Continuity mistake: The scene in the hanger where Maverick is introduced. When Admiral says "be seated" there are only 2 rows of chairs. When Hangman looks over to Rooster he is in a new 3rd row.
Continuity mistake: When Maverick calls Comanche, the sun is behind the Daggers. When they descend below radar a few seconds later, the sun is ahead of them. (01:31:16)
Revealing mistake: When Maverick is chasing the 5th Gen fighter in the canyon, it cuts to a shot above his left shoulder. You can see a Gold, Red, and White Flag patch reflected in the canopy. Neither Maverick nor Rooster are wearing flag patches during the mission.
Revealing mistake: When Maverick uses the Cobra Maneuver in the F-14 he was piloting and being chased by the 5th-Gen Fighter and moves above it, the onboard camera in the 5th-Gen fighter captures the supposedly F-14 moving back from above. Only that it does not look like an F-14 with its movable wings spread out. The scene is fast and so a normal user might not notice this infraction. (01:52:40)
Factual error: Fanboy's squadron patch is for VFA-143, the "World Famous Pukin' Dogs." However, this is an "Echo" squadron, flying the single seat F/A-18E model. Being a WSO, at his apparent age/rank, he is probably not pilot-rated and therefore could not have been assigned to that squadron. Unlike "Bob", he isn't wearing glasses, so he could not have been previously disqualified and even so, he would be wearing his current squadron's badge.
Factual error: The SPY-1 array on the CG the Tomahawks are launched from is on the wrong side of the superstructure.
Continuity mistake: In the first training session, Maverick eliminates both Hangman and Rooster, meaning they should return and do their push-ups and we are shown this, meaning once you have done your PT, that is it for you. However, later in the sequence, both Hangman and Rooster are shown still in the air where Hangman is talking to Rooster about his relationship to Maverick, who has been observing them the whole time.
Suggested correction: Rooster does his pushups after the first sortie, flying with Payback and Fanboy (who made up the rules). Next up are Fritz, Harvard, and Yale, followed by Hangman, Phoenix, and Bob. Omaha, Halo, and Coyote lose next. Then Rooster goes out again but this time with Hangman. Because of their beef, that sortie ends when Maverick tells them to knock it off. Hangman technically didn't get shot down, so Rooster does the last set of pushups by himself. Nowhere is it said the day ends with one set.
Speaking as someone who has worked on pre and post-production on over five hundred films, I must respectfully disagree with this. My point is that the editing has been screwed up, as all the people who were shot down by Maverick stayed down and did not go back up again. We do not see Rooster go up again, so I have to take issue with this.
The film has simplified the script, which explains why more people do the push-ups than agreed in the wager, and the final flight with Rooster and Hangman. 1. In the film, Hangman asks Maverick for permission to go on after Maverick killed Phoenix and Bob. After Hangman loses, of course, he also needs to do the push-ups (presumably the same for other teams). 2. After the first round, Maverick focused on Rooster and Hangman as candidates for mission leader, so he invites them for a second round.
Other mistake: In movie, Harvard and Yale are the crew of one of the dual F18. Harvard is wearing the Navy Aviator Wings on his patch, Yale is wearing WSO wings. Later, in aerial scenes, Yale is in the front seat of the plane and Harvard in the rear - the wrong way round. (01:40:00)
Plot hole: The planes fly in low to avoid being attacked by the SAM installations. Why are the cruise missiles, which are flying above them, not attacked by the missiles from the ground? (01:33:28)
Suggested correction: The Tomahawk cruise missiles are sent to destroy the airfield, which is some distance away from the illegal uranium enrichment site.
Continuity mistake: In the opening scene, the aircrews are launching and recovering F-18s. When they are guiding the jets to the catapult, F-35s are shown in the sequence.
Factual error: The buddy-lasing does not make sense as shown in the movie. Its purpose is: The attacking aircraft may evade any air defense instantly after releasing its bombs, while the lasing aircraft stays on course at a safer distance and keeps the laser on target long enough for the bombs to hit. In the film, Phoenix and Bob instantly need to turn off the target and fly past it before the bombs hit, so no more laser on target and no actual guidance for the bombs.
Continuity mistake: When they are in the final steep climb out over the ocean, just before Hangman shoots down the enemy plane to save the day, the camera view of Maverick shows the water below, but when the camera is showing Rooster, the terrain below is heavily forested. (01:55:00)
Continuity mistake: At the beginning of the final dogfight, when the 5th gen fighter releases its first missile after achieving missile lock, a second missile is in flight for two seconds, missing the F-14. This missile must have been released first and is missing the F-14 to the left by a long shot. (01:51:18)
Suggested correction: This is not a missile; this is the other 5th gen Su-57, set aflame by Maverick (and subsequently used by Maverick as a "flare" to dodge the missile fired at them).
Continuity mistake: At the end Hondo is getting the harness out to catch Maverick when he lands, Hondo is wearing his flight deck uniform helmet, flak jacket etc but when he greets Maverick seconds later when he lands his helmet and flak jacket are gone, and he's wearing his camouflage uniform he had on underneath.
