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Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land

  • TV Movie
  • 1983
  • Not Rated
  • 1h 55m
IMDb RATING
4.8/10
1.2K
YOUR RATING
Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
A commercial aircraft that can whisk passengers around the globe in a matter of hours, embarks on its maiden voyage. The trip goes horribly awry, however, when the aircraft is forced out of the atmosphere and into outer space. As it is too dangerous to attempt reentry, NASA scientists scramble to launch a rescue mission in a race against trapped on-board.
Play trailer2:41
1 Video
26 Photos
Sci-FiThriller

On the maiden flight of the first hypersonic commercial plane which can make the flight from New York City to London in four hours, a minor disaster occurs resulting in the plane actually le... Read allOn the maiden flight of the first hypersonic commercial plane which can make the flight from New York City to London in four hours, a minor disaster occurs resulting in the plane actually leaving the Earth's atmosphere and orbiting around the globe. A lack of heat-resistant tilin... Read allOn the maiden flight of the first hypersonic commercial plane which can make the flight from New York City to London in four hours, a minor disaster occurs resulting in the plane actually leaving the Earth's atmosphere and orbiting around the globe. A lack of heat-resistant tiling prevents the plane from simply re-entering the atmosphere. With oxygen (and therefore ti... Read all

  • Director
    • Jerry Jameson
  • Writers
    • Robert Malcolm Young
    • Peter R. Brooke
    • Gene Warren
  • Stars
    • Lee Majors
    • Hal Linden
    • Lauren Hutton
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    4.8/10
    1.2K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Jerry Jameson
    • Writers
      • Robert Malcolm Young
      • Peter R. Brooke
      • Gene Warren
    • Stars
      • Lee Majors
      • Hal Linden
      • Lauren Hutton
    • 27User reviews
    • 16Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:41
    Watch Official Trailer

    Photos26

    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Lee Majors, Lauren Hutton, and Hal Linden in Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Lee Majors in Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Lee Majors, Pat Corley, and Hal Linden in Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
    Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Lee Majors
    Lee Majors
    • Captain Cody Briggs
    Hal Linden
    Hal Linden
    • Josh Gilliam
    Lauren Hutton
    Lauren Hutton
    • Erica Hansen
    Ray Milland
    Ray Milland
    • Q. T. Thornwell
    Gail Strickland
    Gail Strickland
    • Nancy Gilliam
    George DiCenzo
    George DiCenzo
    • Bowdish
    • (as George Di Cenzo)
    Tess Harper
    Tess Harper
    • Janet Briggs
    Terry Kiser
    Terry Kiser
    • Freddie Barrett
    Heather McAdam
    Heather McAdam
    • Laurie Hansen
    • (as Heather Mc Adam)
    Michael Sacks
    Michael Sacks
    • Pete
    Gary Bayer
    • Martin
    Pat Corley
    Pat Corley
    • Joe Pedowski
    Robert Webber
    Robert Webber
    • Felix
    Jocelyn Brando
    Jocelyn Brando
    • Mrs. Harvey
    Diane Stilwell
    Diane Stilwell
    • Betty
    Phil Coccioletti
    • Hal
    Peter Jason
    Peter Jason
    • Schultie
    Kirk Scott
    Kirk Scott
    • Del
    • Director
      • Jerry Jameson
    • Writers
      • Robert Malcolm Young
      • Peter R. Brooke
      • Gene Warren(uncredited)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The movie is loosely based on the novel "Orbit" by Thomas H. Block, from 1982. In the novel, a hypersonic plane on a cruise from New York City to Sydney exceeds its cruise altitude, due to sabotage by a revenge-seeking company engineer.
    • Goofs
      The Space Shuttle Columbia launches multiple times in one day, once with a two hour turnaround time. The absolute minimum turnaround time planned for the Space Shuttle orbiters was two weeks. However, the fastest actual turnaround during shuttle program history was 54 days, performed by the orbiter Atlantis on mission STS-61-B.
    • Quotes

      Joe Pedowski: You're gonna try to fly this thing back?

      Captain Cody Briggs: Joe, did you ever skip a flat rock across a lake and watch it skim and bounce along the surface? I wanna give reentry that kind of shot.

      Joe Pedowski: I have skipped a few rocks on a few lakes in my time and I never saw yet one that didn't sink. It's one chance in a million.

      Captain Cody Briggs: So was this accident.

      Joe Pedowski: I am scared out of my mind being up here inside this plane and you want me to go outside?

      [laughs nervously]

      Joe Pedowski: oh no!

      [pause]

      Joe Pedowski: I'll need a wire stripper and some wire nuts... and a dry pair of pants when I get back.

      Joe Pedowski: cannot unselect the speaker.

    • Crazy credits
      While the credits list the character played by Herbert Jefferson Jr. as 'Kenny', at 1:31:57 Capt Cody Briggs (Lee Majors) addresses the character as 'Benny', in conjunction with the subtitles. At 1:32:07 the character, and the subtitles clearly note the characters name as 'Benny'

    User reviews27

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Starflop One
    I'll admit it: I used to love this movie as a kid. But that was when I thought anything was possible. Now that I'm older (and have seen the Airport Movies), I realize just how bad this movie really was.

    First, it should have been called Airport '83, since it has a nearly identical plot to the rest of the Airport series (especially The Concorde: Airport '79, where technical malfunctions screw up the Concorde).

    Second is the truly abominable acting. Lee Majors, the Six Million Dollar Man himself, stars as the plane's captain, who is married but shacking up with the head stewardess (Lauren Hutton, which explains why she is given a first-class seat out of the plane at the end). Hal Linden plays the designer and head engineer of Starflight One, who seems very uncomfortable in his role. The rest of the cast was too terrible to mention as their parts didn't even get off the ground, so to speak.

    Third are the obvious mistakes, scientific errors, and plot holes that are large enough to fly a Star Destroyer through. For example: -Starflight was equipped with a flange that allowed an airlock to be fitted over it. But if it was never designed to operate in a vacuum (like outer space), why have it there in the first place? -Captain Briggs mentions that everything still worked, including the engines. If the engines worked, and they were in a decaying orbit, why not just transfer to a higher orbit? -In this movie, NASA service techs seem to be recruited from NASCAR, since they are able to service and launch the Space Shuttle Columbia several times in two days (which is physically impossible, and why didn't that second shuttle help out sooner?). -It was mentioned that Starflight was not built with a heat shield. Bt at the speeds that it was designed to operate at, kinetic heating and friction would necessitate SOME kind of protective layer on the aircraft.

    -How come we never see the blonde female astronaut's face? -Starflight uses scramjets to provide thrust, but these engines cannot operate from a stand-still as they are shown to do; they must be in motion before they can operate. -An aircraft that is designed to operate at Mach 6 and higher speeds would not likely have such huge wings in proportion to its body, or even be spindle shaped; in fact, its actual design would most likely be a lifting body.

    And now for the good stuff: why I liked this movie. John Dykstra, who came up with the ships for Star Wars and Firefox, was the one who designed Starflight One; the plane, while not believable, still looks very good. Also, Lalo Schifferin's score was very good and dramatic. In all, about a 6 out of 10.
    helpful•19
    11
    • coventry_2k
    • Mar 9, 2002

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 27, 1983 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Starflight One
    • Filming locations
      • Laird International Studio - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Orgolini-Nelson Productions
      • Orion Television
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 55 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono

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