Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds

This movie is outstanding and there are so many "life lessons" packed inside of the film. It's a real life, and at times emotional, look at the pilots, families, and support crew that comprise the USAF Thunderbird demonstration team. The viewer gets a peek behind the curtain on how challenging but rewarding it is to be a Thunderbird pilot. One can't help by getting drawn into "Primo's" rejoin issues or the impact that the time away from home has on the families. After watching, you'll appreciate the sacrifices that all the team members make to fulfill an important mission.

Definitely an inspiring movie and I rate it a 10!

I've seen other documentaries on the Thunderbirds, and this one just doesn't cut it for me. Not enough facts about the intricacies of flying in formation or the role of the ground crew, terribly background music, and too many sappy moments.

The flight recordings were great, and the computer simulations helped. Given the importance of the shows throughout demo-season, some light on the logistics of that would have been nice.

I wasn't expecting some Top Gun hyped-up movie, but while it was modestly entertaining and informative, I was hoping for more documentary-type content to learn how the Thunderbirds machine works.

The dedication and precision of their flights was absolutely mesmerizing. Thunderbirds Air Force Elite is a stunning display of raw skill, power, and human excellence that left me in awe. What truly sets it apart from traditional flight documentaries is its focus on character-driven storytelling. You don't just witness the jets in action, you get a genuine, emotional insight into the lives, mindset, and sacrifices of the incredible pilots behind them. I loved every minute of it.

I left feeling deeply moved, inspired to dream bigger, and more committed than ever to pursuing excellence in my own craft.

So let me go over the positives first. Amazing amazing filming of the flights. Not sure how they did it. I don't like air shows, but watching the acrobatics in this film was amazing.

The film goes over the progress toeard being certified as a Thunderbird to give demonstrationas around the world. Displays a dedicated team, working effectively together. Like all documentaries they have a story line. Not sure how contrived it was, but fundamentally the individuals stories was also interesting (though only really touched on their stories briefly.. could easily have been half an hour longer). Good pacing, very upbeat.

What I didn't like.. I've served myself, and I think these guys, while appearing calm logical types, are absolutely insane. 10% of Thunderbird Pilots die. This is an acrobatics demo team but I'm sure that death rate is higher than combat. The tight formations theu fly on are absolutely jaw dropping. Seriously I had tears in my eyes just watching them fly. God bless them, bit seriously, is it worth that death rate? Anyway I highly recommend this film. It literally amd figuratively flew by. Well done to the team that filmed this.

I live in the UK and I just loved watching this documentary about the Thunderbirds. It is inspiring to all humans. These pilots just blow your mind with the risks they take and the huge team of people behind them all essential to their success including their families. The footage filmed from inside the cockpit is just shocking and mind blowing. I must go and see a Thunderbird display in the states. At a time (27.5.25) when everyone is looking at the USA and thinking WTF this documentary shows you what is great about the USA. I did wonder if Primo's difficulties were purely for the camera and to make the story more interesting. However pulling a 7G manoeuvre is not for anyone other than super humans. Thank-you for your dedication Thunderbirds.