When it first aired, “Airwolf” was undeniable awesomeness. As with so many things, it doesn’t really stand up to scrutiny *now;* much of it is just terribly dated. But at the time? That helicopter, with the added jet engines, styling by the fella what who designed the Enterprise-D, and deployable weapons that broke the laws of physics (telescoping machine gun barrels… always good for a laugh)? Best thing to hit the skies in the 80’s.
The theme music was also something very much of its era.
I’m not generally a fan of remakes. But here’s something that, done right, *could* actually make for a damn fine new series. It should be a reboot, not a “thirty-five years later” sequel (if for no other reason, so nobody even *thinks* about trying to get Jan Michael Vincent onto the set. Yeeesh). And with that… what should the “Airwolf 2018” be based on? The original Airwolf was a Bell 222 with fiberglass cosmetic alterations. And spiffy as it was, a modern helicopter should be used. But let’s face it: there aren’t really a whole lot of new helicopters that are more futuristic looking than the Bell 222. And I’ll storm off the set in a huff if they tell me “we’ve decided to go entirely CGI with the chopper.”
Obviously the new Airwolf should be based on a helicopter that is not immediately recognizable to the bulk of the TV-watching public. You’re not going to fool the aviation geeks, so don’t even try. A few suggestions:
Kamov KA-52 “Alligator”
OK, sure, it’s Russian. But face it: most Americans wouldn’t recognize it, and it’s *damn* spiffy. And being Russian, I’ve little doubt that Hollywood could buy a half dozen of ’em, with all the spare parts and tech support they might need, for reasonable sums.
The Bell 525 “Relentless”
Bigger than the 222, but clearly designed with similar aesthetics. It’d make for a more capacious Airwolf, capable of carrying substantial cargo & passenger loads… perhaps it could carry an ED-209 as standard equipment. The 525 is still in prototype, awaiting certification, so that might be a little bit of an issue.
Sikorsky S-97 “Raider”
Now this would be cool. And since it’s a terribly expensive prototype still in testing, very unlikely.
Bell V-280 “Valor”
Airwolf wouldn’t necessarily need to be a helicopter. A tiltrotor might do the job, and the V-280 looks promising. Small problem: the V-290 hasn’t actually flown yet, though it should soon. Something that can be done with this: do as with the original Airwolf and add some fiberglass “turbojets” to the fuselage, say, at the wing root. Then when the thing goes into high speed flight, do some CGI tinkering and show the proprotors stop and then fold back.
Suggestions? What other choppers would fit for a revived “Airwolf?”