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Air America (film)
Encyclopedia
Air America is a 1990 American
action comedy film directed by Roger Spottiswoode
, starring Mel Gibson
and Robert Downey Jr.
as Air America pilots
, during the Vietnam War
, flying missions in Laos
. The protagonist
s discover their planes are used by other government agents to smuggle heroin; and then, they must avoid being made patsies
in a frame-up.
The plot is adapted from Christopher Robbins' 1979 non-fiction book, chronicling the CIA financed airline during the Vietnam War
to transport weapons and supplies within Laos
and other areas of Indochina
subsequent to the North Vietnamese invasion of Laos
. The publicity for the film — advertised as a light-hearted buddy movie -- implied a tone that differs greatly with the tone of the actual film, which includes such serious themes as an anti-war political spin, focus on the opium trade, and a negative portrayal of Royal Laotian General Vang Pao
(played by actor Burt Kwouk
as "General Lu Soong").
Billy, unemployed and unable to find work, takes the job and flies to Laos. By the end of his first day in Laos, he learns that fellow Air America pilot Gene Ryack (Gibson) is an arms merchant who uses official flights to buy black-market weapons for his private cache. His dream, which he refers to as his "retirement plan", is to make a sale big enough so that he can afford to quit his job at Air America.
The next day, Senator Davenport (Lane Smith
) arrives in Laos on a "fact finding mission" to determine if Washington D.C rumors are true about Air America's drug smuggling business. Major Lemond and Rob Diehl, CIA leaders of Air America, have a cover-up in place. Senator Davenport is shown around refugee camps, shrines and temples, and major cities in a careful deception to keep him out of the loop. At the same time, Billy and Jack Neely are shot down in their C-123
cargo plane while airdropping livestock into rural villages. Air America stages a large rescue effort, which turns out to be nothing but a cover for the transport of opium; when General Soong's Pilatus PC-6
plane arrives at the crash site, his soldiers load the plane with bags of opium, but leave Billy and Jack behind, stranding them in hostile territory. As Communist forces move in, Gene and another pilot arrive. Billy's crew evacuates in the other plane while he boards Gene's helicopter.
In the ensuing escape, Billy and Gene's helicopter takes fire and crashes, stranding them in the jungles of Laos, where they are ultimately captured by a rural tribe. Gene lets his business instincts shine through when he notices that the tribe is using obsolete and unreliable guns, managing to convince the tribe to spare their lives in exchange for better weapons. Allowed to go free, Billy and Gene retreat to Gene's house, where Billy is surprised to discover that Gene has a wife and children. Already disillusioned with America's actions in Laos, Billy is convinced by Gene to quit his job with Air America — but before he leaves, Billy wants to get even with General Soong for betraying him when he crashed.
Meanwhile, Senator Davenport is becoming upset when he is not being shown the operations of Air America, and he demands to know who is smuggling heroin. Soon after returning to Air America the pilots are informed that Jack was killed during his search for Billy and Gene, and Gene is offended when he later learns that the senator has been led to believe that Jack is the culprit behind the drug trafficking. In retaliation for this misinformation, and for Soong's earlier betrayal, Billy purchases grenades on the black market and uses them to blow up the heroin factory. Unfortunately, the guards see him running away, and General Soong and Major Lemond use him as their fall guy.
The next day, Gene finds a buyer for his arsenal, allowing him to leave gunrunning, quit Air America, and take his family out of the country. Meanwhile, Billy accepts one more flight before he actually quits; he and co-pilot Babo are assigned to transport flour to a refugee camp. When Babo and Billy are instructed to land at an airstrip for "routine inspection", Babo reveals that such a sudden inspection is actually a non-routine situation. Billy immediately suspects a set-up, and a search through their cargo reveals several kilos of heroin hidden in flour sacks. He refuses to land and tries to fly away, only to find his fuel gauge
has been tampered with and he is nearly out of gas. Babo and Billy crash-land on the same airstrip where Billy crashed a few days earlier, and use the wreckage of the previous crash to hide the smaller plane.
Gene, who is on his way to make his final, and largest, weapons delivery, makes a detour to rescue Babo and Billy. Despite Gene's desire to make his delivery so he can be free of Air America, Billy convinces him to respond to a distress call from the refugee camp, which has been caught in the crossfire between General Soong's men and a band of local rebels. Gene's plane is the closest, so they stop at the camp to pick up the USAID in charge of the camp (played by Nancy Travis
). However, the aid refuses to leave without the refugees, and there is not enough room on the plane for both cargo and passengers. After some initial resistance, Gene reluctantly sacrifices his retirement plan by dumping his cargo to make room for the refugees, and uses the explosion of his weapons cache to cover their escape. After rescuing the refugees and taking off, Gene tells Billy that he is going to help Gene earn back the money he lost from dumping the cargo, which Billy had persuaded him to do.
Still in the air, Diehl and Lemond attempt to convince the senator that Billy's refusal to concede to inspection proves that he is the culprit behind the drug smuggling. The senator, however, sees through their lies and threatens to reveal their operation to Washington. Lemond argues that such an action would be political suicide on the senator's part because, as Lemond insists, "the President loves me". However, closing titles reveal that Diehl and Lemond were indeed exposed, and would later go on to lead checkered careers in Washington politics.
tried to develop the film in 1985, as the first comedy about Vietnam. Carolco Pictures
bought the project as Rush wrote a script and found locations. Sean Connery
was attached to play the older pilot, Gene Ryack, and the younger flier Billy Covington was at different times to be played by Bill Murray
, James Belushi
and Kevin Costner
. The project was sold to producer Daniel Melnick
after Connery and Costner became too expensive. Melnick hired screenwriter John Eskow
to write a new script; and first hired director Bob Rafelson
to work with Rush, but eventually hiring director Roger Spottiswoode
. Mel Gibson
was cast for a reported $7 million, for the role of Ryack, and Robert Downey, Jr. held the role of Covington. Nancy Travis
was cast as Corinne Landroaux (replacing Ally Sheedy
), and Michael Dudikoff
was cast as General Lee.
, London
, and Los Angeles
; operating between eight and 15 cameras at a time. The production was plagued by two earthquakes and a typhoon. The producers rented 26 planes from the Thai military, and some of the stunt flyers refused to perform some of the tasks, with 60-year-old veterans being drafted for the more demanding turns. Pepsi-Cola wanted the filmmakers to use a fictional soda rather than show opium being refined at their abandoned factory. Therefore, the producers added a line about wondering if Pepsi knew what was going on.
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
action comedy film directed by Roger Spottiswoode
Roger Spottiswoode
Roger Spottiswoode is a Canadian-born film director and writer, who began his career as an editor in the 1970s. He was born in Ottawa, Ontario. He has directed a number of notable films and television productions, including Under Fire and the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies starring...
, starring Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
and Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert John Downey, Jr. is an American actor. Downey made his screen debut in 1970 at the age of five when he appeared in his father's film Pound, and has worked consistently in film and television ever since. During the 1980s he had roles in a series of coming of age films associated with the...
as Air America pilots
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
, during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, flying missions in Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
. The protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
s discover their planes are used by other government agents to smuggle heroin; and then, they must avoid being made patsies
Scapegoat
Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any party for unmerited negative treatment or blame. Scapegoating may be conducted by individuals against individuals , individuals against groups , groups against individuals , and groups against groups Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any...
in a frame-up.
The plot is adapted from Christopher Robbins' 1979 non-fiction book, chronicling the CIA financed airline during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
to transport weapons and supplies within Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
and other areas of Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
subsequent to the North Vietnamese invasion of Laos
North Vietnamese invasion of Laos
The North Vietnamese invaded Laos between 1958–1959.Souvanna Phouma announced that with the holding of elections the Royal Lao Government had fulfilled the political obligations it had assumed at Geneva, and the International Control Commission adjourned sine die...
. The publicity for the film — advertised as a light-hearted buddy movie -- implied a tone that differs greatly with the tone of the actual film, which includes such serious themes as an anti-war political spin, focus on the opium trade, and a negative portrayal of Royal Laotian General Vang Pao
Vang Pao
Vang Pao was a Lieutenant General in the Royal Lao Army. He was an ethnic Hmong and a leader of the Hmong American community in the United States.-Early life:...
(played by actor Burt Kwouk
Burt Kwouk
Burt Kwouk OBE , born Herbert Kwouk, is an English actor of Chinese descent, known for many television appearances and for his role as Cato in the Pink Panther films.-Career:...
as "General Lu Soong").
Plot
In late 1969, Billy Covington (Downey) works as a helicopter traffic pilot for a Los Angeles radio station, and loses his pilot's license after breaking FAA regulations. His piloting skills, bravery and disregard for the law are noticed by a mysterious stranger, who tells Billy that he can get his licence back if he accepts a job in Laos working for a "strictly civilian" company called Air America; the stranger insists that "there is no war in Laos, you can take that to the bank".Billy, unemployed and unable to find work, takes the job and flies to Laos. By the end of his first day in Laos, he learns that fellow Air America pilot Gene Ryack (Gibson) is an arms merchant who uses official flights to buy black-market weapons for his private cache. His dream, which he refers to as his "retirement plan", is to make a sale big enough so that he can afford to quit his job at Air America.
The next day, Senator Davenport (Lane Smith
Lane Smith
Walter Lane Smith III was an American actor. Some of his well known roles included portraying collaborator entrepreneur Nathan Bates in the NBC television series V, Mayor Bates in the film Red Dawn, newspaper editor Perry White in the ABC series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,...
) arrives in Laos on a "fact finding mission" to determine if Washington D.C rumors are true about Air America's drug smuggling business. Major Lemond and Rob Diehl, CIA leaders of Air America, have a cover-up in place. Senator Davenport is shown around refugee camps, shrines and temples, and major cities in a careful deception to keep him out of the loop. At the same time, Billy and Jack Neely are shot down in their C-123
C-123 Provider
The C-123 Provider was an American military transport aircraft designed by Chase Aircraft and subsequently built by Fairchild Aircraft for the United States Air Force...
cargo plane while airdropping livestock into rural villages. Air America stages a large rescue effort, which turns out to be nothing but a cover for the transport of opium; when General Soong's Pilatus PC-6
Pilatus PC-6
|-See also:-References:* Lambert, Mark. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1993–1994. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Data Division, 1993. ISBN 0 7106 1066 1.* Taylor, John W. R. Janes's All The World's Aircraft 1965–66. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, 1965....
plane arrives at the crash site, his soldiers load the plane with bags of opium, but leave Billy and Jack behind, stranding them in hostile territory. As Communist forces move in, Gene and another pilot arrive. Billy's crew evacuates in the other plane while he boards Gene's helicopter.
In the ensuing escape, Billy and Gene's helicopter takes fire and crashes, stranding them in the jungles of Laos, where they are ultimately captured by a rural tribe. Gene lets his business instincts shine through when he notices that the tribe is using obsolete and unreliable guns, managing to convince the tribe to spare their lives in exchange for better weapons. Allowed to go free, Billy and Gene retreat to Gene's house, where Billy is surprised to discover that Gene has a wife and children. Already disillusioned with America's actions in Laos, Billy is convinced by Gene to quit his job with Air America — but before he leaves, Billy wants to get even with General Soong for betraying him when he crashed.
The next day, Gene finds a buyer for his arsenal, allowing him to leave gunrunning, quit Air America, and take his family out of the country. Meanwhile, Billy accepts one more flight before he actually quits; he and co-pilot Babo are assigned to transport flour to a refugee camp. When Babo and Billy are instructed to land at an airstrip for "routine inspection", Babo reveals that such a sudden inspection is actually a non-routine situation. Billy immediately suspects a set-up, and a search through their cargo reveals several kilos of heroin hidden in flour sacks. He refuses to land and tries to fly away, only to find his fuel gauge
Fuel gauge
A fuel gauge is an instrument used to indicate the level of fuel contained in a tank. Commonly used in cars, these may also be used for any tank including underground storage tanks.As used in cars, the gauge consists of two parts:...
has been tampered with and he is nearly out of gas. Babo and Billy crash-land on the same airstrip where Billy crashed a few days earlier, and use the wreckage of the previous crash to hide the smaller plane.
Gene, who is on his way to make his final, and largest, weapons delivery, makes a detour to rescue Babo and Billy. Despite Gene's desire to make his delivery so he can be free of Air America, Billy convinces him to respond to a distress call from the refugee camp, which has been caught in the crossfire between General Soong's men and a band of local rebels. Gene's plane is the closest, so they stop at the camp to pick up the USAID in charge of the camp (played by Nancy Travis
Nancy Travis
Nancy Ann Travis is an American actress. She is known for her roles in films Three Men and a Baby and its sequel, Three Men and a Little Lady , Married to the Mob , Air America , Internal Affairs , So I Married an Axe Murderer , Greedy , and Fluke...
). However, the aid refuses to leave without the refugees, and there is not enough room on the plane for both cargo and passengers. After some initial resistance, Gene reluctantly sacrifices his retirement plan by dumping his cargo to make room for the refugees, and uses the explosion of his weapons cache to cover their escape. After rescuing the refugees and taking off, Gene tells Billy that he is going to help Gene earn back the money he lost from dumping the cargo, which Billy had persuaded him to do.
Still in the air, Diehl and Lemond attempt to convince the senator that Billy's refusal to concede to inspection proves that he is the culprit behind the drug smuggling. The senator, however, sees through their lies and threatens to reveal their operation to Washington. Lemond argues that such an action would be political suicide on the senator's part because, as Lemond insists, "the President loves me". However, closing titles reveal that Diehl and Lemond were indeed exposed, and would later go on to lead checkered careers in Washington politics.
Cast
- Mel GibsonMel GibsonMel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
as Gene Ryack - Robert Downey, Jr. as Billy Covington
- Nancy TravisNancy TravisNancy Ann Travis is an American actress. She is known for her roles in films Three Men and a Baby and its sequel, Three Men and a Little Lady , Married to the Mob , Air America , Internal Affairs , So I Married an Axe Murderer , Greedy , and Fluke...
as Corinne Landreaux - Ken JenkinsKen JenkinsKen Jenkins is an American actor, best known for his role as Dr. Bob Kelso, the Chief of Medicine on the American comedy Scrubs....
as Major Donald Lemond - David Marshall GrantDavid Marshall GrantDavid Marshall Grant is an American actor and playwright.-Life and career:Grant was born in Westport, Connecticut, to physician parents...
as Robert Diehl - Lane SmithLane SmithWalter Lane Smith III was an American actor. Some of his well known roles included portraying collaborator entrepreneur Nathan Bates in the NBC television series V, Mayor Bates in the film Red Dawn, newspaper editor Perry White in the ABC series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,...
as Senator Davenport - Art LaFleurArt LaFleur-Life and career:La Fleur was born in Gary, Indiana. He played football in 1962 as a redshirt at the University of Kentucky under Coach Charlie Bradshaw as chronicled in a 2007 book, The Thin Thirty....
as Jack Neely - Michael DudikoffMichael DudikoffMichael Joseph Dudikoff II is an American actor who has been in numerous films, including the American Ninja series , Tron , Bachelor Party , Platoon Leader , River of Death , Soldier Boyz , Ringmaster , and The Silencer , to name a few...
as General Lee - Ned EisenbergNed EisenbergNed Eisenberg is an American actor known for his recurring role on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Roger Kressler....
as Nick Pirelli - Marshall BellMarshall BellArchibald Marshall Bell is an American actor. He has appeared in many character roles in movies and television. His best-known movies are probably A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge , Stand by Me , Twins and Total Recall .-Early life:He was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he lived until...
as Q.V. - David BoweDavid BoweDavid Bowe is an often seen but rarely recognized character actor in American movies and television. His best known role is that of "Weird Al" Yankovic's sidekick, Bob, in 1989's UHF...
as Saunders - Burt KwoukBurt KwoukBurt Kwouk OBE , born Herbert Kwouk, is an English actor of Chinese descent, known for many television appearances and for his role as Cato in the Pink Panther films.-Career:...
as General Lu Soong - Tim ThomersonTim ThomersonJoseph Timothy “Tim” Thomerson is an American actor and comedian.Thomerson is most famous for his role as Jack Deth in the Trancers film series and is renowned for his work in numerous low-budget movies and his comedic television roles.-Early life:Tim Thomerson was born in Coronado, California. He...
as Babo - Harvey JasonHarvey JasonHarvey Albert Jason is an English actor and the co-owner of Mystery Pier Books, an independent book store that sells first editions.Jason was born in London, the son of Marie Goldblatt and actor Alec Jason...
as Nino - Sinjai HongthaiSinjai PlengpanichSinjai Plengpanich , née Sinjai Hongtai , , is a Thai actress. She has acted in numerous lakorn as well as films and theatrical productions...
as May Ling - Natta Nantatanti as Gene's Daughter
- Purin Phanichphant as Gene's Son
Development
Director Richard RushRichard Rush (director)
Richard Rush is an American movie director, scriptwriter, and producer. He is best known for the Oscar-nominated The Stunt Man. His other works, however, have been less celebrated. The next best-known of his movies is Color of Night — also nominated, but in this case for the Golden Raspberry Award...
tried to develop the film in 1985, as the first comedy about Vietnam. Carolco Pictures
Carolco Pictures
Carolco Pictures, Inc., Carolco International N.V., or Anabasis Investments was an American independent film production company that, within a decade, went from producing such blockbuster successes as Terminator 2: Judgment Day and the first three movies of the Rambo series to being bankrupted by...
bought the project as Rush wrote a script and found locations. Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
was attached to play the older pilot, Gene Ryack, and the younger flier Billy Covington was at different times to be played by Bill Murray
Bill Murray
William James "Bill" Murray is an American actor and comedian. He first gained national exposure on Saturday Night Live in which he earned an Emmy Award and later went on to star in a number of critically and commercially successful comedic films, including Caddyshack , Ghostbusters , and...
, James Belushi
James Belushi
James Adam "Jim" Belushi is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is the younger brother of comic actor John Belushi.-Early life:Belushi was born in Chicago...
and Kevin Costner
Kevin Costner
Kevin Michael Costner is an American actor, singer, musician, producer, director, and businessman. He has been nominated for three BAFTA Awards, won two Academy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. Costner's roles include Lt. John J...
. The project was sold to producer Daniel Melnick
Daniel Melnick
Daniel Melnick was an American film producer and movie studio executive who started working in Hollywood as a teenager in television and then became the producer of such films as All That Jazz, Altered States and Straw Dogs...
after Connery and Costner became too expensive. Melnick hired screenwriter John Eskow
John Eskow
-Filmography:*Pink Cadillac *Air America *The Mask of Zorro -External links:...
to write a new script; and first hired director Bob Rafelson
Bob Rafelson
Robert "Bob" Rafelson is an Emmy Award winning American film director, writer and producer. He was an early member of the New Hollywood movement in the 1970s and is most famous for directing and co-writing the film Five Easy Pieces, starring Jack Nicholson, as well as being one of the creators of...
to work with Rush, but eventually hiring director Roger Spottiswoode
Roger Spottiswoode
Roger Spottiswoode is a Canadian-born film director and writer, who began his career as an editor in the 1970s. He was born in Ottawa, Ontario. He has directed a number of notable films and television productions, including Under Fire and the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies starring...
. Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
was cast for a reported $7 million, for the role of Ryack, and Robert Downey, Jr. held the role of Covington. Nancy Travis
Nancy Travis
Nancy Ann Travis is an American actress. She is known for her roles in films Three Men and a Baby and its sequel, Three Men and a Little Lady , Married to the Mob , Air America , Internal Affairs , So I Married an Axe Murderer , Greedy , and Fluke...
was cast as Corinne Landroaux (replacing Ally Sheedy
Ally Sheedy
Alexandra Elizabeth "Ally" Sheedy is an American film and stage actress, as well as the author of two books. She is best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire.-Early life:...
), and Michael Dudikoff
Michael Dudikoff
Michael Joseph Dudikoff II is an American actor who has been in numerous films, including the American Ninja series , Tron , Bachelor Party , Platoon Leader , River of Death , Soldier Boyz , Ringmaster , and The Silencer , to name a few...
was cast as General Lee.
Filming
The budget of Air America increased to $35 million as the production involved a 500-member crew shooting in 49 different locations between ThailandThailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
; operating between eight and 15 cameras at a time. The production was plagued by two earthquakes and a typhoon. The producers rented 26 planes from the Thai military, and some of the stunt flyers refused to perform some of the tasks, with 60-year-old veterans being drafted for the more demanding turns. Pepsi-Cola wanted the filmmakers to use a fictional soda rather than show opium being refined at their abandoned factory. Therefore, the producers added a line about wondering if Pepsi knew what was going on.
Soundtrack
Further reading
- The Ravens, Pilots of the Secret War in Laos by Christopher Robbins
- Eugene DeBruinEugene DeBruinEugene Henry DeBruin was a US Air Force staff sergeant, and a member of Air America serving in Laos during the Second Indochina War. "Gene" DeBruin was working as a "kicker" for Air America in 1963 when his C-46 was shot down. He was a POW at a Pathet Lao prison camp in Laos until he and other...
- Jane Hamilton-Merritt (1999). Tragic Mountains. ISBN 0-253-20756-8
- Robert Curry (2004). Whispering Death, "Tuag Nco Ntsoov": ...Our Journey with the Hmong in the Secret War for Laos ...Lub caij peb thiab Hmoob koom tes ua ntsug rog ntsiag to nyob Los Tsuas teb. ISBN 0-595-31809-6
External links
- Air America Association web site
- Online Archive Materials about Air America in the Vietnam Archive at Texas Tech
- Air America - Roll of honour and images.