Editing Top Gun (section)

== Influence ==
Film producer [[John Davis (producer)|John Davis]] said that ''Top Gun'' was a recruiting video for the Navy, and that people saw the movie and said, "Wow! I want to be a pilot."<ref>{{cite book |last=Robb |first=David |title=Operation Hollywood: How the Pentagon Shapes and Censors the Movies |publisher=Prometheus Books |location=New York|year=2004 |page=[https://archive.org/details/operationhollywo00robb/page/180 180] |isbn=1-59102-182-0 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/operationhollywo00robb/page/180}}</ref> The Navy had recruitment booths in some theaters to attract enthusiastic patrons.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Guardian/0,4029,543821,00.html |title=Top Gun versus Sergeant Bilko? No contest, says the Pentagon |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070517120416/http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Guardian/0,4029,543821,00.html |archive-date=May 17, 2007 |work=[[The Guardian]] |last=Campbell |first=Duncan |date=August 29, 2001 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[The Los Angeles Times]] |title='Top Gun' Boosting Service Sign-Ups |date=5 July 1986 |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-07-05-ca-20403-story.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240417033944/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-07-05-ca-20403-story.html |archive-date=17 April 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref> After the film's release, a popular claim arose that the number of young men who joined the Navy wanting to be naval aviators went up by 500%;{{sfn|Robb|2004|p=[https://archive.org/details/operationhollywo00robb/page/182 182]}} however, its accuracy has since been disputed, with modern analyses indicating a more modest total Navy enlistment increase of 8%.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Summers |first=William |date=2022-06-14 |title=Maverick Top Gun stat turns out to be a real goose |url=https://www.aap.com.au/factcheck/maverick-top-gun-stat-turns-out-to-be-a-real-goose/ |access-date=2023-01-23 |website=Australian Associated Press}}</ref><ref name="novelly">{{Cite web |last=Novelly |first=Thomas |date=2022-08-11 |title='Top Gun' Boosted Recruiting and Brought the Tailhook Scandal. So What Happens After the Blockbuster Sequel? |url=https://www.military.com/daily-news/2022/08/11/top-gun-boosted-recruiting-and-brought-tailhook-scandal-so-what-happens-after-blockbuster-sequel.html |access-date=2023-03-12 |website=Military.com}}</ref> The film helped rehabilitate the military's image following the [[Vietnam War]].<ref name="Suid_669">{{cite book |last1=Suid |first1=Lawrence H. |url=https://archive.org/details/gutsglorymakingo0000suid/page/669/mode/2up?q=%22top+gun%22 |title=Guts and Glory: The Making of the American Military Image in Film |date=2015 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |isbn=9780813190181 |page=669 |url-access=registration}}</ref>

The U.S. [[Department of Defense Office of Inspector General]] blamed sexist behavior depicted in ''Top Gun'' for making sexual assault more likely in the real-life military, contributing to the [[Tailhook scandal]] in 1991.<ref name="novelly"/><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2022-05-30/top-gun-maverick-memorial-day-tom-cruise-pentagon-propaganda |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |title=Op-Ed: Why does the Pentagon give a helping hand to films like 'Top Gun'? |first=Roger |last=Stahl |date=May 30, 2022 |access-date=July 25, 2023}}</ref><ref name="Suid_501">{{cite book |last1=Suid |first1=Lawrence H. |url=https://archive.org/details/gutsglorymakingo0000suid/page/501/mode/2up?q=%22top+gun%22 |title=Guts and Glory: The Making of the American Military Image in Film |date=2015 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |isbn=9780813190181 |page=501 |url-access=registration}}</ref>

In December 2024, Tom Cruise was awarded the [[Navy Distinguished Public Service Award|Distinguished Public Service Award]], which is the highest civilian honor given to private citizens by the US Navy for his "outstanding contributions" to the military through his appearances in military-related film.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tom Cruise honoured with US Navy's highest civilian award |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj90ww3ld3ro |access-date=2024-12-18 |website=www.bbc.com |date=December 17, 2024 |language=en-GB}}</ref>