Airwolf

Supersonic helicopter ahead of it's time

The Airwolf series ran from 1984 through 1987. The program concerned a supersonic military helicopter, codenamed Airwolf, and her crew as they undertook various missions, many involving espionage, with a Cold War theme.

The show was devised by Donald Bellisario, who had also created Magnum, P.I., and would go on to produce Quantum Leap, JAG, and NCIS. The first three seasons starred Jan-Michael Vincent, Ernest Borgnine, Alex Cord, and Jean Bruce Scott.

The series's protagonist is Stringfellow Hawke (played by Jan-Michael Vincent), a loner who lives in a cabin in the mountains, only accompanied by his Bluetick Coonhound, "Tet", and the surrounding wildlife. Hawke is a recluse, spending most of his time alone with his priceless collection of paintings, and serenading eagles with his equally priceless Stradivarius cello. His only real friend and mentor is the older, eternally cheerful Dominic Santini (Ernest Borgnine).

Hawke was a testpilot for Airwolf, an advanced supersonic helicopter with stealth capabilities and a formidable arsenal. Hawke is called upon by a man codenamed Archangel-the leader of "the Firm" that built Airwolf-to steal Airwolf back from her twisted creator, Dr. Charles Henry Moffet, who had taken her to Libya.

Hawke, with Santini, finds the aircraft, but does not return it. Instead, they hide it in an extinct volcano (the Lair) in Monument Valley and occasionally fly it to carry out undercover missions for Uncle Sam, in exchange for assistance from the Firm in locating Hawke's lost brother, St. John Hawke, missing in action since the Vietnam War.

The mysterious organization known as "the Firm" (the "F.I.R.M." in season three), is a covert branch of the Central Intelligence Agency, led by Michael Coldsmith Briggs III (Deputy Director of The Firm; code-name: Archangel).

The series was dark, arc-driven, and quite reflective of the contemporary Cold War, with the Firm personnel distinctly dressed in white and boasting that "wearing white hats" distinguished them as good instead of evil to the unconvinced Hawke and Santini. Early episodes detail the efforts of United States government to secure Airwolf from Hawke.