What movie had twin tandem helicopters?

Cafe Society
1

This has bugged me long enough, and I know someone here knows the answer.

What movie featured a pair of identical helicopters that always flew in tandem, perfectly synchronized?

The scene that sticks in my mind is at the end of the movie. The both fly forward, towards the audience, then both pivot 90 degrees to face each other, then pivot back–perfectly synchronized. It looked like they were taking a bow. So cool.

I’m guessing Apocalypse Now, but I’m not sure.

2

Apocalypse Now had a handful of very famous helicopter scenes*, but IIRC they didn’t have any Chinooks in the movie (but I could be wrong).

*Ride Of The Valkyries/I love the smell of napalm in the morning.

3

Thanks for the response, but I think you misinterpreted something. When I said twin tandem helicopters, I didn’t mean helicopters with twin rotors. Now, maybe they did have twin rotors, but I don’t remember that detail. I just meant there were a pair of them that always flew together with synchronized movements.

4

Ahh, well then you’ve got Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket to think about (I always confuse the details of those two movies).
Apocalypse Now tended to have use helicopters in ‘swarms’ as I remember, you might want to take a look at some clips of Full Metal Jacket to see if that jogs your memory.

Also, I haven’t seen Black Hawk Down, but it seems like a movie that would involve helicopters.

5

Fire Birds?

6

Fire Birds?

7

6th Day I think. There were two copters, which converted to fixed wing in flight, but could fly synchronously and could be controlled remotely, also.

Bob

8

Probably not the movie of which you’re thinking, but I remember a pair of helicopters in Capricorn One that behaved somewhat similarly to the way you’ve described. I think they were both killed before the end of the movie.

9

One of the Austin Powers movies?

One of the Pierce Brosnan James Bonds?

One of the Mission: Impossible movies? :dubious:

10

I think that’s it! Capricorn One. Here is a link to exactly what the OP describes.

Good catch.

ETA: The link doesn’t seem to go straight to the time like I intended. It happens around the 35 sec mark.

11

There’s a three-helicopter chase in Outbreak. It looks as cheesy as an episode of Airwolf, though.

12

Capricorn One is almost certainly it. That scene was completely pointless and made no sense. But then that’s true of the entire movie.

13

Especially the scenes where OJ was trying to get away?

14

Blue Thunder?

15

Those two helicopters look really frikking close, was there camera-trickery involved or just good piloting?

16

If you watch closely, the copter on the left side of the screen was flying a bit behind the one on the right of the screen. When they pause to “look” at each other, they are not face-to-face, but offset slightly. Filmed through a telephoto lens, the depth of field is compressed making them appear closer than they are.

(This is not to claim that the pilots did not do a fine job of “acting.”)

17

Beaten to the punch!

18

Absolutely. I assure you that each pilot was well aware of the path of their rotor blades with respect to those of the other helicopter. Had those blades hit, there would have been two less helicopters and probably two less helicopter pilots in the world.

19

Thanks, so it was good camera-work and good flying!

20

I’m going with Capricorn One. If that’s not the one I remember, it has an identical scene. I’m going to watch the entire thing later.

Thanks for the clip. Now I can get rid of that particular brain itch.