All language subtitles for Top Guns Inside The RAF - Season 1 - EP-05

NEWS REPORT: Britain has scrambled
RAF Typhoon fighters from Scotland

after a long-range Russian spy plane
was detected near British airspace.

It is an uncertain time.

I've pulled everyone together.

Our mission is simple - we have
to counter the Russian threat.

I'm station commander, but also,
I'm a fighter pilot.

I need to do my bit to help.

Dog fighting is THE ultimate test.

Time to prove what I can do.

This program me contains strong
language

The RAF is on high alert.

The world at the moment is not in
the best of places.

The Russian vessel running along
at ten knots.

Everything's happening,

with Russia and Ukraine,
it's like a tinder box.

You're doing an important role,
protecting from Vladdy the Baddy.

ALARM WAILS

Ha-ha!

With conflict in Europe
and the Middle East...

...British war planes are poised
to face any threat.

We are one trigger press away from
starting World War IIl.

Only when you've sat in your own pee
for about two hours over Mosul

have you really made it.

It's what you don't see on Top Gun.

Just once he's finished doing
his checks, mate,

he should be good to go.

Copy that. Will do. Thank you.

150 miles north of Edinburgh,

RAF Lossiemouth is mainland UK's
closest air base to Russia.

It's too tight. I'm a big guy.

It's home to eight squadrons,

dozens of planes...

That's going to get put round
the corner.

Should've done a hand brake turn
in front of the camera.

...and nearly 3,000 service
personnel.

Let's go to work...

...the whole 90-second drive
that it is.

In charge of them all,
Group Captain Jim Lee.

Morning, how you doing?

Awesome, thanks very much.
Stay warm.

I'm the Station Commander.

I must ensure that RAF Lossiemouth
delivers its operational outputs

as we defend the United Kingdom.

Ultimately,
it's what we're here to do.

Station Commander.

Relax, please. How's everyone doing?
Good, sir.

Since being posted
to RAF Lossiemouth,

Jim's overseeing one
of its most active periods.

What we've done is we crunched
the stats

and we deduced that this really
wasn't looking very good.

I really would encourage you
to redesign that

to make it fit for purpose for 2023.

As I see things here
from RAF Lossiemouth,

the Russian invasion of Ukraine
was a moment in history

and that changed the game.

These are dangerous times.

We see a more bold Russia

and the threats to the UK are real.

ALARM WAILS

A Russian aircraft is
approaching British airspace.

Priority have scrambled so they
should be getting airborne shortly.

Inside Lossiemouth"s
Quick Reaction Alert facility,

two fully-armed Typhoons are
being scrambled.

Clear for take-off.
wind, 1-3-0-1-4.

The Russian plane is 200 miles away,

on course towards UK airspace.

Orders from RAF Tactical Command,
code name Hotspur,

are guiding the Typhoon jets
to intercept it.

We are always ready,
at a moment's notice, to get

the aircraft in the air
and get them to intercept whatever

may be coming our way.

The aircraft is identified as
a Bear Foxtrot,

a long-range Russian
surveillance plane.

The Typhoons must now track it
closely,

ensuring it can't gather
intelligence that could harm the UK.

The Russian's are definitely
testing our responses.

This is nothing new,

but what is evermore important
these days, as we see them

become more muscular in the world,

is to absolutely double down
and hold our line.

Any time Russian aircraft come close
to our territorial airspace

and waters, we're up there
to stay alongside,

to monitor and report back
into NATO what's going on,

so we can keep tabs on what
Russian aircraft are doing.

Shadowed by the Typhoons,
the Bear changes course

and he heads back towards Russia.

There is only one country
that continues

to test boundaries
of UK sovereign air space,

and that is Russia.

And whatever should be thrown
our way, we will defend

the United Kingdom.

Britain has scrambled RAF Typhoon
fighters from Scotland

after a long-range Russian spy plane
was detected

near British airspace.

The Russian aircraft was intercepted
and escorted away.

Up here at Lossiemouth,
we're here delivering

Quick Reaction Alert 24/7,
365 days a year.

It is our primary mission.

Russia periodically tests
the UK's response

by flying close to its airspace.

With only a limited number
of pilots available

for Quick Reaction Alert,

known as QRA,
Jim's reached a decision.

At the end of the day, I'm a pilot

and I've been doing this
for over 20 years,

so I like to feel part of the team.

I always feel compelled to do my bit

and my bit is to help on QRA.

Morning, everyone. How are we?

Good, thanks.

But after three years
out of the cockpit,

Jim must first retrain

and meet the combat-ready
requirement.

So, aim for the sortie today is

just going to be get you flying
out of Lossiemouth again,

getting you familiar
with the local airspace.

Are you interested in doing
low level at all today, Sir?

I mean, if it's fit, I probably
should do, just for a few minutes.

So, in that case, I expect
to go down to low level

till your eyes bleed.

Quite a squeeze on
the isobars as well,

so strong winds going to be
a bit of a feature for

the day today as well.

Obviously, it's a bit windy out
there, so take-off

and landing is always
the most critical part -

they'll focus the attention.

It's not very dignified. They don't
show you this in Top Gun.

It's a strange mix of
kind of excitement

but a bit of trepidation too.

Trying to remember whether I can
still do it after three years away.

But tricky weather
conditions, perhaps,

but fit for what I need to do.

I've been lucky enough to fly
a few different fighters,

but the Typhoon blows my mind.

The power of this aircraft is
quite extraordinary.

But there's no doubt about it that
it'll bite you, if you...

...if you don't get things
absolutely right.

I'm sure I'll be a bit rusty.

There's always a risk
if you fly aircraft.

There's a reason we have
ejection seats.

But the moment that I put my foot
on the ladder,

I just take a deep breath
and I'm now focused.

Now I'm not the Station Commander,

I'm now a pilot getting
into a cockpit on my own

and I'm focused on
the task ahead of me.

When you put the reheat in
to do a take-off,

the kick you get in the back
is just extraordinary.

As a youngster,
I was definitely restless

and I don't think school
really motivated me,

so I was searching for something
that really captivated me...

...and then I watched Top Gun.

I think that's when I realised
that actually

I just wanted to fly a jet.

Academically,
I hadn't done that well.

There's no military connection
in my family.

So, I think probably
there was a perception of,

"Are you sure you're going to be
able to achieve that?"

People didn't necessarily
believe in me.

There's no doubt about it
in my mind.

My goal was set to prove
other people wrong.

Even though I find myself now
the Station Commander,

I still want to prove that
I've got what it takes.

Low-level flying is one of

the most dangerous exercises we do.

Any mistake and you're hitting
the ground in a matter of seconds.

But at the same time,
barrelling down a valley,

the mountains flashing by...

...it is thrilling.

There is no other word for it.

Having navigated
the low-level exercise,

Jim must now land at Lossiemouth

for the first time in years,

with crosswinds gusting up
to 35 knots.

In Typhoon, you're typically going
to touch down at 200mph

on a pinhead on a very narrow
runway.

I need to be accurate.
There's no margin for error.

How was that? Windy, but good.

Good. It was a bit of a Lossie
special, I think we'd say there,

so not really easing me back in,

but you've got to be ready
for days like this

cos that's when you earn
your money.

I think I earned
my flying pay today.

Following his successful flight,

Jim's training will progress onto
sharpening his dog fighting skills.

Flying the Typhoon again after such

a break is just incredible.

I feel like I'm a baby pilot
all over again.

To help ensure Lossiemouth remains
fully operational at all times,

some personnel live on site
in shared accommodation blocks...

Let's go have a look at a bathroom.

...which are subject
to regular inspections.

Do you want to check that first?

I'll just clean this.

I'm scrubbing the toilet cos some
knob-head left skid marks in here.

Yeah, that toilet's fucked.
Can't really do much more.

Not going anywhere.
Some people are just scruffs.

My name's Billy. I'm 17.
I'm a chef in the RAF.

My parents were quite happy
to send me off to the military,

not in, like, a bad way,

but they knew they tried
their hardest growing up

to make me a good boy
but never really works.

Just over a year ago,

chef Billy left home
in Middlesbrough

to join the RAF, aged 16.

Nothing I'm going to find in here
that I don't want to find, is there?

No, ma'am, I've got nothing to hide.

This is your first posting,
isn't it?

What were you expecting
when you had a room here?

Well, I'm about saving money, ma'am,

so obviously I've got all
the other chefs and stuff in here,

so I'd happily stay in here.

I can't really complain
for, like, £30 a month.

Better than you get in the civilian
world anyway.

Shame about some of the decor.

Seem to be different shades
of magnolia,

so they don't all seem to match,
but, yeah.

LAUGHTER

Great, thank you.

I'd usually have done this Sunday
hanging out my arse, but...

Some of the boys have beer pong
tables and that.

In their rooms?

Yeah, you can get all sorts
in here.

Did you do much ironing
when you lived at home?

Nah. Never.
Always had Mam to do that.

Going through secondary school,
my parents used to worry a lot

that I was getting onto bad stuff,
which I was.

Took me till Year 11 to get excluded
for something pretty daft,

just for setting the fire alarm off.

And when I first came here, people
didn't take me seriously

because obviously I was 16,

but since a young age,
I have been working.

Money is a massive motivator for me.

When I was 12, I had a paper round.

When I was 15, I got
an apprenticeship position

in a kitchen.

But joining the RAF
was a massive pay increase.

I earn roughly £1,600 a month.

People say money can't
buy happiness,

but they've obviously never bought
a Lamborghini.

I went through about four pairs
of these trousers.

I used to burn them all on my iron.

Billy's uniform is required
to be at its very best.

He's part of the culinary team
for one of

the largest celebrations in
the RAF's calendar -

the Battle of Britain dinner.

When the pool tables are out the
way, all the anteroom furniture is

going to be in this area as well.

Arguably, the Battle of Britain
is our greatest battle

because of that sacrifice
that was made by so many.

So, we mark that day in celebration
and remembrance every year.

In charge of the event is
Warrant Officer Dave Barr.

Just pull them off to the bar
for a minute, so we can get set up

and then we can see if we can space
some of them around.

This will be his final task
for the RAF, before he retires.

Three. Oh, he's put two there.
Right. OK. But drawn one.

I've been in the Air Force
for nearly 34 years now.

It's been absolutely
the best job in the world.

The Battle of Britain dinner,
this is perfect for me

because it means that
I can say goodbye to

the Royal Air Force,
and that's me done.

I am in room 116.

So, excuse
the disarray, obviously.

Dave signed up as an engineer
and is a veteran of the Gulf wars.

The one on the left there is
Air Ops Iraq.

And then we're into
three Jubilee medals

cos that's how long I've been...

...I've been in the Royal Air Force.

Then the next medal along
is my long service

and good conduct medal.

And all that means is that
I've been in for a really long time

and I've been a good boy
while I've been about it.

Everybody likes shiny.

WHISPERS: But it's not...
It's not always about the medals.

I joined the Royal Air Force
10th January, 1989.

I mean, if you put that
into perspective,

that's about a third
of its existence.

There is a bond and a camaraderie

and family-ness that doesn't
go away.

You can check out,
but you can never leave.

I am leaving. But ultimately,

I think you are always part of
the family.

Right, Billy, shall we get
these steaks on, buddy?

Get this wacked up.

You know, it's a big function
tonight. We just need to make sure

it's right.

Obviously, you'll be on the starter
and you'll come in

and I'll let you have a go
at the beef, which is

the centre piece. Give you
the experience of doing it, mate.

We'll sear it off in there

and then, if you lift that up...

Here? ..that'll be on fire
and that'll be the hay

and then we'll smoke it in there
for a little bit,

just so it takes on
the flavour of the hay.

You look a bit nervous, Billy.

Nah, I'm all right, to be fair.

I'm nervous for you, mate.

It's not fucking hard.

I'm just twisting round beef
in a pan.

Shouldn't be any problems,
any dramas.

The BBC is interrupting
its normal programmes

to bring you an important
announcement.

Buckingham Palace has announced
that Queen Elizabeth Il has died

at the age of 96.

News of her passing is reaching
the rest of the world.

Yeah. All right.
I'll speak to you shortly. Bye-bye.

Hello, sir. How are you feeling?

Yeah. It's a sad day for us all,
isn't it?

Sad moment. I think probably
personally we all feel...

...we all feel that...that sadness.

But we've got to do
the right thing for Her Majesty

and make sure that
the next few days,

for her and the family, are
as they would wish it to be,

so, that's our role.
Yeah, we will do.

Good. All right, thank you. Cheers.

She's my Commander-in-chief,
fundamentally,

so everything on my uniform
encapsulates her.

That's all I've ever known as well,

so she is everything about
the Royal Air Force to me.

Stand by for broadcast.

Attention, all station personnel.

with deep sorrow, the death of
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

has been announced today by
the royal communications office

at Buckingham Palace.

The Queen died at Balmoral Castle,

just 65 miles from Lossiemouth.

As head of the closest RAF base,

Jim's received orders

for a special mission, codenamed
Operation Unicorn.

He must gather the senior team
at daybreak.

BROADCASTER: Our nation mourns
following the death

of Queen Elizabeth II.

Britain's longest-serving monarch
passed away yesterday, age 96,

at Balmoral Castle,

the Scottish retreat which
Her Majesty had visited

since she was a girl.

QUIET CONVERSATION

Room, Station Commander!

Please sit down. Thank you.

OK. Good morning, everyone.

Obviously, it's with a heavy heart
that we gather at

the table here today.

But now we have to turn to
the work at hand.

Our most pressing operation is
Op Unicorn.

Typhoons from RAF Lossiemouth
will take to the skies

to protect the airspace...

...while the late Queen is taken by
road from Balmoral to Edinburgh.

Our mission is simple -
to help keep the country safe.

As the Queen is moved, it's feasible
that there are some people who will

see that as an opportunity
to bring harm to our country.

But our job in the air force
is to make sure we're ready

for anybody that thinks
those thoughts.

And that's exactly what we're
going to do.

We can react very quickly.

Weapons can be loaded
almost immediately.

Clear?

Yeah, we're good.

Entrusted to carry out
Operation Unicorn is 2 Squadron

and its boss,
wing Commander Kev Terrett.

There's a real terrorism threat.

Use of things like drones
or, as sadly we've seen

on September 11th,
hijacked airliners.

Yeah, stop there.

Spartan 2, you're in 3-2-3,
house 23.

Vampire 1, 3-4-4, house 24.

Vampire 2, 25. Jet 3-1-3, check.

Sweet. Any questions for me?

Cool. Clear to walk.

I'm very lucky in that

I have complete trust
in all of my pilots.

I do feel a responsibility
for their well being.

I guess it's almost parental, maybe.

I just want them to be able
to go and do the job

and get home safely.

The jets will now fly south
towards Balmoral

and protect the skies, at all costs.

BROADCASTER: This morning,
the coffin procession left

Balmoral Castle and is now on
its way to Scotland's capital,

where it is due to arrive
in around two hours' time.

The Queen left her beloved Balmoral
for the very last time.

As the Royal convoy
makes its way to Edinburgh,

the airspace above is being
protected

by RAF Lossiemouth's Typhoon jets.

So, the three large tables will
need to go back to

the officer's mess... Yep. ..along
with all their crockery

that's come across for the function.

RAF Lossiemouth's annual
Battle of Britain dinner

has been cancelled.

Take me off of there.

Departing Warrant Officer Dave Barr
will no longer have

a formal send-off.

There we go.

That is it.

But he does have a visitor.

Wherever possible, I make the effort

to personally say goodbye

to people leaving
the Royal Air Force.

Sir. How are you? I'm all right,
sir. Thank you.

I'm aware that this is
your last day

in the Royal Air Force. 34 years
is remarkable.

That's an incredible amount of
service, so thank you for what

you've given the Royal Air Force
and this nation.

And at a time when we reflect
very much on what this nation means

to us, I think you should be
very proud of your service.

And we wish you all
the very best for the future.

It's an open offer to come back

and be dined out from
the Royal Air Force.

I will take that offer
at some point.

And I will see you back here. Thank
you. And I will dine in this mess

with you. Thank you. I promise.
I would appreciate that.

All right. Take care of
yourself and travel safe. Thank you.

All right. Thanks.

All of a sudden, I'm going
and it's like,

wow, I'm putting 34 years behind me.

It's quite a huge moment.

Her Majesty dedicated her whole life

to serving this country,

and I am in awe at her dedication.

I hope that in some way
mine emulates it,

just in a small fraction.

She has been our Commander-in-chief

for the Royal Air Force
for 70 years and...

...it's a strange time for us.

So, erm...yeah.

Yeah, excuse me.

Sorry, mate.

HE BREATHES SHAKILY

NEWS REPORT: Thousands have lined
the route to witness

a small part of this historic
and moving journey.

JET ENGINES ROAR

Across the country,

formal declarations to recognise
the succession of

the monarchy are taking place.

Well, it was a good fit on me
and we look about the same, so...

You reckon? Thank you very much.

As the Commanding Officer of
the only RAF base in Scotland,

Jim's representing
the Royal Air Force

at the local proclamation
for King Charles 1.

This is something that there's no
frame of reference

for somebody like me.
You know, I'm 45 years old,

but I've only ever known the Queen.

Joining Jim at the ceremony...

Right...

...are his wife and daughter.

So, the Queen came to Elgin

when you were teeny, teeny tiny.

We heard when her train
was arriving,

and you picked out
the most beautiful bunch of yellow

and purple flowers. These?
Yes. Those are the cuttings.

And then suddenly we saw the Queen.

And we'll never forget she saw you
across the crowd,

and just her whole face just lit up.

And she came straight over to you,

and she said "Are those for me?"

And you were the one that made her
burst into a smile.

And I'll never forget that moment
with you.

Ladies and gentlemen,

today's ceremony marks that

the reign of King Charles II
has begun.

We pledge our loyalty
to His Majesty.

God save the King.
ALL: God save the King.

It's clearly a monumental occasion.
We were part of history today.

ONLOOKER: God bless the Queen.

NEWS REPORT: The cortege greeted in
the Scottish capital

by streets heavy with sentiment.

As the Queen arrives in Edinburgh,

Operation Unicorn concludes
without incident.

NEWS REPORT: The coffin brought in
to the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

It will lie here tonight.

Welcoming the jets home is the final
act for wing Commander Kev.

Hey. Hey, boss. All right?
Welcome back, guys. Hey.

Good job. Any problems? No, sweet.
Cool. Well, well done.

Thank you. Good, clean job.
And we did ourselves proud.

Cool. Thanks. OK, boss.

I took an awful lot of pride from
the fact that 2 Squadron

was able to react at very short
notice to a very sad occasion.

It was a huge honour to be able
to pay tribute

to our late Commander-in-chief
in our own, bespoke way.

Our job is to be ready to deal
with whatever's put in front of us.

And when the general public can go
about their business

in complete safety, unaware of what
we do, to me, is perfection.

Over the last few days,

as a mark of respect to the Queen,

the base suspended all
nonessential flights.

But the Quick Reaction Alert
facility has operated as normal.

Morning, everyone.
How are we? Yeah, all right.

With only a limited number
of pilots available for QRA duty...

Thank you, Chris.

...Station Commander Jim is
retraining to join the effort.

It's been a difficult period,

but now we return
to business as usual.

QRA is our biggest responsibility.

Today, he has one final test
to qualify as combat-ready -

a dogfight against Jake Desmond,
one of Lossiemouth's top pilots.

Jake is the squadron qualified
weapons instructor,

so a pretty tricky opponent
for my first time back.

He's as good as it gets.

Designed to be the ultimate
combat aircraft...

...the Typhoons are equipped with
state-of-the-art weapons systems,

including air-to-air missiles.

During dogfight training,

pilots must get them
to lock on to the opponent's jet

to simulate a kill.

In the first part of the contest,
Jim must evade Jake

and prevent him from locking on
for at least five minutes.

The first principle
of dog fighting is staying alive.

If you can't stay alive,

then you're not going to be able
to kill the enemy.

I've been away from flying
for three years.

It's just about reaction times.

Very quickly, you get that
speed back.

But, being a little bit older,
pulling 9G, it's much harder.

After four and half minutes,
Jim's kept out of range.

But Jake is closing in.

ALARM BEEPS

The pilots must now reset
for a final duel,

and a chance for Jim to get even.

No fighter pilot likes to lose.

You have to have that competitive
edge about you.

It's time to, er,
to prove what I can do.

Station Commander Jim Lee is
retraining in a Typhoon,

and faces a second dogfight against
one of the base's top pilots.

Jake's definitely more proficient
than me.

But I love to prove people wrong.

It's Jim's turn to attack.

He must lock his missiles
on to Jake for the win.

To get your qualifications back,

there is a standard,
and that standard is, is fixed.

I'm Station Commander,
but there's no special treatment.

I can't under perform.

ALARM BUZZES

It's a successful simulated kill.

Oh, God.

How's it feeling?

The G was all right. It's just your
brain is about two seconds

behind the jet.
But what's really annoying is,

you know what you've just done
immediately when you've done it.

Yeah. As you do it as well, you're
like, "Ah, you've gone and done it"

"Too late."”

While Jim's performance is analysed

to see if he met
the combat-ready criteria,

in the Quick Reaction Alert
facility,

he has one final test.

ALARM WAILS

Once the alarm sounds,

QRA pilots have just minutes
to get to their plane.

It's been a few years since
I've done a QRA scramble.

I was back in my 30s
the last time I did it.

Hopefully, the legs will move as
quickly as they used to.

My workout for the day.

This one was a bit of a practice,
so I didn't start the engines.

And they did a good job.

They got me, they got me
up and running, so it was perfect.

Good job today, sir.

Jim successfully passed as
combat-ready.

So, welcome back to
the Typhoon force. Awesome.

Thank you very much.

Great to fly with the squadron,

and just fantastic to be back
in the game. Superb.

Thank you very much. Cheers.

Oh, it's wonderful to be qualified
again I can now fly,

as well as being
a station commander.

But Jim will have to wait to do
a shift in QRA.

First, he's got to honour
a longstanding RAF servant.

Very, very kindly,
the Station Commander invited me

to come back, and the mess
have pulled together

and organised another do for me.

A month after leaving the RAF,
Dave is back for a formal send-off.

It's a big deal
to finish your career properly.

Evening.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Thank you, thank, thank you.

Fabulous to see you all.
Thank you for being here.

Billy?

Where's Billy?

The customers have been called
through to the dining room.

And this is where it starts going.

I'll let you have a go at this in a
minute, mate, all right?

I want to just make sure they've got
that nice sear on them, yeah?

See that nice bit there?

Just be careful. It's a big bit of
meat and we know you're not

used to playing with big
bits of meat.

HE LAUGHS

It was a steep learning curve,
joining the military.

I wanted to be taken seriously.

These little ones are ready
to go in soon. Yeah.

But once I established my capability
in the kitchen,

I just instantly got respect
for what I'd done.

I enjoy it, yeah.
It's a nice kick of adrenaline.

That'll do, mate.
Do you reckon? Yeah, yeah.

Right, do you want to swap the tins,
get the other one?

CROCKERY CLATTERS
Oh, no! Spillage.

It's always Wing Commander Allenby.

THEY LAUGH

That's nice, Billy.

Because of the way I used
to act at school,

I don't think anyone thought I'd be
able to do what I can do now.

Are you happy, bud?

Now, when I go home to my family,

I like to put out
a nice display of food for them.

I always regularly get them round
so I can just show my skills.

I think my parents are proud of me.

That does not look bad at all,
does it?

Mm. It's nice, isn't it?

Mate, they never let us down. Ever.

Hopefully, in the shortest amount
of time possible, I'll be able

to progress through the ranks

so I can achieve the maximum rank
and get a full pension.

I am happy about my life at 17.

Yeah, successful, yeah.

Everything ran smoothly
and as to plan.

That's staff drinks.

THEY LAUGH

He's only 17, he can't drink.
I can't partake in that, no.

Not at the age of 17, I can't.

Cheers, darling.

It has moved on, though,
I have to say, it has moved on.

HE BANGS TABLE

Mess members, guests,
Warrant Officer Dave Barr.

Dave Barr! Dave Barr!

Cheers, all.

It has been an absolute pleasure
to have served for 34 years

with many of you in this room.

You are part of my history,

and today is a big day for me

to put all of those memories in
a box and take them away with me.

The generation that Mr Barr's from,

service was probably a deeper part
of culture than it is

perhaps for young people now.

I'm not as fit as I was at
the start of my RAF career...

In my experience, sometimes people
might join

initially for selfish reasons.

But, very quickly, you realise
there's a much greater purpose.

And that's what oozes from someone
like Mr Barr.

It's no longer about him.

So, thank you all.

It's all about the service.

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