverick looks at Jake. "Your dad came to see me. Last year. Before he... passed. He told me to tell you something." "The plane is just metal

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.

Maverick's voice, breaking up: "That's a kill, kid. That's a goddamn kill."

Turbulent Pacific. The USS Theodore Roosevelt . Lt. Jake Kerner sits in his F/A-18E Super Hornet, night-vision goggles down. A red target drone blips on radar. He has the shot.