Blue Thunder is a 1983 action thriller film directed by John Badham and starring Roy Scheider, Warren Oates, and Malcolm McDowell. The film follows Frank Murphy (Scheider), a veteran LAPD helicopter pilot who is tasked with testing and piloting a new high-tech helicopter called Blue Thunder.
The Blue Thunder chopper is equipped with advanced surveillance capabilities and armed with powerful weapons, making it the ultimate crime-fighting machine. However, as Murphy starts to fly the Blue Thunder, he learns that it has been built for more than just fighting crime and comes to suspect that it is intended for use in political cover-ups and violent repression.
Murphy's suspicions are intensified when he discovers that his new partner on the Blue Thunder project, Colonel F.E. Cochrane (Oates), is involved in a conspiracy to suppress dissent and stifle civil liberties. Things come to a head when Murphy is forced to confront his superiors and put his life on the line to prevent the Blue Thunder from being misused for destructive purposes.
Blue Thunder was praised for its exciting aerial sequences, strong performances, and social commentary on the potential dangers of state power and surveillance. It also spawned a short-lived TV series, which aired on ABC in 1984.