Footage shows terrifying final moments of Top Gun: Maverick flight instructor as aircraft plummets to the ground
Terrifying footage captured a flight instructor’s final moments as his plane crashed to the ground during an air show in New Mexico on Sunday.
Charles Thomas “Chuck” Coleman was flying the same Extra Flugzeugbau 300L two-seater he was using to train the cast of Top Gun: Maverick when it suddenly crashed Sunday around 2:30 p.m. during the Las Cruces Air and Space Expo at Las Cruces International Airport.
Four minutes earlier, Coleman had expertly performed loops, rolls and Cuban maneuvers, regularly pulling straight up and gliding over the runways with a stream of white smoke trailing behind him. the Las Cruces Bulletin reports.
A video taken by a bystander even shows Coleman flying straight into the air and performing several barrel rolls before the plane nosed toward the ground uncontrollably.
It then disappeared behind a layer of desert brush some distance from where the spectators were standing.
Charles Thomas “Chuck” Coleman was flying the same Extra Flugzeugbau 300L two-seater he was training the cast of Top Gun: Maverick at an air show in New Mexico on Sunday when it crashed
A video taken by a bystander even shows Coleman flying straight into the air and performing several barrel rolls before the plane begins to tumble uncontrollably nose toward the ground
“It was a big cloud of dirt,” Terre Blevins, who shot the video, told the Bulletin.
‘And then I looked at the guard next to me. I’m like, “Did he crash?” and she took off running.”
An announcer was then heard in the video telling the audience, “If you have social media, stay away from it for now.
“Emergency services are on their way,” the announcer was heard telling those attending the air show. “Fire brigade is on its way.”
The remainder of the show was abruptly canceled after the crash, and Blevins said that after first responders arrived on the scene, audience members were instructed to leave the airport quietly.
Officials finally announced Coleman’s death on Monday.
“We would like to express our deepest condolences to the loved ones and fans of Chuck Coleman,” Las Cruces Mayor Eric Enriquez said in a statement at the time.
Coleman (center) was the aerobatic instructor for the 2022 film Top Gun: Maverick and even trained one of the main characters, Miles Teller. Coleman had to fly more than 100 flights to prepare the actors for a flight in the US Navy F-18 Hornets for the blockbuster
Colemans website said he was based in California and was an engineer, aerobatic pilot and test pilot with more than 10,000 hours of flying time.
He has performed at hundreds of air shows and has provided more than 3,000 aerobatic plane rides, according to his website.
“He was one of the most skilled pilots alive,” said his friend Christopher Van Pelt KFOX. “Remember that this loss is really the loss of a mentor, the loss of a friend.”
Coleman and Van Pelt became friends in 2010 and bonded immediately. They spent a lot of time together in the air.
‘We spent a lot of time together. I can’t even count how many hours we spent together in the air,” he told KFOX. “I absolutely loved working with Chuck.
“He was very skilled and also very talented. but you know, when you’re on the edge, these things can happen no matter how good you are.”
Actor Miles Teller paid tribute to the flying instructor following news of his death
Van Pelt said Coleman’s resume was “the size of my body,” and said the flight instructor “had to work on a lot of fascinating things.”
The friend recalled that Coleman got a kick out of being asked to join Top Gun: Maverick and work with the likes of Teller and others.
‘That was something he really got a kick out of. I’m actually giving them their first experience before they start filming the movie,” he told KFOX.
Actor Miles Teller, one of the stars of Top Gun: Maverick and featured on Coleman’s Instagram, also paid tribute to the flight instructor.
“Chuck was our aerobatic instructor and was instrumental in our preparation for Top Gun: Maverick,” he wrote on X. “He was an aerospace engineer, air show and test pilot, and our friend and ally.
“Chuck was very easy to work with and we always felt comfortable with his expertise at our disposal.
“He was kind, humble and curious about others and the world we live in,” Teller continued.
‘Gone too soon, but his contributions will live on forever. Thanks for the memories, Chuck.”
New Mexico State Police, the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are now investigating the crash that led to his death.