Air America

Synopsis: Air America was the CIA's private airline operating in Laos during the Vietnam War, running anything and everything from soldiers to foodstuffs for local villagers. After losing his pilot's license, Billy Covington is recruited into it, and ends up in the middle of a bunch of lunatic pilots, gun-running by his friend Gene Ryack, and opium smuggling by his own superiors.
Genre: Action, Comedy
Director(s): Roger Spottiswoode
Production: Live Home Video
  1 nomination.
 
IMDB:
5.7
Metacritic:
33
Rotten Tomatoes:
13%
R
Year:
1990
113 min
962 Views


There are no American

combat forces in Laos.

We are concerned by the

North Vietnamese move into Laos.

50000 North Vietnamese

are there at the present time.

American participation in Laos is at

the request

of the neutralist government

which was set up in accordance

with the 1962 accords, agreed to

by Hanoi, Peking, and the USSR.

We have been providing

logistical support

and some training

to avoid Laos falling

under Communist domination.

No American manpower in Laos

is there on a combat basis.

Come on!

Gene, no!

No chance.

Get back! Stay back!

Son of a b*tch.

Gene...

To hell with the cargo!

Is he dead?

Well, Rob, if he's not

he's very, very calm.

Jesus, I'm sorry.

Hey, Gene

We're not here right now.

I saw Nixon on TV.

So we're not actually here

and this didn't happen.

Maybe not for you

and not for Nixon

but it happened for Doug.

We sure go through pilots.

Gene! Remember!

Shhh!

Since we're not here, I don't remember

what the f*** you didn't say.

These pilots are head cases!

Yeah.

And the worst part is

we need more of 'em.

Now to our "eye in the sky"

pilot Billy Covington.

How ya doing up there?

I think the music speaks for me:

"All I want is to be 'a free

live my life the way I want 'a be."

How's the traffic, Billy?

Traffic's kinda depressing. Sad.

Real congested.

Kinda bumsy looking

to tell you.

We've heard there's

a whale of a jam on the 103.

Yeah. You know why?

That's why we

go to you, Bill.

I'll tell you.

'Cause most drivers turn into

pagan rubbernecks, hoping

to see a fatality. Makes a

gawker's block

for a coupla miles back.

Not unlike this moron

in the brown 18 wheeler from

Rubio moving and hauling.

'Scuse me a sec, Stevie.

Move your truck!

An ambulance is coming!

F*** you, "eye in the sky!"

F*** me?

Yeah! F*** you!

What'd you say?

I said f*** you!

You want a convertible?

Get down here

f***ing punk. I'll kick your ass!

You airborne piece of sh*t!

This is Rock 1080, where else can you

get such in depth traffic reporting?

You should be arrested!

This is very dangerous!

I'll bust that whirlybird

to hell and back!

License SUSPEN DED

Hey, Billy.

Who are you?

Heard about your fall from grace.

An adventurer without an adventure.

Wrong.

Nothing lower than a grounded pilot.

Who are you?

I want to ask you why you flew

so low over that accident?

The ambulance couldn't get through.

I want to be down in the action.

Thought so.

The thing that got you fired here

can get you hired in Laos.

There's a war there!

In Vietnam, not Laos.

You saw the President on TV?

Heckle and Jeckle talk on TV

doesn't mean

I believe birds can really talk.

Point taken.

But there's no war in Laos.

You can take that to the bank.

Who'll be signing my checks?

Our outfit's called Air America.

Strictly civilian.

American Pilots. Men like you.

Wild men flying cargo and

refugees in the wild East.

FAA took my ticket, man.

Get you a new one in Taiwan.

No sweat.

Who are you?

Your biggest fan.

What's it supposed to be?

Sound of the torment of war.

When the enemy hears this

coming from your planes

they'll flip. The North Vietnamese

are pouring into Laos heading to

Saigon along the Ho Chi Minh trail

hooking up with their Commie buddies.

We blast 'em with this stuff

they panic, they scatter. I admit

it's a dangerous mission.

Worse than dangerous.

This is embarrassing, man!

They'll point and laugh!

This tape

was made by experts for maximum

psychological effect.

You've got no idea

who you're fighting here.

You know more about it

than American Intelligence.

Don't use the word "intelligence"

to describe your job.

Rob Diehl? Hi.

I'm Billy Covington.

Welcome.

Thanks.

You have some paperwork?

Nice bat.

Billy is one of you guys.

Thanks. So talk to 'em.

Hi, guys.

What brings you here, Covington?

I hear there's some good flying.

Good flying?

Yeah?

Depends where you're coming from.

Where are you coming from?

From L.A. The west coast of the US.

Where are you coming from?

From the dark side of the moon.

And I'm going back there soon.

The golden BB is coming.

My bat.

Nomenclature:
BB, gold.

Ordinance:
Personnel, Neely.

And the four rounds you can't...

Pilot hi jinks.

It's their way of coping.

Pilot hi jinks?

This is psychotic behavior.

Psychotic behavior is company policy

at Air America. I'm Gene Ryack.

Take Billy on his orientation flight.

OK with me. Is it OK with you?

Let's get in the wind.

Give him the bat.

This is Long Tieng, right?

Right.

There's nothing here on the map.

Well I guess it's like Rob says.

We're not here.

Which means you're not seeing

the second biggest city in Laos

built from scratch

by the U. S. Government.

And we really don't run 400 flights

or ship 100 tons of cargo

medicine, weapons

or local troops, like those.

"Anywhere, anything, any time."

That's our motto.

We fly C 123, Helio Couriers

fairly normal machines.

But the real fun is playing

with these freaky planes.

These aren't legal in the US.

This ain't the States.

Damn right.

Watcha got today?

Peanut butter and mayo. What you got?

Flight schedule.

About time

You seem to be doing OK.

I do all right in the air

I tend to f*** up on the ground.

Mind if I look in your logbook?

14 months of bush flying in Canada.

Bush flying?

Yeah, bush flying.

2 months crop dusting

outside of Fresno.

Fresno. Youre a real f***ing hero.

You flew "eye in the sky"?

Excuse me, is that an Uzi?

That'd make a great ad:

"Excuse me, is that an Uzi?"

"Why yes

self defense is no joke.

That's why I pack an Uzi.

Accept no substitutes."

Show him your amulet, Gene!

What's in there?

The ashes of my big toe. Shot off

through the floor of the cockpit.

Not far from here.

You get shot here?

It was ugly.

He had it cremated.

Always has it with him.

Wait a sec.

No one told me about losing toes.

He never mentioned toe loss.

Who

The recruiter.

Why didn't you get it

sewn back on?

When a piece of me gets shot off

I don't want it back.

It's still with us in spirit.

You understand?

In spirit, toe ism.

Royal Asian Airlines Flight No. 744.

Arriving at gate 12.

Glad you could make it, sir.

A US senator? In my back yard?

On a fact finding mission?

He's not gonna find any facts.

I promise.

Certainly not about our little deal.

Besides, he's a dimwit.

He had a tractor dealership

before he got elected.

Harry Truman sold cheap suits

he wound up dropping an atomic bomb.

Welcome to Vientiane, sir.

Thank you, Ambassador Marloff.

Senator, this is major Lemond.

I'm sure you've heard of him.

Of course. Where's the uniform, Major?

Too hot for all those ribbons?

You going civvie on us?

I'm a civilian now.

With the Air Force at heart.

Thank you. Put bag in big car.

Senator...

I know.

Sorry

have no local dinero.

Give tip later OK?

Senator!

This is General Lu Soong

Supreme Commander of the Allies.

Hello?

Anybody home?

Get a load of Senator Tact here.

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John Eskow

John Eskow is an American screenwriter. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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