Miles Teller has paid tribute to his Top Gun: Maverick aerobatics flight instructor.
The War Dogs star, 37, played Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw alongside Cruise’s eponymous Pete “Maverick” Mitchell in the 2022 sequel to Tony Scott and Joseph Kosinkski’s aviation action drama Top Gun.
Cruise put the cast through a “gruelling” flight training programme while preparing to shoot the sequel. Teller was trained to perform manoeuvres by pilot Chuck Coleman, who died following a “fatal accident” at the Las Cruces Air and Space Expo in New Mexico on Sunday (20 October).
Writing on X/Twitter, Teller said: “RIP Chuck Coleman. Chuck was our aerobatics flight instructor and instrumental in our preparation for Top Gun: Maverick. He was an aerospace engineer, air show and test pilot, and our friend and ally.”
He continued: “Chuck had a very easy going way about him and we always felt comfortable with his expertise at our disposal.
“He was kind, humble and curious about others and the world we live in. Gone too soon but his contributions will live on forever. Thanks for the memories, Chuck.”
Coleman was a respected pilot with more than 10,000 hours of flight time. Authorities are still investigating the accident and the Las Cruces airport has remained closed, Deadline reports.
RIP Chuck Coleman. Chuck was our aerobatics flight instructor and instrumental in our preparation for Top Gun: Maverick. He was an aerospace engineer, air show and test pilot, and our friend and ally. Chuck had a very easy going way about him and we always felt comfortable with… pic.twitter.com/93giSZdbgz
— Miles Teller (@Miles_Teller) October 21, 2024
Las Cruces Mayor Eric Enriquez said, “Unfortunately, we had a tragic ending to our Air and Space Expo this weekend. There was an aircraft accident during Sunday’s performance that resulted in the death of pilot, Charles T. “Chuck” Coleman. We would like to extend our deepest condolences to the loved ones and fans of Chuck Coleman.”
The relentless three month flight training programme for Top Gun: Maverick was devised by Cruise and the film’s aerial coordinator Kevin La Rosa Jr, who told The Independent the regime helped strengthen the film’s accuracy and increased safety on set.
As part of the regime, cast members were rotated underwater in an ejection seat to prepare for emergencies. “Aside from training them to be pilots, they needed to check the boxes to be able to fly in the navy aircraft and go and do the same training that those naval aviators do,” he said.
“Ultimately, they needed to know how to survive in the event of an emergency taking place on a fighter jet.”
Back in 2022, Teller revealed he had felt unwell following one fighter jet flight they conducted for Maverick and later discovered he had jet fuel in his blood. “I was really hot and I just started itching like crazy. So I got out of the jet. I’m just covered in hives. Head to toe,” he said.
The actor went straight to the doctor for a blood test, which revealed that he had “flame-retardant, pesticide and jet fuel” in his bloodstream.
Naturally, the actor informed the film’s lead, Tom Cruise, about the results the next day, and the star had an extremely Top Gun response.
“Tom’s like, ‘How did it go, Miles? What did they find?’” Teller said. “I was like, ‘Well, Tom, it turns out I have jet fuel in my blood.’ And without even skipping a beat, Tom goes, ‘Yeah, I was born with it, kid.’”
