Wings Of The Apache
(aka: Fire Birds, 1990) - lots of great rotary action here, as this film looks
at the role of attack helicopters in paramilitary warfare against a drug cartel in South
America. Look out for Cobra, Black Hawk and Scorpion choppers in addition to the Apache
squadron of title, often viewed in silhouette against a sunrise. The film's stars (Nicolas
Cage, Tommy Lee Jones, and Sean Young) all play pilots, and there's one funny scene in
which Cage's hero overcomes a hand/eye co-ordination problem to trash all the war-game
scenarios in a military flight simulator.
"Fire Birds is a terribly bad movie - just awful, bad writing, worse acting,
ugh. It does, however, have a zillion helicopters! The US Army participated more than
you would expect in this disaster, offering machinery and manpower for the flying scenes
from stocks at Fort Hood, Texas. We see about 30 AH-64A Apaches on loan from the 4th
Squadron of the 6th Cavalry Brigade, a Bell OH-58D Kiowa from the 2nd Armoured Division,
plus several AH-1 Cobras, UH-60 Black Hawks, UH-1H Hueys and MD-500D Defenders from other
units." - NATHAN DECKER
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