ladbible homepage
ladbible homepage
  • iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK
    • US
    • World
    • Ireland
    • Australia
    • Science
    • Crime
    • Weather
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV
    • Film
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • Netflix
    • Disney
  • Sport
  • Technology
  • Travel
  • Lifestyle
  • Money
  • Originals
    • FFS PRODUCTIONS
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Archive
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content Here
  • SPORTbible
  • Tyla
  • GAMINGbible
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • FOODbible
  • UNILAD Tech
Stuntman’s chilling last words before he died mid Top Gun scene

Home> Entertainment> Film

Published 17:28 23 Jan 2024 GMT

Stuntman’s chilling last words before he died mid Top Gun scene

He was filming for the 1986 movie when tragedy struck

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

google discoverFollow us on Google Discover

A pilot and stuntman who died while filming Top Gun shared heart-breaking final words over the radio before this death.

Arthur Everett Scholl - known as Art - passed away on 16 September 1985 when the Pitts S-2 camera plane he was flying failed to recover from a spin and plunged into the Pacific Ocean.

Scholl, from the US, had been filming for the Tom Cruise movie Top Gun at the time of his death, and the movie was ultimately released with a dedication to him that read: "This film is dedicated to the memory of Art Scholl."

In an interview with the Daily Mail back in 2015, Scholl’s widow, Judy, said that her late husband was a meticulous planner and took his job very seriously.

Advert

Art Scholl died while filming the 1986 movie Top Gun.
Paramount

She told the publication: “Art was a great pilot and a great showman," she told Daily Mail Online.

"But he was very calculating and prepared constantly. He was a triple type A personality.

“He had energy that wouldn't end and he was very fun to be with - but he was very focused.

“He took his work very seriously. He planned carefully - he wouldn't go out and break rules or anything. So, on Top Gun, I just don't know what happened.

“It was a massive shock to me. A lot of people in the industry and in aviation in general were surprised. He was relatively young to die.

“Fortunately he jammed a whole bunch of stuff into his life with air shows and competitions and movies and teaching but his death was a shock.”

Scholl had been flying over the Pacific Ocean filming backdrop scenes for the movie, when he failed to recover from an inverted flat spin.

As the plane plunged into the ocean, Scholl uttered his final words, using his radio to say: "I have a problem; I have a real problem."

Art Scholl was a talented pilot.
Art Scholl Aviation

The plane landed in the water and neither it nor Scholl’s remains were ever recovered.

An exact cause for the crash has never been determined.

Commenting on the crash, Judy said: “Art didn't say what the problem was. This is the one thing I'm not happy about with him.

“So I don't know if he had a control failure, where maybe the camera jammed into the flight controls. Or whether he had an issue with the flight controls where he wasn't able to get the airplane out of the flat spin or whether he was disorientated. He didn't say.

“It's a puzzle. Most people think it was spacial disorientation but without the airplane we'll never know.”

Featured Image Credit: Art Scholl Aviation / Paramount Pictures

Topics: TV and Film, Top Gun

Claire Reid
Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

Recommended reads

Malcolm in the Middle star turned down 'buckets of money' to return for reboot(Vince Bucci/Getty Images)Waitrose responds as employee of 17 years sacked for confronting shoplifter stealing Easter eggsKaty Blackwood/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesGigi Hadid speaks out for first time after her and sister Bella were featured in Epstein filesKevin Mazur/MG22/Getty Images for The Met Museum/VogueShirtless boy pictured in 'never-seen-before' snaps of Michael Jackson as explosive new lawsuit surfaces(Oscar Abolafia/TPLP/Getty Images)

Advert

  • Ozzy Osbourne's heartbreaking last words on video revealed in documentary filmed just before his death
  • Shocking new photos show full extent of Freddie Flintoff's injuries after Top Gear crash where he 'wished he died'
  • Death row killer had chilling final words before he was executed for double murder
  • Cillian Murphy won't miss 'disgusting' Peaky Blinders haircut despite being UK's 'biggest from the last decade'

Choose your content:

an hour ago
4 hours ago
16 hours ago
19 hours ago
  • (Vince Bucci/Getty Images)
    an hour ago

    Malcolm in the Middle star turned down 'buckets of money' to return for reboot

    Erik Per Sullivan has opted for a life away from the spotlight

    Entertainment
  • Taylor Hill/WireImage
    4 hours ago

    Kate Beckinsale says Mark Ruffalo 'benefits from having a penis' after being fired by agent

    Kate Beckinsale claims she reached out to Mark Ruffalo after she was fired over 'liking' a post on social media

    Entertainment
  • Prime Video
    16 hours ago

    Mother's Milk actor Laz Alonso recalls change of script he demanded ahead of The Boys season 5

    "I didn't think a brother from Harlem would say that."

    Entertainment
  • Tommaso Boddi/WireImage
    19 hours ago

    Hugh Hefner’s widow Crystal remarries after sharing reality of relationship with Playboy founder

    Crystal eloped with her partner earlier this week with a 'meaningful' ceremony, over nine years on since her ex-husband's death

    Entertainment