01x01 - Second Thunder

[bunniefuu]

8y-80.

Air 30, we have an update on

the hostage situation on
pacific coast highway.

Roger. We copy and

e.T.A. Coast highway
in, uh, six minutes.

M-50's on the
scene and reports the suspect...

May be trying to escape through
a window on the north side of the house.

Be advised.
roger. 8y-80.

Air 30, mayday! Mayday!

We're being fired on!

We're going down!

Hey, man, they got a
speed limit out here too, you know.

You should have
thought of that when you made us late.

I made us late?
You were washin' the windshield.

I got finished with the windshield,

and you were
still polishing that thingamajig.

That "thingamajig"
is a computerized data-bank system.

Look, you know the brass

that they're gonna have
out there this morning?

There's senators and admirals
and generals, and I don't know what all.

And I'm gonna get us there on time.

And if you don't like it, you can

stick it in your computerized
data-bank system.

Mean.

The man is just plain mean.

Senator, I think you're going

to be astonished at what
you see here this morning.

Well, it's something I've looked

forward to for a long
time, captain braddock.

I hope I can go back to my subcommittee

and recommend the additional
funding you need.

Well, I hope so too, sir.

All right, ladies and gentlemen,
if I could have your attention, please.

I'm major mclove from apex,

the federal agency
which has chartered this special group.

A lot of you are
familiar with blue thunder unit.

For those of you who
are not, let me introduce the personnel.

Captain Ed
braddock, who commands the unit.

Thank you.

And the ground support
to our helicopter, rolling thunder,

manned by officers butowski and Kelsey.

And here she comes,
the most awesome helicopter ever built,

blue thunder.

Captain braddock,
what do you have in store for us?

That is an example
of blue thunder's firepower.

Twenty millimeter electric cannon,

capable of firing


Of course, raw power is one thing,

accuracy is another.

The red figures are the K*llers.

Blue thunder will pick them

off and leave the white
hostages unharmed.

How about that?

In addition to firepower and accuracy,

blue thunder has the most
up-to-date surveillance system there is,

short of science fiction.

Infra-thermograph,
pilot night vision sensor system,

laser spot tracker,

airborne video, record and

playback unit,
high-intensity microphones,

air-to-ground
speakers, direct view optics...

And rotor noise repression...

Whisper mode.

Senator Martin, do you
have a business card with you, sir?

Uh, why, yes. I believe so.

Would you take it out
and hold it up in front of you, please?

"Dudley Martin, U.S. senator,

"senate office building 495,

555-4321, Washington, D.C."

Thank you very much, senator.

And now I'd like to
introduce officers butowski and Kelsey.

You may recognize these two gentlemen,

for they knocked some heads

around in the NFL before
they joined our force.

Would you please
whisper to senator Martin...

The score of the
last game you played in, in the NFL?

Bears over the colts, 35 to 17.

No way. The bears
didn't beat the colts that year.

Seems to be a
little argument over this one.

But I happened
to have a small bet on that game,

and I remember it...
Bears 35, colts 17.

All right, chaney, bring her in.

And now, ladies and
gentlemen, before we get a chance...

To meet our pilot
and observer, I'd like to...

Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen,

that was not part of the
planned demonstration.

As I was saying,

I think you know that the astro

division of our city is
in a state of emergency.

In the past several months there's

been a series of attacks
on astro helicopters,

and yesterday two of our
officers were k*lled in an air attack.

Apex, our charter organization,

has assigned the
blue thunder unit to this emergency...

Because, frankly,
we don't have any time to waste.

Thank you.

Uh, Frank. Senator Martin, I'd

like to... to meet our
pilot, Frank chaney.

Chaney.
senator.

Still think the
Dodgers are goin' back to Brooklyn?

As far as I'm concerned,
sir, they never left. Excuse me, sir.

Uh, Clinton wonderlove, our observer.

hi, senator, what's

shakin'? How are you, wonderlove?
Good to see you.

Excuse me for just a moment,
senator. certainly. Certainly.

Say, aren't you one of

those what they call
a, uh, computer whiz?

Well... well,
you got a computer, don't you?

Well, no, not... not really.

No? You got access to
all that sophisticated military hardware.

Don't tell me you haven't worked

with a cray supercomputer
with an array processor.

You've worked with that.

Senator, we got a serious problem here.

Five-year-olds
are programming with logo.

"Logo." You don't
wanna be outta step with the times.

But I like you. I like you. I think

you're a cool guy, okay?
I wanna help you out.

What are you doin' this weekend?

Chaney.

yes,
sir?

What the hell was
that little stunt you just pulled?

I was demonstrating
blue thunder's flying abilities.

Look, remember, you weren't

my choice for this job
in the first place.

You watch yourself,
or I'll bust you to a squad car.

You did that, sir, six months ago.

Yeah, and I'll damn well
do it again, Frank. You remember that.

i promised you I wouldn't

give you any more trouble.
I know you.

- And I meant it. no more trouble.
- Good.

Unless, of course,
we don't see eye to eye on things.

Our love and our prayers...

Are with the families
of these slain police officers,

thomas hurado and Carlton bernt.

At the specific request of Mrs. bernt,

I will read her
husband's favorite verse from the Bible,

I corinthians, chapter 13.

"Though I speak with the tongues

of men and of angels,
and have not love,

"I am become as
sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

"And though I
have the gift of prophecy,

"and understand
all mysteries and all knowledge;

"and though I have all

faith, so that I could
remove mountains,

"and have not love,

"I am nothing.

"And though I bestow
all my goods to feed the poor,

and though I give my body... "

- What the hell's
that guy think he's doin'?

- It's a mohawk.

Everybody take cover! Get down!

It's comin' back again!

Wonderlove, get
all those people back. Get 'em down.

Chaney, don't go near that thing.

Do you hear me? Frank, for

god's sake, you're gonna
get yourself k*lled.

Please, just move back.

It's a fake, captain.

It's a rubber toy...

With a streamer on it.

"Chaney, I'm
back, and I'm going to get you.

P.V.C."

How far did they track him?

Right. Okay, stay on it.

L.A.X. Radar tracked him headin'

west, but they lost him
out over the ocean.

He probably ducked down under radar.

J.J. Contacted San Diego

approach to see if
they spotted anything.

Good. Might of doubled back

and come inland again, about...
about there.

No, he's hightailed it

back to Mexico, his
old stomping grounds.

You should know.

Captain, I've got San Diego.

Frank, I never really

heard what happened
between you and p.V.C.

Why were you grounded?

Oh. Oh, well, about...

About a year ago,
narcs brought him to us as an informer.

And he helped us bust a lot of

guys.

\-
hyeah?

In the meantime, he learned

everything there was to know
about police operations.

I heard he's either crazy or a

genius. a
little bit of both.

He started flying loads of

dope across the border,
right under our noses.

- That's when
your partner got k*lled?

- Yeah.

Uh, p.V.C. Had laid an
ambush for us, and Charlie was cut to ribbons.

So I, uh...

I followed him across the

border and blew his plane
away with a 12-gauge.

I thought he was dead until today.

Didn't exactly
follow police procedures.

Chaney, pick up. It's p.V.C.

Hey, captain, how's tricks?

Are you enjoyin' my callin' cards?

Where are you? Guaymas?

Chaney, is that you?

Well, son of a g*n, the

whole crowd's there.
How's it goin', fella?

We're gonna nail you for this, p.V.C.

Hey, hey, hey, captain, back off.

I haven't spoken to you

guys in some time. I
gotta get caught up.

You're not running the show here.

Oh?

I think I am.

I've taken out three of
your choppers, k*lled two of your guys.

Am I gettin' your attention?

We're listening. I got

chaney out of a squad
car and into a chopper.

Now I want him.

A Mano a Mano
in the sky, you understand?

I want the consummate
pleasure of blowin' him to hamburger.

You just name the
time and place, pal. I'll be there.

- Shut up, chaney. that's crazy.
- That's right, captain.

See, chaney and I both know

that one of the small
pleasures in life...

Is being absolutely wacko.

This way you don't have to

follow any rules, only the
ones you make yourself.

Now you listen, p.V.C....

No, you listen.

Chaney takes me on,

or I keep blowin' your guys away.

And furthermore, I'm gonna

continue to run dope
right under your nose.

But to keep it a little

sporting, I'm gonna tell
you where and when.

Like tomorrow, 1600 hours.

Agua dulce.

Captain. Let's go for it, captain.

Let me take him on. Blue
thunder can wipe him out. Oh, terrific.

Captain, that mohawk
will annihilate any normal chopper.

He's not gonna
be prepared for blue thunder!

Come on, Frank.
Get off it. Listen to you.

"I'll take him on.
i'll wipe him out of the sky."

What do you
think you are, Luke Skywalker?

- Are you just gonna
let him continue to k*ll our people?

- No, I'm not.

You know as well
as I do that when p.V.C. Told us...

Where and when
he would be, that's where he was.

And I'm gonna
be there with a small army.

Oh, come on!
It's a waste of time, captain!

The man is like a snake. He'll

spread you thin and slip
through the cracks.

It's an exercise in futility, captain.

He's gonna make a fool out of you.

No, he's not.

That's standard procedure, and

that's the way we're gonna
pick him up, Frank.

You got that?

He's never gonna fall for this trap.

I don't care what
size army braddock has out there.

Jafo, punch me up
the area maps and all coordinates...

Within a
hundred-mile radius of agua dulce.

Frank, there you go again. "Jafo."

"Just another frustrated observer."

Look, I know I look like a

kid, but I'm 24 years
old, for cryin' out loud.

And I'm not a rookie.

I'm a little
weird, but I'm not a rookie.

Okay, I'm sorry. No
more jafo, but punch me up the area maps.

We go outside our radius, I wanna

be able to alert bubba
and ski to follow us.

Uh, we're comin' up on it, Frank.

We're approaching agua
dulce, uh, 34-30 north, 118-119 west.

We should be
there in less than two minutes.

Hey, this isn't a sports car.

Who's the driver, you or me?

Look, friend, we're
gonna be workin' together now,

so try and keep your temper, okay?

\-
hwhat

temper?

You got a mean streak a mile wide.

That's a bad rap
that was laid on me in football.

- You used to bite people.
- That's a rotten lie!

Look, I'm one of the
nicest guys you'll ever want to meet!

You just gotta
get to know me, that's all!

El mirage, red rock, mystery mesa.

We're over red rock now.
There's a support chopper down there.

Well, they can cover

el mirage and mystery
mesa from where they are.

Name me some
airstrips we're not covering.

Quartz field, hickey strip,

las palabras, fox field.

Ah. what?

Fox field. That sounds like p.V.C.

He thinks like a fox.

Blue thunder to rolling thunder.

Ski, bubba, you guys in junior yet?

just climbin' aboard.
I'm betting he'll come in at fox field.

[ Engine starts

[] You can head straight east,
right across the desert.

we won't

beat you by much. We're on our way.

Fox field is just outside the

radius we would cover in
a narcotics stakeout.

P.V.C. Knows that.

Well, well, well.

So you think you're a fox, do you?

- Baby, the hounds are comin'.
- ♪

We're closin' in on fox field.

You see anything yet?

There.

On that road leaving the airstrip.

Well, looks like

they're just waitin' for a
load of dope to haul away.

Put us on whisper mode.

Federal officers. Put your hands up.

looks like they see us.

Now, is that friendly?

You wanna bust 'em right now?

Let's wait till bubba
and ski get here, so they can mop up.

Federal

officers. Come out of your
vehicles with your hands up.

- Move and you're a dead man.
- Spread 'em, turkey!

You, hands on the roof!

Nice work,

fellas. You take care of
the dirty laundry, okay?

We missed p.V.C. Damn it!

He's halfway back to Mexico by now.

Not yet, chaney. I'm still around.

P.V.C., where are you?

Oh, come on. Haven't
I helped you guys enough today?

I got him on radar.
Southeast 240 by 65.

All right, let's go.

Listen, while I'm
waiting for you guys to get here,

why don't I entertain you

with a few cuts from
my latest album, huh?

♪ And there's
no sickness toil or danger ♪

♪ to that
fine world to which I go ♪

You like that, boys?

We're closing.
You should have him visually.

Hello. There he is.

Well, what's that bird, chaney?

You look like you're

flyin' my grandmother's
old wringer washer.

Let's see how it handles the laundry.

Some washer, eh?

We've got armor
plating. How do you like that?

You're full of surprises today, chaney.

Oh, there's plenty
more where that came from, pal.

Close enough to blow in your ear.

Ah, I loved it, pal.

But I really have to get home now.

You're just gonna
have to blow it someplace else.

We gotta catch him.
We're going on turbo.

He's hightailin' it for Mexico.

We can't catch
him, even on turbo thrust.

Blue thunder to all
units. He's heading toward the border.

Well, well, well,
it's not a wasted trip after all.

♪ Ah, what do you
do with a drunken sailor ♪

♪ what do you
do with a drunken sailor ♪

♪ what do you do with

a drunken sailor early
in the mornin' ♪

♪ yo, h*, h* and
on up she rises yo, h*, h* ♪

Hey!
it corners like a snake.

Oh, man, do we have to be doin' this?

I had some work done on
junior. i have to see how she handles.

We're supposed to be
meetin' captain braddock for a workout.

Why do you think I'm hurryin'?

Yahoo!

Was that your idea of fun?

- How else could
I test the new suspension?

- Without me.

cut

it out. i
hate that sound.

Oh...

And you said I had a bad temper.

Really givin' it the
old all today, aren't you, captain?

That's a good way to
work out your frustrations, normally.

This is a pattern of yours.

Whenever you've had it up to

your ears because it
hasn't worked by the book,

you come down
here and slam away at something.

You watch yourself, chaney.
You're gettin' real close to the edge.

Well, I've had it for today.

Me too. We'll see you gents later.

With all due respect, sir,

you can pump
iron till you're blue in the face.

It's not gonna
get us one inch closer to p.V.C.

How long are we gonna sit

around on our butts,
losing men and equipment,

while you completely
ignore the fact that all p.V.C. Wants is me?

Look, Mr. Maverick,

you're never gonna
get my permission to go out there...

And play Saint George and the dragon.

That's fourth
grade mentality. I won't have it.

Okay. Okay.

You know, I just came
from narcotics, and guess what, captain?

P.V.C. Did us real good yesterday.

While we were all out
at agua dulce playing hide-and-seek...

By the book,

one of his
Colombian contacts off-loaded


freighter in L.A. harbor.

Frank, as long as I'm
in command, it will be by the book.

The book only works when

the maniac you're
chasing hasn't read it.

P.V.C., the
man with the mysterious name.

The half-mad genius who
slips through your fingers like oil.

You may believe that,
Frank. I think it's a lot of bull.

He's human. He's a criminal.
He'll make a mistake, and we'll get him.

Never by the rules.
He'll continue to manipulate us.

He'll continue to make fools of us,

and we will
continue to lose men and equipment.

This is the watch commander!

We have a
probable b*mb near the heliport.

Pilots, get your aircraft off the

pad! All other personnel,
evacuate the building!

Evacuate immediately! I repeat,

we have a probable b*mb
near the heliport!

All personnel, evacuate immediately!

Pilots, evacuate your aircraft!

Air 10, air 40, air 30,

all aboard for takeoff to the south.

Wind 140 at three knots.

Air 20, air


Roger that. Roger, tower. Taking off.

Blue thunder, you're cleared.

Uh, blue thunder, 02 departing.

Here they come with the b*mb.

How much do
they pay those b*mb squad guys?

Whatever it is, it's not enough.

Let's take a closer
look. Hit it with the 100-to-one zoom.

There's writing on it.

"Happy Birthday Frank chaney."

Guess who.

-
p.V.C.

Just his style...
Mayhem with a chuckle.

Why don't we see if we can
help the b*mb squad with our sonar scan?

Gentlemen, do we have
your permission to scan the package?

okay, scan away. -

all I see is a timer.

No wires. No
expl*sives. Nothing to indicate a b*mb.

We've sonar-scanned
the package, and it looks clean.

They're cutting through the paper.

Whoo! All right!
Chalk one up for the scanner!

morse
code.

"I left my phone number...

"In your locker.

When you find
your guts... give me a call."

He walks right past 10 floors

of security and puts
that in the ready room.

What the hell is
wrong with us? See what he's doing?

- He's trying
to get you into a dogfight.

- I'm talking about right now.

It's just another
decoy, like the drug bust.

Captain, he cleared the building,

and he scrambled
the entire astro division.

- What else could it be?
- [

[ braddock ] Is this another
one of your wild hunches?

Just trust me. It's
a decoy. He's gonna pull something.

- like what? - I don't know.

But he's got all
the choppers up. We're vulnerable.

Okay, I'll tell the
dispatcher to call the choppers back.

Good. That should help.

We'll stay aloft
and see if we can spot anything.

Roger, chaney.

Mayday! Mayday! This
is air 40. Something just hit us.

8y-80, we're on fire.
Tail rotor's gone. We're burning.

A m*ssile. I think it was

some kind of m*ssile. Hit
us on the starboard side.

It's him. it's p.V.C.

- Mayday!
- Mayday! We're out of control.

- We're going down.
- Mayday! Do you hear us?

This is air 50! Mayday! We're going...

Okay, that's it.

From now on, we're doin' it my way.

Hey, man, do you mind?
Your mess is getting on my desk.

You worried about
your desk at a time like this?

We've got bigger problems.

hey, Frank. Put it away, jafo.

What's the matter?

The city grounded astro.

Apex heard about it and grounded us,

pending further
examination of the entire program.

I don't believe this. Let's haul it.

Hey, he looks like
he's ready to blitz somebody, man.

I'm looking forward to it, p.V.C.

P.V.C. Took the cheese.

It's all set. This
afternoon, 1600 hours.

R-reminds me
of Jimmy Stewart in shenandoah.

M-meet ya at
bill Bailey's place in a half hour.

Good guys win
in that one, huh? Never mind.

Just, uh, let's keep goin'.

-
all

right.

Okay, with a full tank of fuel,

the mohawk's rate
of climb is 44.6 feet per second.

That's at a
normal weight of 13,040 pounds.

Yeah, well, f-from Mexico to here...

Should lighten
his fuel load by... by 500 pounds.

Sounds like the
Beverly Hills diet, don't it?

Will you concentrate.
[

[ normal voice ]
i

am concentrating.

All right, here we go.

That should increase his,
uh, climb rate to 46.3 feet per second.

Hey! Look what we got.

Ta-da!

-
wow.

Where did you get those things?

Haven't you heard of missiles-r-us?

- There's one in almost every city.
- Okay, forget I asked.

We can't use 'em. Take
'em back. Frank, get serious.

- I am serious.

- You can't go up against
this guy without backup.

Gentlemen, I appreciate the sentiment,

but those are heat-seeking missiles,

and they do not

distinguish between
choppers and mohawks.

There'll be times when

you guys are more than
miles apart, Frank.

Now, look, they are not authorized!

Now, I'm givin'
you an order. Take 'em back.

You got it?

Got it.

I don't understand it,
sir. It was a direct order from apex.

During the time we're grounded,

we're to put in 20 hours
of hands-on training...

With the computerized
equipment on blue thunder.

- Was I copied on that order?
- It must be there somewhere, sir.

All right, I'll find it. Go ahead.

I'll clock you in as of 1330 hours.

Sir, hands-on
training with computerized controls...

That's performed on the ground, isn't

it?

-
right.

Why are they starting the engine?

Chaney, come back here!

All planes are grounded!

Chaney, land that chopper!

Chaney!

He's comin'! he's comin'!

i got him on radar. All right.

you're not
goin'. What're you talkin' about?

This is a solo,
jafo, between p.V.C. And me.

If I get busted for this,
I don't want you caught in the middle.

Oh. Yeah, you can
do it all alone, can't you, Frank?

While you're flyin' you're gonna work

the computer panel with your
toes, huh, Mr. big shot?

Mr. solo? You want it
straight? you want it straight, jafo?

the winner's
up for grabs. I'm a big boy, Frank.

And I'll be damned if I
can't make decisions about my own life.

And stop callin' me jafo! You got it?

Uh, okay, Mr. Wonderlove, climb aboard.

Captain b.'S right.

He's Maverick down to his undershorts.

I was right. He's gonna blitz that guy.

He's on-screen. he's coming flat out.

Okay, I'm goin' to 3,000 feet.

Let's see if he wants to play.

Fee! Fie! Foe! Fum!

I think I smell
the blood of a Frank chaney.

The only blood
you're gonna smell is your own.

Oh, I already have. You drew

about a quart of it with
a 12-gauge shotgun.

I can forgive you for the pain

and the crash and six
months in the hospital,

but I can't forgive you for

sh**ting away me pretty
face now, chaney.

You k*lled the best friend I ever had.

And now you're so
sick, you just k*ll for the sport.

I got your attention, didn't I?

You sure as hell did.

Nice flying, Frank.
Real cute. Real cute.

Stick around.
You'll learn to appreciate me more.

Can you stand this? I can't stand this.

Funny, you took
the words right out of my mouth.

Come on. Grab the a*mo.

- Come on!
- You can put away the launchers.

Frank took
the a*mo and left us this note.

"Nice try, fellas. maybe next time."

You're wasting your time, old buddy.

I can follow you anywhere you can go.

Those cap pistols won't do it, p.V.C.

If you had any brains,
you'd have learned that at fox field.

Oh, I did learn,

and I brought you a little gift.

He's locked onto
our radar. he's got a m*ssile!

Jam him! i

don't know if
there's time!

You're the computer genius!
Do it! I'm gonna get him on thermograph.

- - There he is,
reaching for the firing button.

Ah-ah-ah-ah, don't do that, p.V.C.

- Don't do what?
- fire that m*ssile.

You're reaching
your right hand toward a button...

About eight
inches above your right knee.

Well, I'll be damned.

x-ray vision.
What will you think of next, huh?

Keep him talkin'. I need more time.

Hey, p.V.C., you
might as well just give it all up.

I mean, we've
got you outclassed all the way.

Oh, no, you haven't, old buddy,

so why don't you quit stalling?

You know, we're
gonna play a little game called NASA.

Knowing you
can watch makes it even better.

Minus 10 and counting.

Ten, nine, eight,

seven, six,

five, four, three,

two, one.

We have launch.

He's coming straight at us!

Turbo!

You're gonna get a
real bang out of my surprise, old buddy.

You can start counting because
it'll be there in exactly seven seconds.

I think I'm into his code!

I'm jamming! i'm jamming!

Like it down here, p.V.C.?

Oh, thanks, old buddy.

Why, you put yourself

in perfect position
for another surprise.

- he fired another one! -

jam him! - I am jamming!

That was his last m*ssile.

Okay, the fight's
even. Now it's our turn. Turbo!

He went for the

border again, Frank. We're
never gonna catch him.

He's in range for
another 15 seconds. That's all I need.

I think you got me, chaney.

♪ I'm goin' away
for just a little while ♪

Okay, Clinton c. Wonderlove,

let's go home.

You know, you're very attractive.

Thank you.

I was thinkin' that maybe later on,

you and I could,
uh, go out and grab some dinner.

I don't think so.

Um, how about a movie?

Or maybe just go to my place and...

Have a drink and talk for a while.

No. Thank you.

She wants me. Wants me bad.

She just can't
let it out in front of you guys.

Yeah, right. You're just irresistible.

Oh, okay. I can't talk to
you guys when you get jealous like this.

I'm gonna get some coffee.

Hey!

what's
the matter? That's my locker.

Yeah, but mine's full.

Well, if you'd
clean it out, it wouldn't be full.

See, I was right.

you're the one with

the bad temper. Any
word from the captain?

Not yet, but you can bet when the

official word comes down,
it's not gonna be too good.

Because, as you know,
we didn't follow police procedures.

I'd break every rule in
the book to get p.V.C., and I got him.

Chaney, in here!

It's been nice knowing you guys.

Yes, sir?

I've spent about two hours on

the phone over this
little escapade of yours.

- I understand, sir.

- Apex is very unhappy
about the whole thing.

The upshot is that they've
ordered me to ground you for a week.

You see, captain? You see, there's

that typical bureaucratic,
narrow-mindedness.

You break the
rules, you pay the price.

It's not just the police, Frank.

That's life. i
understand, sir.

And I'd hope you'd
look at this as a little warning.

You know, you get out of line, you're

gonna get busted. believe
me, captain, it is.

it's not
gonna happen again. I hope not.

p.V.C. Was a special
case, and it's over. I hope so.

I've learned my lesson, sir.

Well, that's good.

Is that all?

Yeah, that's all.

I promise you,
captain, I'll watch my step from now on.

Good, I'm glad to hear that.

That is, of course,

unless we don't see
eye to eye on things.