Dan Pedersen

Topgun: The thrilling true story behind the action-packed classic film Dan Pedersen

March 1969.

American jets are getting shot down at an unprecedented rate over Vietnam. In an urgent effort to regain the advantage the Admirals turn to a young naval aviator called Dan Pedersen.

Officially, the programme he set up was called the US Navy Fighter Weapons School. To everyone else it was known simply as TOPGUN.

Pedersen's hand-picked team of instructors - the Original Eight - were the best of the best. Together, they revolutionised aerial warfare and rediscovered the lost art of fighter combat.

This is the extraordinary, thrilling story of how TOPGUN saw America reclaim the skies, by the man who created it.