National Film Registry: "Ghostbusters" Gets the Call". Library of Congress . Retrieved December 16, 2015. Murphy, Tim (June 15–22, 2009). "154 Minutes With Matthew Modine". New York magazine. Archived from the original on January 5, 2020 . Retrieved February 19, 2020. Future NASA astronaut Scott Altman was among the pilots of VF-51 [30] who flew F-14 aircraft for many of the film's stunt sequences, having been recently stationed at NAS Miramar at time of filming. Altman was the pilot seen " flipping the bird" in the film's well-known opening sequence, as well as piloting the aircraft shown "buzzing the tower" throughout the film. [31] [32] The infamous "buzzing the tower" sequence raised concern among residents who called the base and local news media to report a "berserk pilot". [33]

Top Gun (1986)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016 . Retrieved July 13, 2016. Pingitore, Silvia (April 1, 2022). "Remember Top Gun's song 'Take My Breath Away' in 1986? Exclusive interview with John Crawford of Berlin". the-shortlisted.co.uk. Archived from the original on April 2, 2022 . Retrieved May 23, 2022.a b c "Top Gun". fast-rewind.com. Archived from the original on April 9, 2019 . Retrieved December 5, 2006. Ebert, Roger (May 16, 1986). "Top Gun". Roger Ebert.com. Archived from the original on April 20, 2016 . Retrieved April 20, 2016. Mike Barnes (December 16, 2015). " 'Ghostbusters,' 'Top Gun,' 'Shawshank' Enter National Film Registry". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 8, 2019 . Retrieved December 16, 2015.

In 2008, the film was ranked at number 455 in Empire 's list of the 500 greatest films of all time. [82] Bierbaum, Tom (March 4, 1987). " 'Top Gun' Cassettes In Record Takeoff: 1,900,000 Units". Variety. p.1.Burum, Stephen, ed. (2007). "optics+allow+this+is+one+of+the+reasons" American Cinematographer Manual, Volume 1. ASC Press. p.40. ISBN 9780935578317. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021 . Retrieved May 4, 2021. VF-51 Screaming Eagles". HOME OF M.A.T.S. - the most comprehensive Grumman F-14 Reference Work - by Torsten Anft! . Retrieved June 21, 2023. The film's premiere was held in New York City on May 12, 1986, [49] with another held in San Diego on May 15. [21]