AOPA Pilot Magazine - June 2022 - 63

diminishes image quality; the 2019 film producers wanted to
capture the power, speed, and maneuverability of fighters.
Enter CineJet, an Aero Vodochody L-39 Albatros
that features a customized gyro-stabilized camera system
designed for high-speed aerial cinematography. The jet
trainer has a top speed of more than 450 miles per hour, four
times faster than the helicopters commonly used in aerial
cinematography. The camera system, made by New Zealand
company Shotover, hangs off the nose of the jet from a specially
designed mount. With the lens just below the belly
of the airplane, cinematographers have an unobstructed,
360-degree view of the airplane's surroundings.
" We needed to take [aerial cinematography] to the next
level, " said Kevin LaRosa II, vice president of production
at Helinet Aviation Services and the aerial coordinator
and camera pilot for Top Gun: Maverick. He worked with a
team of technicians to develop CineJet. " I wanted to build
something that we could go out and do aerobatics with--
including a camera system that could push the edge of aerial
photography like no one has done yet. "
Known for his work on Iron Man (2008), The Avengers
(2012), and Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), LaRosa
has worked on more than 100 motion picture and commercial
productions (see " Pilots: Hollywood's Youngest Aerial
Coordinator, " February 2015 AOPA Pilot). He is an airline
transport pilot, has type ratings in several Learjet models,
and has a Part 107 UAS certificate for flying unmanned aircraft
for the film and television industry.
" It's a very physical and mental exercise
when you're out in the airplane
making these shots, " LaRosa said. " You're
not only flying an airplane, you're directing
another airplane or multiple airplanes
on how they should be flying, and you're
watching the image to make sure that
you're putting yourself in the right place.
When we come back and look at footage
for the first time, it's normally very
rewarding. All of that hard work, all of the
planning, comes to fruition. "
In a recent Facebook post, LaRosa
offered details on the platforms that he
and the Helinet team used in filming Top
Gun: Maverick.
" The L-39 CineJet was chosen for
most of the dog fighting and low-level high
energy flying, " LaRosa said. " The Phenom
[300] Camera Jet was chosen for any
extended over water operation, extended
range missions, or complex sequence
that needed the flexibility of carrying two
Shotover F1's at the same time with different
lens capabilities. " A camera helicopter
was also used, along with cinema drones,
which " were able to operate in places we
couldn't get full-size camera aircraft. "
Kevin LaRosa II was
the aerial coordinator
and camera pilot for
Top Gun: Maverick. An
Aero Vodochody L-39
Albatros fitted with a
camera system from the
New Zealand company
Shotover was the platform
plane. The CineJet system
features a camera under
the nose of the jet. In
2018, CineJet filmed with
the Canadian Forces
Snowbirds and other
airshow performers at the
Central Coast Airfest in
California (above).
AOPA PILOT / June 2022
63
LARRY GRIFFITHS @TWOELEVEN_AVIATION
AOPA Pilot Magazine - June 2022

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