It all starts with 007: First Light. In the game’s opening mission in Slovakia, Bond is on the trail of rogue agent 009, and what unfolds is a spectacular cargo-plane set-piece: fights on the wings, a desperate mid-air struggle, and a final freefall without a parachute. This jaw-dropping sequence is what inspired us to look back at Bond’s greatest aerial stunts.
Because for more than sixty years, Bond has been defying gravity in unforgettable ways. He’s strapped on jetpacks, squeezed into microjets, leapt from towering dams, balanced on cranes, and even barrel-rolled a car across a river. Each generation has pushed 007 higher, faster, and further – delivering stunts that were equal parts daring, absurd, and breathtaking.
And these moments didn’t just thrill moviegoers – they also helped shape the language of action games. Remember how Uncharted 3’s cargo-plane scene echoed the Hercules fight from The Living Daylights? Or how Moonraker’s freefall found a spiritual successor in First Light’s new adventure? With IO Interactive now at the helm, Bond’s sky-high legacy feels ready to soar again, bridging film and gameplay like never before.
So let’s count down the Top 7 moments when Bond took to the skies and redefined action cinema.
7. Thunderball (1965) – The Jetpack Escape
It may look like 1960s fantasy, but the jetpack Sean Connery uses in Thunderball was real. Officially known as the Bell Rocket Belt, it was developed by Bell Aerosystems for the U.S. military before being abandoned as impractical due to its short flight time and high fuel demands. Test pilot Bill Suitor – one of only a handful trained to operate it – flew the pack on screen, while Connery himself filmed the takeoff and landing close-ups.
Though it never found a role in real-world combat, the Rocket Belt became one of Bond’s most iconic gadgets, instantly blurring the line between science fiction and genuine aerospace engineering. Decades later, its pop-cultural impact was strong enough to earn the jetpack a digital cameo in the 2005 video game From Russia with Love, letting fans strap in themselves.
6. The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) – The Car Barrel Roll
It may not be a classic aerial stunt with planes or parachutes, but it remains one of the most iconic moments in Bond history – a car that truly takes flight. Bond’s AMC Hornet spins 360° in mid-air across a river, in a move known as the Astro Spiral Jump.
The stunt was based on computer calculations from the Calspan Corporation, originally developed to simulate single-vehicle accidents, and adapted from The American Thrill Show. On June 1, 1974, stunt driver Loren “Bumps” Willert performed the jump in Thailand, hitting the ramp at exactly 48 mph. Remarkably, he nailed it on the first take – a practical stunt so perfect that many audiences still assumed it was a special effect.
And Bond’s car stunts may not be a thing of the past. In 007: First Light, a brief glimpse already shows 007 using the ramp of a car transporter to launch into the air – just a few seconds of flight, but enough to hint that spectacular vehicle stunts could once again be part of his modern arsenal.
5. Octopussy (1983) – The Acrostar Jet Escape
In the outrageous pre-title sequence, Roger Moore squeezes into the BD-5J “Acrostar” microjet and zips through a hangar while dodging missiles. The jet was real, flown by stunt pilot Corkey Fornof, who recalled how hypersensitive the tiny plane was to turbulence and how it demanded constant correction to stay on course.
The BD-5J wasn’t just a film prop – it already held the Guinness World Record as the world’s smallest jet-powered aircraft and was a staple at U.S. airshows. After its Bond appearance, the Acrostar gained even more fame, turning into a merchandising hit and becoming a fan-favorite vehicle across posters, toys, and tie-ins. More than just an outrageous gag, it represented Moore’s Bond at his best: witty, stylish, and spectacularly implausible – yet grounded in daring real-world aviation.
4. Casino Royale (2006) – The Construction Crane Chase
Daniel Craig’s debut redefined Bond as gritty, physical, and bruising. His pursuit of Mollaka (parkour pioneer Sébastien Foucan) leads onto a towering construction crane in Madagascar, where Craig performed many of the vertigo-inducing moves himself, with stunt double Adam Kirley taking the riskiest leaps. The sequence left audiences dizzy and instantly established Craig’s Bond as a raw, unstoppable force.
The echoes of this stunt even reach into gaming. In the first gameplay trailer for 007: First Light, Bond is briefly seen running across a crane at night during a chase – but with a new twist, as the massive counterweights ominously begin to drop.
3. The Living Daylights (1987) – Hercules Cargo Plane Fight
Timothy Dalton’s 007 goes hand-to-hand with Necros on the open ramp of a Hercules C-130, thousands of feet above the Mojave Desert. The sequence was staged for real by stuntmen B.J. Worth and Jake Lombard, who fought while literally dangling from the aircraft at over 100 knots. Grappling on a whipping cargo net in the slipstream, they punched, kicked, and clawed for survival in a mid-air duel that pushed stunt endurance to the limit.
The idea resurfaced in Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (2011), where the premise was expanded into a more elaborate and cinematic gameplay sequence. Because the game became so iconic, some later assumed Bond was imitating Uncharted when 007: First Light revealed its own cargo-plane mission. In reality, the timeline shows a circle of inspiration: Bond pioneered the concept in 1987, Uncharted borrowed it in 2011, and now IO Interactive brings Bond back to the skies – this time possibly taking cues from Uncharted itself in terms of fluid, cinematic action.
2. GoldenEye (1995) – Bungee Jump at the Dam
Pierce Brosnan’s Bond makes his entrance with a breathtaking 220-meter bungee jump from Switzerland’s Verzasca Dam. Stuntman Wayne Michaels executed the jump in a single take, setting a Guinness World Record as the highest bungee ever filmed. Dropping at nearly 100 mph, he even pulled out a pistol mid-fall – a flourish that shifted his trajectory and added real danger. Director Martin Campbell heightened the effect by staging the leap in silence, letting the vast concrete backdrop dominate the screen.
For many fans, this moment is equally iconic in gaming. The dam became the opening mission of GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo 64 – but because the film cut straight to the jump, developer Rare created an entire playable level across the dam, complete with guards, security cameras, and objectives, before players could finally take the leap themselves.
1. Moonraker (1979) – Freefall with Jaws
Bond’s mid-air battle with Jaws remains the crown jewel of aerial stunt cinema. To capture it, B.J. Worth and Jake Lombard, filmed by aerial cinematographer Rande Deluca, performed 83 real jumps over five weeks. Custom helmet-mounted Eyemo cameras recorded the action, while parachutes were concealed beneath breakaway costumes, making the on-screen packs look like dummies.
The result was a sequence both absurd and breathtaking, pushing stunt technology and human endurance to their limits. Even today, professionals cite the Moonraker freefall as a turning point in film history – a moment when skydiving, innovation, and sheer audacity collided at 10,000 feet to deliver one of Bond’s most unforgettable spectacles.
The influence is still felt today. In the first mission set in Slovakia in 007: First Light, Bond is once again thrown from an aircraft without a parachute, forced to fight enemies in freefall and seize a chute mid-air. It plays as a direct homage to Moonraker’s legendary sequence, underlining just how deeply this stunt is embedded in Bond’s cinematic DNA.
Honourable Mentions
- You Only Live Twice (1967) – Little Nellie vs. the Helicopters: iconic gadget battle, more spectacle than stunt.
- Spectre (2015) – Helicopter barrel rolls: Chuck Aaron’s aerobatics over Mexico City remain one of the series’ riskiest feats.
- A View to a Kill (1985) – Golden Gate Bridge fight: Moore’s farewell staged vertigo high above San Francisco.
- Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) – Saigon rooftop chase & Carver building jump: Brosnan’s era delivered bike-over-helicopter action and a dramatic skyscraper plunge.
