A Great Idea

by B.J. Worth

This month’s “Profile” of B.J. Worth by Brian Giboney did not have room for this anecdote, which we are sharing here.

During production on the movie “Drop Zone” (starring Wesley Snipes and Gary Busey), the good guys needed to catch the bad guy as he was escaping on foot within a forest of skyscrapers. The plan was for the non-aerial stunt team to rappel down the building and jump on the bad guy (played by former jumper Michael Jeter). During a production meeting with the director, I casually mentioned that a good guy could ground launch from the top of the building and swoop down and catch Jeter in a scissor grip with his legs. The director bought it and changed the script. The regular stunt team was not amused and more than a bit skeptical. 

Although the scene portrayed a ground launch, the aerial stunt team would actually jump from a helicopter. On the night of shooting, three of us dressed identically in beards and loose-fitting street clothes as the good-guy character, Swoop. If the first guy missed, the second guy would immediately go for a take two, and then the third guy for a final take if necessary. Former U.S. Accuracy Champion Jake Brake was our Swoop of choice, backed up by Navy SEAL Harry O’Connor. I put myself third, totally confident that I wouldn’t be called upon.

The cloud deck was at 1,100 feet, which was a legal exit altitude according to the FAA movie manual, but still a bit dodgy. Also, it only allowed us minimal time to set up a glide slope toward Jeter as he walked toward the skyscraper’s entrance doors. Did I mention that the entire regular stunt team was sitting just off camera to watch the show?

As the helicopter banked toward the skyscrapers, I corrected the spot to keep jump run between the buildings in case of a cutaway. Jake smiled confidently as he exited. We circled as Jake deftly flew between two skyscrapers and landed one step behind Jeter and tackled him. OK, so it wasn’t a scissor catch, but Jeter’s character was captured.

Then the first assistant director’s voice crackled on the radio commanding that we send down number two. Harry and I looked at each other in dismay, as he readied himself in the chopper’s door. Harry nailed it, landing on Jeter as his canopy surged forward and slammed to the ground, almost hitting the building. As I signaled to the pilot to head back to the airport, the radio crackled again. It was good, but not the scissor catch that I had promised. “B.J., come on down.”

I was in the saddle by 750 feet. As I set up my approach to fly between the skyscrapers, my first thought was, “What is going on down there that I don’t know about?” My second was, “If those two guys can’t do this, no one can.” My third and final thought was, “What the heck were you thinking when you suggested doing this stunt?”

Then, everything happened very quickly. I am not sure if I dug really deep for my accuracy skills or my innate desire not to embarrass myself kicked in, but I flared very low and glided forever at high speed before scissoring Jeter as promised. The stunt guys cheered, the director smiled, and I was just relieved.

B.J. Worth    |   D-3805
Whitefish, Montana