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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
John-Paul Clark

Mavericks gather to see famous 'Top Gun' fighter jets touch down in Scotland

Five American F18 fighter jets used for the smash hit movie Top Gun have touched down in Scotland.

Crowds of plane spotters looked on at Prestwick Airport as the jets roared into sight and landed just after 9pm.

Pictures show a crowd of over 100 people in attendance, with some enthusiasts holding long range cameras and others even had ladders to try and grab the best vantage of proceedings.

An American pilot is seen sitting in his cockpit, taking pictures of the assembled crowd with his mobile phone.

Originally there were 10 of the F/A-18 Hornets due to land at Prestwick Airport as they returned to America after NATO operations but five were diverted to Reykjavik in Iceland.

The US navy pilot snaps the Scots crowd in Prestwick last night (Amac Media)

The plane was used in the recent Holywood blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick and replaced the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, which was the jet used in the original Top Gun.

The jets are also based at Miramar, California, and the site was used to film large parts of both Top Gun movies.

It is believed the jets were staying in Scotland for two days to refuel and rest in Ayrshire, before leaving at some point on Friday.

The US Marines website says the F/A-18s had been sent to Polandas part of Nato’s enhanced Air Policing mission.

The planes flew patrols over Polish airspace as part of a joint effort to increase the readiness and responsiveness of Nato.

Prestwick reguarly takes in military jets from all across the globe and the Record reported recently on Candian fighter jets arriving at the airport for a short stay.

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