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Do ya got a link to the original article

There was no "article". My post was recounting a conversation I had with the pilot who actually flew the trials at "Top Gun" (or maybe just China Lake). He was a friend of mine in the squadron.

He was the total antithesis of the Tom Cruise character. He was calm, even headed, a methodical teacher. Top Gun was (is) about sending a pilot from your squadron to learn techniques (not just buzz the tower) and be able to return to teach those techniques to rest of the pilots in the squadron.

I flew with a hot dog pilot like " Maverick", who later led a flight of two helos into "cumulogranite", a granite-filled cloud, killing himself and four others, injuring several and destroying two very expensive aircraft.

Full disclosure: I have the mindset of a Helo Pilot, hot a Jet Jock.

One correction to Harry reasoner. Helicopters actually CAN glide, at about a 4:1 slope. It is called "Autorotation". I've done hundreds of practice autorotations, including Full Autos (no engine power recovery) to the ground in Bell Jet Rangers and even in a UH-1L Huey.

“He was the total antithesis of the Tom Cruise character. He was calm, even headed, a methodical teacher.”

I had two friends that had been military pilots one a former US Navy pilot, not some high-performance jet, more like the mail plane with propellers, the other Career Air Force that piloted “Puff the Magic Dragon” in RVN, later he spent much of his time chauffeuring brass, it was a job, he said.

One quiet and studious, if you wanted to know about Puff you almost had to pry it out, the other more loquacious on aviation. Both VERY smart.

Both gone now, I wish I could still ask about the A-10 and pilot personality types.

Once we had a discussion on how high birds can fly, they put out some big numbers, which I did not accept.

This was pre-internet, but I knew that the Chicago Tribune had an answer desk.
The answer was (to me) crazy high, sighting from planes, from mountains, and radar!
I miss them.