Star-Studded Skies: Celebrity Pilots Who Do the Flying Themselves
What do you do when you’ve conquered stage, screen, and stocked your garage with all of your dream cars? Well, if you’re anything like these celebrities, you turn your attention to the skies. From “Mission Impossible” star Tom Cruise to celebrated actor and filmmaker Angelina Jolie, there are more celebrity pilots from famous Hollywood backgrounds than you might think.
You might need a pilot’s license to catch up with these celebrity pilots
A handful of famous A-listers would rather be at the yoke than get stuck in LA traffic. Furthermore, when it comes to celebrity pilots and their airplanes, these famous names are about as big as it gets.
- Tom Cruise
- Harrison Ford
- John Travolta
- Angelina Jolie
- Patrick Dempsey
It’s no secret that Tom Cruise is a bit of a thrill-seeker. He insists on performing many of his own stunts. “Paul” and “Hot Fuzz” actor Simon Pegg fondly complains about Cruise’s insistence that he work out with him in preparation for the “Mission Impossible” films.
Of course, fans already associate Cruise with slipping the surly bonds of Earth from his work on the “Top Gun” films. However, you might not know that Cruise owns a North American P-51 Mustang. What’s more, he flew his personal WWII warbird at the end of the 2022 film “Top Gun: Maverick.”
It’s tough to top a P-51, but Harrison Ford puts his best foot forward. He’s the chairman of the Young Eagles flight program and gives aviation-interested youths rides in his 1955 De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver. However, his De Havilland is more than a pretty face; it flew for the CIA in Air America.
John Travolta, star of iconic films like “Saturday Night Fever” and “Pulp Fiction,” has been a licensed pilot since he was 22. Today, at 69, Travolta can fly a Boeing 747, 707, and 737.
Angelina Jolie might not be the first person you associate with aviation. However, in addition to her busy acting, filmmaking, and philanthropic schedule, Jolie enjoys taking to the skies. She has owned a Beechcraft Bonanza and a Cirrus SR22 single-engine aircraft. Still, fixed-wing flight wasn’t enough for the “Tomb Raider” star; she earned a helicopter pilot’s license as well.
When Patrick Dempsey isn’t on set, heading up racing teams, or looking back on his own racing career, he likes to fly. In a 2015 Facebook post, the “Grey’s Anatomy” star announced he would take up flying while showcasing an ICON airplane.
Source: Aviationfile, People Magazine
