LOL: Chinese State TV Uses 'Top Gun' Footage In Official Broadcast About Air Force Training

Tony Scott has really made it. In a news report broadcast on China's state-run CCTV about an air force training exercise, there was a brief shot of an exploding aircraft. The shot is cut into the video to seem as if it is part of the footage shot for the segment, with the explosion being the result of a live fire exercise. But it is really from the final battle scene in the 1986 film Top Gun.

The joke here is that the shot of the exploding aircraft looks as if it might be relatively unnecessary in the context of the report. Perhaps it was cut in as a joke by the editor. The other option seems to be that this is a genuine propaganda lift, with the explosion meant to bolster the impact of the report.

First up is the original video, with the Top Gun clip cut in at 1:12.

And here's the comparison video that was assembled by the Wall St. Journal. Thanks China. Now I"ll have the song 'Danger Zone' in my head all day.

[Yahoo]