Best aviation films
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- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsKeir DulleaGary LockwoodWilliam SylvesterAfter uncovering a mysterious artifact buried beneath the Lunar surface, a spacecraft is sent to Jupiter to find its origins: a spacecraft manned by two men and the supercomputer HAL 9000.
- DirectorGreg CarsonStarsGuy HamiltonBernard WilliamsGarth Thomas
- DirectorRoger SpottiswoodeStarsMel GibsonRobert Downey Jr.Nancy TravisA young pilot finds himself recruited unwittingly into a covert and corrupt CIA airlift operation in Laos during the Vietnam conflict.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsJohn GarfieldJohn RidgelyGig YoungThe crew of an Air Force bomber arrives in Pearl Harbor in the aftermath of the Japanese attack on December 7, 1941, and is sent on to Manila to help with the defense of the Philippines.
- DirectorPeter MarkleStarsGene HackmanDanny GloverJerry ReedDuring the Vietnam War, Colonel Hambleton's aircraft is shot down over enemy territory and a frantic rescue operation ensues.
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsHarrison FordGary OldmanGlenn CloseCommunist radicals hijack Air Force One with the U.S. President and his family on board. The Vice President negotiates from Washington D.C., while the President, a veteran, fights to rescue the hostages on board.
- DirectorGeorge SeatonHenry HathawayStarsBurt LancasterDean MartinGeorge KennedyA bomber on board an airplane, an airport almost closed by snow, and various personal problems of the people involved.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsRichard DreyfussHolly HunterBrad JohnsonThe spirit of a recently deceased expert pilot mentors a newer pilot while watching him fall in love with the girlfriend that he left behind.
- DirectorMira NairStarsHilary SwankRichard GereEwan McGregorA look at the life of legendary American pilot Amelia Earhart, who disappeared while flying over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 in an attempt to make a flight around the world.
- DirectorGeorge More O'FerrallStarsJack HawkinsMichael DenisonAndrew OsbornThe story of an RAF fighter squadron at the height of the Battle of Britain.
- DirectorPhilip LeacockStarsDirk BogardeIan HunterDinah SheridanWar drama about the dangerous and stressful work of Lancaster bomber British crews during World War II.
- DirectorRon HowardStarsTom HanksBill PaxtonKevin BaconNASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy.
- DirectorGonzalo López-GallegoStarsWarren ChristieLloyd OwenRyan RobbinsDecades-old found footage from NASA's abandoned Apollo 18 mission, where three American astronauts were sent on a secret expedition, reveals the reason the U.S. has never returned to the moon.
- DirectorVernon SewellStarsMichael RenniePatricia MedinaMilly VitaleA group of Polish fighters of the Polish resistance movement go on a mission to destroy the German V-1 'Flying Bomb' at Peenemünde and cripple the German war effort during World War II.
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsNatalie WoodKarl MaldenMarsha HuntSgt. Chuck Brennan always disliked playboy and hotshot, Col. Jim Herlihy. Now Chuck has even more reason to, Jim is dating his daughter, Lois.
- DirectorJohn MooreStarsGene HackmanOwen WilsonGabriel MachtA disillusioned pilot shot down over war-torn Bosnia goes on the run from the local military and an assassin, as his commanding officer risks all to save him.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsRock HudsonRod TaylorMary PeachDuring the Cold War, Air Force Colonel Jim Caldwell shapes up his Strategic Air Command B-52 wing to pass a nuclear war readiness test.
- DirectorGuy HamiltonStarsMichael CaineTrevor HowardHarry AndrewsIn 1940, the British Royal Air Force fights a desperate battle to prevent the Luftwaffe from gaining air superiority over the English Channel as a prelude to a possible Axis invasion of the U.K.
- DirectorJack GoldStarsMalcolm McDowellChristopher PlummerSimon WardIn World War I, the high casualty rate amongst the rookie pilots of the Royal Flying Corps puts an enormous strain on the survivors.
- DirectorDouglas SirkStarsRock HudsonMartha HyerDan DuryeaA remorseful bomber pilot-turned-minister rejoins for the Korean War.
- DirectorWalter GraumanStarsCliff RobertsonGeorge ChakirisMaria PerschyA RAF squadron is assigned to knock out a German rocket fuel factory in Norway. The factory supplies fuel for the Nazi effort to launch rockets on England during D-Day.
- DirectorKarl RitterStarsHannes StelzerHubert KiurinaJosef DahmenLuftwaffe pilots Joachim and Franz both love Marianne - their jealousy threatens to compromise the vital teamwork aboard their recon plane. Sergeant Otto, a farm boy, loses his love Mathilde when she discovers she hates agricultural work.
- DirectorHenry KingStarsTyrone PowerBetty GrableJohn SuttonAn American pilot impulsively joins His Majesty's Royal Air Force in Britain in an attempt to impress his ex-girlfriend.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsJames CagneyDennis MorganBrenda MarshallInspired by Churchill's Dunkirk speech, brash, undisciplined bush pilot Brian MacLean and three friends enlist in the RCAF but are deemed too old to be fliers.
- DirectorMike NicholsStarsAlan ArkinMartin BalsamRichard BenjaminA man is trying desperately to be certified insane during World War II, so he can stop flying missions.
- DirectorRay EnrightStarsPat O'BrienHumphrey BogartBeverly RobertsDave Logan takes his regional Pan American airline and with vision and sometimes ruthless determination establishes pan-American and trans-Pacific routes.
- DirectorSam WoodStarsClark GableWalter PidgeonVan JohnsonArmy generals struggle with the decision to prioritize bombing the German factories producing new jet fighters over the extremely high casualties the mission will cost.
- DirectorNikolai MüllerschönStarsMatthias SchweighöferLena HeadeyTil SchweigerGerman biopic loosely based on the World War I fighter ace Manfred Von Richthofen, nicknamed the Red Baron by friend and foe alike.
- DirectorAlfred WeidenmannStarsJoachim HansenMarianne KochHansjörg FelmyBiographic Movie of the German fighter ace, who was killed in a plane crash after over 150 kills in North Africa.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsErrol FlynnFred MacMurrayRalph BellamyA military surgeon teams with a ranking Navy flyer to develop a high-altitude suit which will protect pilots from blacking out when they go into a steep dive.
- 19641h 35mPG8.4 (519K)97MetascoreDirectorStanley KubrickStarsPeter SellersGeorge C. ScottSterling HaydenAn unhinged American general orders a bombing attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.
- DirectorLesley SelanderStarsJohn HodiakBarbara BrittonBruce BennettIn Pusan, shortly before the start of the Korean War, American flight instructors teach South Korean pilots how to fly US-made warplanes.
- DirectorStuart BairdStarsKurt RussellHalle BerrySteven SeagalWhen terrorists seize control of an airliner, an intelligence analyst accompanies a commando unit for a midair boarding operation.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodFreddie JonesDavid HuffmanA pilot is sent into the Soviet Union on a mission to steal a prototype jet fighter that can be partially controlled by a neuralink.
- DirectorJohn MiliusStarsDanny GloverWillem DafoeBrad JohnsonDuring the air war over Vietnam, a U.S. Navy A-6 Intruder bomber pilot schemes with a hardened veteran to make an unauthorized air strike on Hanoi.
- DirectorJohn MooreStarsDennis QuaidMiranda OttoGiovanni RibisiSurvivors of a plane crash in the Mongolian desert work together to build a new plane.
- DirectorNicholas RayStarsJohn WayneRobert RyanDon TaylorMajor Kirby leads The Wildcats squadron into the historic WWII battle of Guadalcanal.
- DirectorDavid MillerStarsJohn WayneJohn CarrollAnna LeeCapt. Jim Gordon's command of the famed American volunteer fighter group in China is complicated by the recruitment of an old friend who is a reckless hotshot.
- DirectorTony BillStarsJames FrancoJean RenoJennifer DeckerThe adventures of the Lafayette Escadrille, young Americans who volunteered for the French military before the U.S. entered World War I, and became the country's first fighter pilots.
- DirectorMike PhillipsStarsBug HallDonnie JeffcoatSean McGowanA replacement co-pilot joins a B-17 bomber crew in North Africa. He soon finds himself at odds with the remainder of the crew and has to regain their trust and support.
- DirectorHoward HughesEdmund GouldingJames WhaleStarsBen LyonJames HallJean HarlowBrothers Monte and Ray leave Oxford to join the Royal Flying Corps. Ray loves Helen; Helen enjoys an affair with Monte; before they leave on their mission over Germany they find her in still another man's arms.
- DirectorTom GriesStarsJohn IrelandMarla EnglishBill WilliamsInteraction among men of a bombing squadron during the Korean War.
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsJohn WayneLloyd NolanWalter AbelA C-47 transport plane, named the Corsair, makes a forced landing in the frozen wastes of Quebec, and the plane's pilot, Captain Dooley, must keep his men alive in deadly conditions while waiting for rescue.
- DirectorJosef von SternbergStarsJohn WayneJanet LeighJay C. FlippenAir Force Colonel Jim Shannon is tasked to escort a defecting Soviet pilot who is scheming to lure Shannon to the USSR.
- StarsJacques SantiChristian MarinValéry InkijinoffIn the 1960s, two fighter pilots are assigned to Dijon air base, France.
- DirectorGérard PirèsStarsBenoît MagimelClovis CornillacGéraldine PailhasAn advanced, armed, French Mirage fighter jet is stolen during an air show in UK. 2 other fighter jets locate it. They're forced to shoot it down. Terrorists make another attempt to steal armed Mirages. Why?
- DirectorDavid Dessites
- DirectorBrian Desmond HurstStarsAlec GuinnessJack HawkinsAnthony Steel1942 and the island of Malta is battling for survival. The threat of invasion by Axis forces is increasing as air raids wear down its defence. Entering this maelstrom is Flight Lieutenant Peter Ross, an RAF photo-reconnaissance pilot.
- DirectorMichael Caton-JonesStarsMatthew ModineEric StoltzTate DonovanIn 1943, the crew of a B-17 based in the UK prepares for its 25th and final bombing mission over Germany before returning home to the USA.
- DirectorAndrew MartonStarsVan JohnsonWalter PidgeonLouis CalhernA famous writer visits an aircraft carrier during the Korean war to learn more about it and the way it's run. He also gets to find out more about the Navy and Marine aviators themselves, their internal and external conflicts and dangers of their job.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsCharlton HestonHenry FondaJames CoburnA dramatization of the battle that was widely heralded as a turning point of the Pacific Theatre of World War II.
- DirectorFred F. SearsStarsJohn HodiakJohn DerekAudrey TotterIn the early days of the Korean War, a commanding officer tries to rein in a headstrong rookie pilot determined to avenge his brother's death.
- DirectorBoris SagalStarsDavid McCallumSuzanne NeveCharles GrayIn World War II, an RAF squadron leader mourns the death of a comrade and receives a bombing mission against a secret German V-2 rocket testing facility in France.
- DirectorMichael PowellEmeric PressburgerStarsGodfrey TearleEric PortmanHugh WilliamsDuring a raid on Germany a British bomber crew is forced to bail out after their plane is damaged. They land in Holland and are aided by Dutch civilians.
- DirectorMichael BayStarsBen AffleckKate BeckinsaleJosh HartnettA tale of war and romance mixed in with history. The story follows two lifelong friends and a beautiful nurse who are caught up in the horror of an infamous Sunday morning in 1941.
- DirectorKlay HallStarsCarlos AlazraquiDane CookStacy KeachA cropdusting plane with a fear of heights lives his dream of competing in a famous around-the-world aerial race.
- DirectorTim WhelanArthur B. WoodsStarsLaurence OlivierRalph RichardsonValerie HobsonA quirky British Secret Service Agent named Major Hammond tries to discover who is using a secret weapon to steal experimental planes.
- DirectorLewis GilbertStarsKenneth MoreMuriel PavlowLyndon BrookBiopic of RAF Group Captain Douglas Bader who, after having lost both legs, flew a British fighter plane during WWII.
- DirectorAnthony HemingwayStarsCuba Gooding Jr.Gerald McRaneyDavid OyelowoA crew of African American pilots in the Tuskegee training program, having faced segregation while kept mostly on the ground during World War II, are called into duty under the guidance of Col. A.J. Bullard.
- DirectorLouis KingStarsRobert StackColeen GrayRichard ArlenThe story of jet pilots flying over Korea by day, from their Itazuke Air Base in Japan, and of their wives, on station with them, who have dinner ready when they return. Jane Carter (Coleen Gray), a reporter for a large newspaper syndicate arrives... she's also the estranged wife of the assistant squadron commander, Colonel Gil Manton (Robert Stack.) At first, she goes at her assignment of getting a story on the pilots wives with the same ruthlessness and persistence that broke up her marriage - but a mirror isn't needed to peek around the corner to where this one is headed.
- DirectorSergei NolbandovStarsJohn ClementsLeslie BanksJane BaxterLt. Dick Stacey is dismissed from the Fleet Air Arm for poor discipline. He joins the Aircraft Carrier "HMS Ark Royal" (The Ship with Wings). When they go into battle in the Mediterranean he acts heroically and redeems himself.
- DirectorKerry ConranStarsGwyneth PaltrowJude LawAngelina JolieAfter New York City receives a series of attacks from giant flying robots, a reporter teams up with a pilot in search of their origin, as well as the reason for the disappearances of famous scientists around the world.
- DirectorFred F. SearsStarsDan DuryeaFrances GiffordMike ConnorsDuring the Korean War, two junior officers discuss their colonel's dour reputation dating back to his WW2 service in the bomber and reconnaissance command.
- DirectorMikhail TumanishviliStarsBoris ShcherbakovMihai VolontirAnatoliy KuznetsovRussian naval pilots risk death to help stop a American Submarine whose defective reactor threatens a nuclear meltdown.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodTommy Lee JonesDonald SutherlandWhen retired engineer Frank Corvin is called upon to rescue a failing satellite, he insists that his equally old teammates accompany him into space.
- DirectorRob CohenStarsJosh LucasJessica BielJamie FoxxDeeply ensconced in a top-secret military program, three pilots struggle to bring an artificial intelligence program under control before it initiates the next world war.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsJames StewartJune AllysonFrank LovejoyAn ex-pilot and current baseballer is recalled into the U.S. Air Force and assumes an increasingly important role in Cold War deterrence.
- DirectorHarry WattStarsJohn CobbRichard PeirsePercy Charles PickardThe planning and implementation of an RAF night raid on Germany in World War II, concentrating on a low level mission by a Wellington bomber on an oil storage facility by the Rhine.
- DirectorDelmer DavesStarsGary CooperJane WyattWayne MorrisAs he is retiring, Jonathan L. Scott "Scotty" reminisces about his long Navy career and the development of the role of the aircraft carrier from the early 20s.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioCate BlanchettKate BeckinsaleA biopic depicting the early years of legendary director and aviator Howard Hughes' career from the late 1920s to the mid 1940s.
- DirectorGeorge SeatonStarsMontgomery CliftPaul DouglasCornell BorchersExperiences of two Air Force sergeants during the 1948 Berlin Airlift.
- DirectorJohn GuillerminStarsGeorge PeppardJames MasonUrsula AndressA young pilot in the German air force of 1918, disliked as lower-class and unchivalrous, tries ambitiously to earn the medal offered for 20 kills.
- DirectorGeorge KingStarsEsmond KnightJohn StuartGreta Hansen
- DirectorMark RobsonStarsWilliam HoldenGrace KellyFredric MarchSet during the Korean War, a Navy fighter pilot must come to terms with with his own ambivalence towards the war and the fear of having to bomb a set of highly defended bridges. The ending of this grim war drama is all tension.
- DirectorMichael AndersonStarsRichard ToddMichael RedgraveUrsula JeansDrama based on the attempt by the RAF to destroy six dams in Germany during World War II.
- DirectorEdward SteichenWilliam WylerStarsRobert TaylorCharles BoyerJoseph J. ClarkAn in-depth look at aircraft carrier combat operations during World War II. Real combat footage. Very strong and compelling.
- DirectorDon TaylorStarsKirk DouglasMartin SheenKatharine RossA modern aircraft carrier is thrown back in time to 1941 near Hawaii, just hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
- DirectorLeslie HowardStarsLeslie HowardDavid NivenRosamund JohnAircraft designer/patriot R. J. Mitchell, alarmed at growing German militarism, works to perfect a defense against the German Messerschmidt at the cost of his health.
- DirectorGeorge Roy HillStarsRobert RedfordBo SvensonBo BrundinAfter WW1, an ex-pilot takes up barn-storming and chance-meets a former German ace fighter pilot with whom he co-stars in Hollywood war movies depicting aerial dog-fights.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsGeorge C. ScottAnne BancroftWilliam AthertonA chronicle of the Hindenburg disaster in which a zeppelin burst into flames.
- DirectorDick PowellStarsRobert MitchumRobert WagnerRichard EganIn 1952, during the Korean War, two American pilots become bitter enemies over the same woman but must shelf their personal feud when confronted by deadly Chinese MIG fighter jets in battle.
- DirectorAdrian BrunelBrian Desmond HurstMichael PowellStarsMerle OberonRalph RichardsonJune DuprezA look at the current might of the Royal Air Force. Place - Great Britain, time - two months after the start of World War ll.
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsAlan LaddJune AllysonJames WhitmoreA Korean War fighter pilot hero returns home to test fly the new Sabre jets despite his wife's uneasiness regarding his job.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsStanley WrayRobert MorganJames A. VerinisA documentary on the 25th bombing mission of the Memphis Belle, a B-17 in the US 8th Air Force.
- DirectorPhilip KaufmanStarsSam ShepardScott GlennEd HarrisThe U.S. space program's development from the breaking of the sound barrier to selection of the Mercury 7 astronauts, from a group of test pilots with a more seat-of-the-pants approach than the program's more cautious engineers preferred.
- DirectorLewis GilbertStarsMichael RedgraveDirk BogardeBonar ColleanoIn the North Sea in 1944, passengers of a downed Royal Air Force transport aircraft talk about their lives while awaiting rescue in their dinghy.
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsRalph RichardsonAnn ToddNigel PatrickFictionalized story of British aerospace engineers solving the problem of supersonic flight.
- DirectorBilly WilderStarsJames StewartMurray HamiltonPatricia SmithCharles 'Slim' Lindbergh struggles to finance and design an airplane that will make his New York to Paris flight the first solo transatlantic crossing.
- DirectorWill ZensStarsRobert DornanRichard JordahlShirley OlmsteadA young Air Force lieutenant falls in love with fighter planes while his father, a Congressman and war hero, yearns for him to fly heavy bombers.
- DirectorBoris SagalStarsChristopher GeorgeLaraine StephensJ.D. CannonA U.S. Air Force colonel convinces the Allies during World War II that a daylight bombing raid of Germany will bring a quick end to the war.
- DirectorRobert MarkowitzStarsLaurence FishburneAllen PayneMalcolm-Jamal WarnerThe true story of how a group of African-American pilots overcame racist opposition to become one of the finest United States fighter groups in World War II.
- DirectorPhilip LeacockStarsSteve McQueenRobert WagnerShirley Anne FieldIn 1943, while stationed in Britain, arrogant Captain Buzz Rickson is in command of a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber, but his recklessness is endangering everyone around him.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsSpencer TracyVan JohnsonRobert WalkerIn the wake of Pearl Harbor, a young lieutenant leaves his expectant wife to volunteer for a secret bombing mission which will take the war to the Japanese homeland.
- DirectorKen AnnakinStarsStuart WhitmanSarah MilesJames FoxHoping to push Britain to the forefront of aviation, a London publisher organizes an international air race across the English Channel, but must contend with two entrants vying for his daughter, as well as national rivalries and cheating.
- DirectorJan SverákStarsOndrej VetchýKrystof HádekTara FitzgeraldThe friendship of two men becomes tested when they both fall for the same woman.
- DirectorTony ScottStarsTom CruiseTim RobbinsKelly McGillisAs students at the United States Navy's elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.
- DirectorJim AbrahamsDavid ZuckerJerry ZuckerStarsRobert HaysJulie HagertyLeslie NielsenAfter the crew becomes sick with food poisoning, a neurotic ex-fighter pilot must safely land a commercial airplane full of passengers.