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Real-life 'top guns' at NAS Oceana talk what it takes to be the best of the best in naval aviation

The new movie "Top Gun: Maverick" will showcase Navy jets and people, just like its famous 1986 predecessor.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — 36 years after the original "Top Gun" movie, the long-awaited sequel is about to premiere.

"Top Gun: Maverick" tells the story of the best of the best in naval aviation, just like its famous predecessor. Tom Cruise is back, this time in a Super Hornet instead of a Tomcat.

Although Cruise gets top billing, the real star of the show may well be the jets. There's no doubt the U.S. Navy hopes the new movie will inspire a whole new generation.

"My dad is a naval aviator, so he saw the movie when he was growing up. That made him want to be a pilot. And then subsequently, I wanted to be a Navy pilot," said Lieutenant Matthew Huffman.

Huffman, who pilots the F/A-18E Super Hornet, is a product of the real TOPGUN, more formally known as the Navy Fighter Weapons School in Falon, Nevada.

So is Lieutenant Jack Hinderland, an F/A-18F Super Hornet naval flight officer.

"For me personally, throughout my career, I was impacted by a lot of previous graduates from the school," Hinderland said. "[I] looked up to them immensely. And because of that, it was something I wanted to follow in their footsteps."

Huffman and Hinderland attended TOPGUN school earlier this year.

Aviation Electronics Technician Chief David Keenan attended a series of equivalent schools for aircraft maintainers and served as a maintainer at TOPGUN many years ago.

"It helped a lot with quick knowledge, troubleshooting, things like that, working on the various systems they use, radar, weapons, things like that," Keenan said.

When asked if he is glad he went through the program and works as a maintainer today, he said, "Absolutely. One hundred percent."

All three men now work at the Naval Air Station Oceana-based Strike Fighter Weapons School Atlantic, sharing all the tactical and operational knowledge and skills they honed out west at TOPGUN with the 17 squadrons stationed here at the East Coast Master Jet Base.

This Saturday, local Navy personnel and their families will get a sneak peek, with specially-arranged advanced screenings of the film at Oceana and Little Creek.

"Top Gun: Maverick" opens to the public on May 24.

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