Airwolf
Airwolf
Stringfellow Hawke is an expert helicopter pilot and gets to fly an ultra-advanced military helicopter, Airwolf. His employers are "The Firm", a division of the CIA, and his missions tend to be a of an intelligence-gathering nature. His burning desire, however, is to locate his brother St. John, missing in action in Vietnam.
Richard reviewedOctober 26, 2025
Saw it on TV in the ’80s and it felt like Top Gun met Cold War espionage, with a helicopter that could outfly your imagination.
Stringfellow Hawke, a brooding ex-CIA pilot with a tragic past, flies the Airwolf, a sleek, heavily armed, supersonic helicopter built for covert missions.
With Dominic Santini (Ernest Borgnine) by his side and “The Firm” pulling the strings, Hawke takes on intelligence ops while secretly searching for his missing brother, St. John.
The tone? Gritty, moody and unmistakably ’80s.
The synth heavy score, slow-motion takeoffs and aerial combat sequences made every episode feel like a mini action movie.
Jan-Michael Vincent played it cool and haunted, while Borgnine brought warmth and old school charm.
Watching it again feels like flipping through your childhood’s action packed scrapbook.
The helicopter was the star, but the emotional undercurrent, grief, loyalty, justice, gave it staying power. And yes, that theme song still slaps.