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Wingman

 Wingman
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 Wingman
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Wingman
 Wingman
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Wingman
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It takes two to tango in the air combat business, so you need a wingman. Or three. Or sometimes more.
The wingman is a pilot of another plane whose job is to cover their lead's six o'clock — behind him — in an attack, and provide witty banter or, occasionally, someone to rescue. The wingman (or woman) will often have a contrasting personality to the Ace Pilot. They may also be wearing a red flightsuit.
In multi-player video games involving fighters, you can get a wingman as a given. Other games feature AI wingmen. They may utter the phrase "I Got You Covered!" Generally has nothing to do with Winged Men.
Compare Guy in Back, when a pilot has a companion sharing the same plane — for example, a navigator or radio operator. Since the F-4 Phantom II and F-14 Tomcat, two of the coolest planes around, are two-seaters, it's common to get a "four in two" group of characters.
Has mutated and been adopted as slang for the guy who, when you encounter a couple girls hanging out together, keeps one occupied so you can try to pick up the other. But that's not this trope. (It's this one instead.) And not to be confused with the '80s manga and anime called Yume Senshi (Dream Warrior) Wingman.
Many wingmen themselves may be aces, especially if they fly in a target-rich environment. When a group of aces are arranged into flights and wingmen, it is called a fat cat flight.
 Wingman
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2023-10-10T04:31:04Z
 Wingman
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AceCombat3
 Wingman
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Avania (Webcomic)
 Wingman
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DBTropes
 Wingman / int_1b604019
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_1b604019
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The pilots of Area 88 generally watch each other's backs when in formation, but permanent pairs don't often show up because of the base's high turnover.
Mickey often performs this role for Shin and Saki, although he's a formidable fighter pilot in his own right.
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 Area 88 (Manga)
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Wingman / int_1b604019
 Wingman / int_223c2a48
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In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, in the fight against Divine Beast Vah Medoh, Teba creates distractions and draws dangerous enemy fire so Link has opportunities to take out the Energy Weapon generated Deflector Shields with Bomb Arrows. Teba originally planned to do everything on his own, but he discovered Link was a much better archer while Teba was the better flyer.
 Wingman / int_223c2a48
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 The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Video Game)
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Wingman / int_223c2a48
 Wingman / int_2337b3e2
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_2337b3e2
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Iron Eagle: Doug Masters is following Chappie Sinclair until the climactic battle, but ends up flying solo for most of mission. His dad ends up joining as his Guy in Back.
 Wingman / int_2337b3e2
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1.0
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 Iron Eagle
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Wingman / int_2337b3e2
 Wingman / int_23633967
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_23633967
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Top Gun: Maverick: For the Airstrike Impossible mission, Phoenix is Maverick's wingman (wingwoman?), and Payback is Rooster's wingman.
 Wingman / int_23633967
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1.0
 Wingman / int_23633967
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 Top Gun: Maverick
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Wingman / int_23633967
 Wingman / int_3fe6b4fb
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_3fe6b4fb
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Squadrons during the Yuuzhan Vong War tended to split into shield trios instead, with the idea being that they could overlap and support one anothers' shields. Other formations, including wingpairs and flights of four, were used with the same concept.
 Wingman / int_3fe6b4fb
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1.0
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 New Jedi Order
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Wingman / int_3fe6b4fb
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_43e414ec
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Ace Combat Infinity: Omega. Kei "Edge" Nagase (or rather, her "real-world" counterpart) returns as a wingman to John "Slash" Harvard (ditto).
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 Ace Combat Infinity (Video Game)
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 Wingman / int_467c89f7
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_467c89f7
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In Super Dimension Fortress Macross/Robotech, Hikaru Ichijo/Rick Hunter has Max Jenuis/Sterling, who eventually has his own wife Milia/Miriya as his own wingmate. As it is, the couple are better pilots than Hikaru/Rick himself, but the former hotshot pilot has matured enough to eagerly concede that fact, especially he is still their squadron leader and he couldn't ask for better company to watch his back in combat.
 Wingman / int_467c89f7
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 Super Dimension Fortress Macross
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Wingman / int_467c89f7
 Wingman / int_468bebb0
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_468bebb0
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Discworld fic The Price of Flight deals with the Ankh-Morpork City Air Watch. Its commanding officers emphasise that everybody at sometime or another in air combat is somebody else's wingman, without exception. You might be the highest-scoring pilot in air combat, or you might be the newest recruit. But everybody watches everybody else's back.
 Wingman / int_468bebb0
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 Discworld
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Wingman / int_468bebb0
 Wingman / int_49aa2aa4
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_49aa2aa4
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Ace Combat, from the beginning (except in 04), though wingmen were useless in the first couple games (read more here). The enemy has them, too. To list just the most notable:
Ace Combat 2: John "Slash" Harvard and Kei "Edge" Nagase
Ace Combat 3: Erich Jaeger, Fiona Fitzgerald, Rena Hirose, Keith Bryan, Abyssal Dision, Cynthia Fitzgerald
Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War: Kei "Edge" Nagase (similar names but it's not her), Alvin H. "Chopper" Davenport, Hans "Archer" Grimm, Marcus "Swordsman" Snow
Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War: Larry "Solo Wing Pixy" Foulke, Patrick James "PJ" Beckett
Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation: Marcus "Shamrock" Lampert
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon: José "Guts" Gutierrez
Ace Combat Infinity: Omega. Kei "Edge" Nagase (or rather, her "real-world" counterpart) returns as a wingman to John "Slash" Harvard (ditto).
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown: In Mage squadron — Clown, with the 444th squadron — Tabloid, and in Strider squadron — Lanza (temporarily), Skald (temporarily), Jaeger, Huxian, and Count. You also briefly fly with Wiseman of Cyclops squadron, and two members of Sol Squadron on your wing.
 Wingman / int_49aa2aa4
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1.0
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 Wingman / int_4da11f30
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_4da11f30
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Return of the Jedi: Luke and Leia team up against a pair of Scout Troopers on Speeder Bikers on the forest moon of Endor. During the climactic space battle, we see more than a few examples of the Rebel pilots covering each other in the furball.
 Wingman / int_4da11f30
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 Return of the Jedi
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Wingman / int_4da11f30
 Wingman / int_4edff9aa
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_4edff9aa
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Star Fox has Peppy, Slippy, and Falco as your wingmen for (almost) every mission in the original SNES game and Star Fox 64, though they tend to be the ones needing assistance, and if they get shot down in the original, they're gone for good (in 64 they just sit out the next mission for repairs). In Adventures, you're only in the Arwing between missions and for the final boss, and only for the latter do you get a wingman to help, while Assault goes back to having three wingmen each level, though Peppy is your Mission Control, and Krystal instead takes his place as a wingman. In Command, you control all of the characters yourself, and in the unreleased SNES sequel, you pick two characters to play as, switching between them at will.
 Wingman / int_4edff9aa
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 Star Fox (Video Game)
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Wingman
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In Season 2 of Ready Jet Go!, Sydney becomes the co-pilot of the Propulsion saucer, following the excellent piloting she demonstrated in "Back to Bortron 7".
 Wingman / int_50b9086a
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 Ready Jet Go!
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 Wingman / int_5ef1014a
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The Sixth Battle. As F-14s and A-6s feature a fair bit, you get "four in two" combos as well.
 Wingman / int_5ef1014a
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 The Sixth Battle
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 Wingman / int_5f217050
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_5f217050
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In X-Wing and Tie Fighter the player can issue evasive orders and designate targets to other squad members of variable competence.
 Wingman / int_5f217050
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1.0
 Wingman / int_5f217050
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 X-Wing (Video Game)
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 Wingman / int_634b4cab
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_634b4cab
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Wing Commander Academy has various characters do this for each other, along with Maverick and Maniac having an on-again-off-again discussion of who exactly should be flying on who's wing. One late episode has Commodore Tolwyn taking a fighter to join in the fray when the carrier is ambushed with most of her wing away, and he elects to fly on the wing of one of his junior officers, due to her having the most experience recently.
 Wingman / int_634b4cab
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 Wing Commander Academy
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 Wingman / int_6505f7f3
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_6505f7f3
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Molly of Denali: In the tie-in podcast episode "Co-Pilot Molly", Molly becomes the co-pilot for Layla's bush plane, and does a very good job at piloting it.
 Wingman / int_6505f7f3
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 Molly of Denali
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 Wingman / int_6b671725
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_6b671725
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Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation: Marcus "Shamrock" Lampert
 Wingman / int_6b671725
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 Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation (Video Game)
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In the X-Wing Series, pilots all have wingmates - since each person in the squadron is numbered, it's sequential. Leader/One is wingmate to Two, Five and Six are wingmates, etc. At least when a new squadron is formed; since pilots tend to keep their number for the duration of their time in a squadron (unless they're promoted to leader), things can get mixed up when some pilots are killed and new replacements are brought in. When the numbers are uneven, a temporary three-member wing forms. When one pilot is making an attack run, they typically tell their wingmate and are, in return, told "I'm your wing" - basically "Okay, I'll keep the enemy off you." The squadrons may split by wings to achieve different objectives.
 Wingman / int_75149ccd
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 X-Wing Series
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Wingman / int_75149ccd
 Wingman / int_7dad8347
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_7dad8347
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The FreeSpace series features wingmen who manage to be red shirts without being useless. Issuing proper orders to them can sometimes make a difficult mission much easier.
 Wingman / int_7dad8347
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1.0
 Wingman / int_7dad8347
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 FreeSpace (Video Game)
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Wingman / int_7dad8347
 Wingman / int_80e838cd
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_80e838cd
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Tachyon: The Fringe allows you to hire wingmen for an up-front fee and a percentage of your mission payouts.
 Wingman / int_80e838cd
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1.0
 Wingman / int_80e838cd
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 Tachyon: The Fringe (Video Game)
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Wingman / int_80e838cd
 Wingman / int_83d81bd4
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_83d81bd4
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Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War: Kei "Edge" Nagase (similar names but it's not her), Alvin H. "Chopper" Davenport, Hans "Archer" Grimm, Marcus "Swordsman" Snow
 Wingman / int_83d81bd4
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 Wingman / int_83d81bd4
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 Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (Video Game)
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 Wingman / int_8b7b9cd5
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_8b7b9cd5
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A New Hope: All of the fighters making the Trench Run fly in three-man teams, with the two guys in the back drawing fire to cover for the lead. Notably, Wedge establishes his Ace Pilot credentials saving Luke from a TIE Fighter, and Biggs dies protecting Luke from Darth Vader.
 Wingman / int_8b7b9cd5
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 Wingman / int_8b7b9cd5
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 A New Hope
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 Wingman / int_9432814f
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_9432814f
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Flight of the Intruder, has a similar arrangement to Top Gun, with The Boxman being Cool Hand's wingman, and Tiger being his second Bombadier-Navigator, replacing Morgue.
 Wingman / int_9432814f
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1.0
 Wingman / int_9432814f
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 Flight of the Intruder
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Wingman / int_9432814f
 Wingman / int_9b1333a5
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_9b1333a5
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Top Gun: Cougar is Maverick's wingman. (Goose is his Guy in Back.) At the end of film, Maverick and Iceman become Fire-Forged Friends, and each offers the other the chance to be their wingman.
Top Gun: Maverick: For the Airstrike Impossible mission, Phoenix is Maverick's wingman (wingwoman?), and Payback is Rooster's wingman.
 Wingman / int_9b1333a5
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1.0
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 Top Gun
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 Wingman / int_a83e83d4
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_a83e83d4
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Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War: Larry "Solo Wing Pixy" Foulke, Patrick James "PJ" Beckett
 Wingman / int_a83e83d4
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1.0
 Wingman / int_a83e83d4
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 Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War (Video Game)
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Wingman / int_a83e83d4
 Wingman / int_aedc983a
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_aedc983a
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Wing Commander has many of them. This was a major selling point at the release of the first game. Despite the fact that wingman A.I. has always been buggy at best and the most useful wingmen are also the hardest to manage because of their Attack! Attack! Attack! flying style.
 Wingman / int_aedc983a
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 Wing Commander (Video Game)
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_c34518be
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Lieutenant Schultz in Battlezone II's Fleshstorm mod accompanies Corber as a wingmate (in a Hover Tank) for several missions before the Recycler is deployed. However, he moves onto his own missions once Corber starts building his own Player Mooks from the Recycler.
 Wingman / int_c34518be
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 Battlezone (1998) (Video Game)
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 Wingman / int_c4282b71
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_c4282b71
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The My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic episode Wonderbolts Academy placed the brash, egotistical Rainbow Dash as wingpony to the even brasher, more egotistical Lightning Dust. The entire episode was an Homage to Top Gun, naturally.
 Wingman / int_c4282b71
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 My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
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 Wingman / int_c68c0000
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_c68c0000
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Star Wars (Marvel 1977) has 'wing guards', which seem to be the same thing. Luke Skywalker has a budding romance with his wing guard, Shira Brie. It ended poorly. What with her turning out to be an Imperial spy handpicked by Darth Vader.
 Wingman / int_c68c0000
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 Star Wars (Marvel 1977) (Comic Book)
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 Wingman / int_ca8f6821
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_ca8f6821
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Wings to Fly uses the relationship and interpersonal bonds between a wing pair and the importance of having someone to watch your back as a deliberate contrast to the usual Gundam story being dominated by a single pilot with effectively no backup.
The story has an unofficial rule that people who still think they can fight solo in AC 198 must suffer, and some otherwise capable pilots (or suits, including the Gundam Epyon) get into trouble because they're blindsided by the wingman of their current target.
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 Wings To Fly / Fan Fic
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Battlestar Galactica has Starbuck frequently flying wing for Apollo. The position assumes additional significance when Apollo, trying to bolster Starbuck's confidence during a suspected breakdown, offers to fly her wing. It's a big deal since he outranks her, and also proves just how far he's willing to go for her sake.
 Wingman / int_d461f757
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 Battlestar Galactica (2003)
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Wingman
 Wingman / int_de8ae019
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In theory Terran Confederation fighter pilots in the Star Carrier series are organized into wing-pairs. In practice the chaotic nature of fighting in a 3D environment where ships can spin on a dime and fly backwards on inertia while shooting guys behind them means that more often than not, pilots fight individually and cover their own asses.
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 Wingman / int_eb9b2a0e
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Ace Combat 2: John "Slash" Harvard and Kei "Edge" Nagase
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 Ace Combat 2 (Video Game)
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Ace Combat: Assault Horizon: José "Guts" Gutierrez
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 Ace Combat: Assault Horizon (Video Game)
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Revenge of the Sith: Anakin and Obi-Wan are Bash Brothers both in space and on foot during the film's Action Prologue, with Anakin saving Obi-Wan's life during the space battle. This is in contrast to how they try to kill each other after Anakin becomes Darth Vader.
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 Revenge of the Sith
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Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown: In Mage squadron — Clown, with the 444th squadron — Tabloid, and in Strider squadron — Lanza (temporarily), Skald (temporarily), Jaeger, Huxian, and Count. You also briefly fly with Wiseman of Cyclops squadron, and two members of Sol Squadron on your wing.
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The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 Wingman
processingCategory2
Military and Warfare Tropes
 Wingman
processingCategory2
Tropes on a Plane
 The Price of Flight (Fanfic) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Devotion (2022) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Star Carrier / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 The Unknown Soldier / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Video Game Caring Potential
processingUnknown
Wingman
 Area 88 (Manga) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Lovesick / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 TV Tropes Superhero Team / Sugar Wiki / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Ace Combat (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Battle Engine Aquila (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 G-Police (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Heatseeker (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Red Baron (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Tachyon: The Fringe (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Transformers: War for Cybertron (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 X-Wing (Video Game) / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman
 Wing Commander Academy / int_a1d927ea
type
Wingman