History Main / HighSpeedMissileDodge

** ''Film/TopGunMaverick'' has this happen as well. Special mention goes to [[spoiler: one of the enemy "Felon" pilots pulling off a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbst_maneuver Herbst maneuver]] to evade Maverick's missile during their escape in the climax]].

* The old Creator/{{Microprose}}'s simulator ''Gunship'' mentions [[AllThereInTheManual in the manual]] that it's possible to dodge a missile with a helicopter thanks to the large turning radius of the former but also that it's ''extremely'' difficult.

->''"Training for SAM launches up to this point had been more or less book learning, recommending a pull to an orthogonal flight path 4 seconds prior to missile impact to overshoot the missile and create sufficient miss distance to negate the effects of the detonating warhead. Well, it works. The hard part though, is to see the missile early enough to make all the mental calculations. "''

* Not content to merely [[DodgeTheBullet dodge this time]], when a rocket-propelled grenade is fired at [[Manga/{{Trigun}} Vash the Stampede]] he ''kicks it out of the way''.

* In ''Manga/{{Trigun}}'', Vash the Stampede goes the extra mile and actually deflects a rocket-propelled grenade by kicking it.

[[caption-width-right:350:Sure, [[VideoGame/MetalGear his]] missile didn't [[AccidentalInnuendo hit]] [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} her]], but at least he's got [[MsFanservice a fine]] [[MaleGaze view.]]]]

* A variation in the ''Literature/StarCarrier'' series. Missiles are actually [[SuperPersistentMissile pretty darn hard to shake]] (they're flown by {{AI}} and have a huge array of sensors to beat any ECM), so a dodge by itself doesn't work. Instead, you use the dodge to lead the missile to where you want it, then dump "sand"[[note]]granules of gravitically compressed lead[[/note]] and let the missile fly into it.

** In the Vietnam War, the usual SEAD strategy was as follows: Send a fighter bomber carrying special radar-detecting gear, cluster bombs, and radar-seeking missiles, to suspected SAM sites. Once the enemy locks onto them with their targeting radar, they'd lob off one of their missiles, [[RealityEnsues then spend the next little while frantically evading the missiles that the Vietnamese had launched as soon as they had gotten the aforementioned lock]]. The first generation of Wild Weasel planes ''didn't'' carry homing missiles, and had to try and actually find the radar site on the ground to bomb it, [[AirStrikeImpossible while the Vietnamese were trying to shoot them down the whole time]].

*** It's commonly thought (and was originally reported on this wiki) that the pilot mainly avoided the missiles using his ECM and countermeasures. However, [[http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArchive/Documents/2016/January%202016/0116packageq.pdf this article in the Air Force Magazine]] recounts that when Tulia returned to base, he discovered his countermeasures ''failed to deploy.'' He got through that storm of missiles ''through sheer piloting skill'' '''''alone.''''' What's more, Tulia did not have enough fuel at that point to gain airspeed to dodge the missiles properly and still return to base--he had to dodge those missiles using only "military power," that is, the maximum possible thrust from the engines without using afterburners.\\
\\

** The [=MiG-25=] "Foxbat" was fast enough to outrun the earlier versions of the Sidewinder heat-seeking missile. However, modern versions of the Sidewinder fly at speeds of Mach 4 (or ''faster''), outpacing the Foxbat's top speed of 2.5~2.8. The UsefulNotes/GulfWar demonstrated just how far [[TechMarchesOn Tech Marched On]], with American [=F-15s=] slaughtering Iraqi [=MiG-25s=] using that very missile type.

** ''Anime/MacrossFrontier'' episode 7 gives us [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnOws0VLg6k this]] clip, which provides examples of an attempted High Speed Missile Dodge, MacrossMissileMassacre, {{Roboteching}}, ThemeMusicPowerUp, {{BFG}}, [[AttackDrone Attack Drones]], a partial ColdSniper, TransformingMecha, [[RealRobot Real Robots]], [[SapientShip Sapient Ships]], HumongousMecha, AcePilot, VaporTrail (in space), and TheWarSequence. All in the space of three minutes.

** ''Anime/MacrossZero''

* Kagutsuchi of ''Anime/MaiHime'' when attacking Artemis.

* ''Anime/EurekaSeven''

* ''Manga/{{Area 88}}'' pilots attempt this frequently. It doesn't always work and the g-forces involved actually kill Mario in the manga.

* In ''Comicbook/BuckDanny'' the titular hero, being an ace pilote performs this a lot. Even the admiral in one of the book realize it's buck flying, due to the unknow plane dodging two missiles in a row.

* Justified in ''FanFic/AnEntryWithABang[=!=]'': the armour on ''{{TabletopGame/Battletech}}'' aerospace fighters means the blast fragmentation shrapnel and continuous rods from normal air-to-air missiles are much less effective. Contact-detonated shaped charges are mounted in replacement, so it's possible to evade the blasts. It is noted that the g-forces involved aren't healthy, though... and you can dodge one missile, maybe two, but [[MacrossMissileMassacre not a whole swarm of them.]]

* ''FanFic/WingsToFly'' has pilots employing countermeasures and the classic missile-avoidance maneuvers used by real pilots, and their own missiles, to deal with incoming missiles. In the last case it's demonstrated that this can also be done for missiles aimed at others.

* Done a few times in ''{{Film/Flight of the Intruder}}'', though, as [[spoiler: The Boxman]] demonstrates, you can only ''dodge'' the missile when you can ''see'' it to know which way to go. The film also nicely demonstrates the "near hit" reality of surface-to-air missiles, as the missile explodes a fair distance away from the plane in question, [[SplashDamage which is still destroyed by the blast.]]

* Inverted in a deleted scene from ''{{Film/Superman}}''. He tried to stop the Hackensack missile in mid-air, but the missile just flew past. It dodged ''him''. This scene led to the one in the theatrical cut where said missile is chased and sent into outer space before the second one hit San Andreas' Fault.

* According to the rules of the official ''{{Anime/Robotech}}'' RPG by Palladium (and other Palladium games with missiles), it is possible to dodge volleys of up to three missiles, but never more than four, allegedly because no one did it in the show; however, Max dodges a twenty-plus swarm from Miryia's FPA at least once in the actual show (of course, Max is the best pilot living to the point where it's explained as him being ''just that good'').

* In [[VideoGame/PlanetSide Planetside 2]], the [[FutureCopter tiltjet fighter-bombers]] are nimble enough that players can do this.
* It is possible to break the MissleLockOn of the Javelin missles in [[VideoGame/{{Battlefield4}} Battlefield 4]] if you time your bike jumps off of ramps or dunes correctly. [[https://youtu.be/gd0Lntuwl3U?t=5m36s Exa]] [[https://youtu.be/gd0Lntuwl3U?t=5m47s ple]].

* Contrary to what some battleship players may protest, it is entirely possible to dodge torpedoes in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarships.'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTPoWpYwuNg Here]] is just one (actually fairly mild) example with eight torpedoes. There's footage of players dodging entire ''torpedo curtains'' from higher-tier Japanese ships[[note]]Possible in RealLife, see below[[/note]].

** ''Anime/MacrossFrontier'' episode 7 gives us [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnOws0VLg6k this]] clip, which provides examples of an attempted High Speed Missile Dodge, MacrossMissileMassacre, {{Roboteching}}, ThemeMusicPowerUp, {{BFG}}, [[AttackDrone Attack Drones]], a partial ColdSniper, TransformingMecha, [[RealRobot Real Robots]], [[SapientShip Sapient Ships]], HumongousMecha, AcePilot, VaporTrail (InSpace), and TheWarSequence. All in the space of three minutes.

** In ''Anime/MacrossZero'', to show off the Valkyrie's rarely-used head cannons, Roy Focker uses an eye-tracking interface to shoot down dozens upon dozens of micro-missiles shot at him by his nemesis at almost point-blank range.
*** Lets not forget Shin Kudo, who managed to ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9pZSggOA28#t=28s dodge]]'' a similar swarm in a normal F-14 using pure badassery and skill (as well as plenty of tolerance for high-G maneuvers). On the other hand, he kinda had no other choice as the missiles mostly ignored his flares.

* Just about every time the Nirvash typeZERO mech is deployed in ''Anime/EurekaSeven'', it pulls off at least one of these, usually butchering several hapless KLF units in the process. In fact, most, if not all, of the openings also depict it.

* Ironhide dodges Decepticon missiles in the 2007 ''Film/{{Transformers}}'' LiveActionAdaptation.
** Could be the movie being true to the source material. Decepticons were pretty lousy shots.

* Subverted in the pilot miniseries for the re-imagined ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}''--though Boomer's Raptor and Apollo's Viper manage to avoid being directly hit by Cylon missiles, the subsequent explosions take both their ships offline, if not destroying them.
** Adama does seem to comment it's possible in his speech to Starbuck after she's injured and working out to get back in shape. He grounds her when she can't simulate holding the high-gee turn long enough.

* According to the rules of the official ''{{Anime/Robotech}}'' RPG by Palladium, it is possible to dodge volleys of up to three missiles, but never more than four, allegedly because no one did it in the show; however, Max dodges a twenty-plus swarm from Miryia's FPA at least once in the actual show (of course, Max is the best pilot living to the point where it's explained as him being ''just that good'').
** To be fair, that is the same chart used in every Palladium game with missiles. It was more a matter that Palladium didn't do their research.

* In ''VideoGame/EVEOnline'', the Interceptor class of ships are the fastest ships in the entire game. It's quite common for Interceptors to outrun missiles fired from other players. this has been repeatedly showcased and commented on in the annual tournaments between player alliances, where it's referred to as "Benny Hill-ing".
** With the speed nerf included in the ''Quantum Rise'' expansion, this is now harder, if not outright impossible, to pull off, making Defender anti-missile missiles the only reliable way to stop missiles from hitting you. [[Film/{{Downfall}} Hitler]], who bought an expensive high speed battleship and a whole set of speed boosting implants 3 weeks before the speed nerf, has all the reasons to pull out his [[http://youtu.be/XxqrFEjDswE usual rage]].
** At Alliance Tournament 6, a Vigil class frigate(arguably the fastest ship of its class and price range) pulls this off and escapes beyond the targeting range of enemy missile ships. The commentators, while cracking up, commented that they should bring their own Vigils to start a new kind of race, and at the end offered the Vigil pilot a bribe to self destruct his ship so that the next match can start in schedule. After this incident, the act of outrunning enemy fire with a cheap frigate(especially a Vigil) is being called "Vigil Racing."
** Or at least they would, if they ''[[UselessUsefulSpell worked]]''.
*** While ships cannot outrun missiles anymore, fast enough ships can still outrun the ''explosions'', reducing the damage caused. For the largest missile type, "fast enough ships" used to mean anything that moves.
* ''IndependenceWar'' '''demands''' this out of the player. If you cannot dodge countless homing missiles (that each do 20% damage) while dealing with the inertia inherent to a Newtonian flight model, you will DIE. At least the LDS inertia cancel trick in ''VideoGame/{{Independence War 2}}'' helps a lot by throwing off the missiles' lead compensation.

* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' players must master this before taking on the higher difficulty levels. Particularly fun when outnumbered five or ten to one. The enemy ''will'' do it too. It's not clear why the missiles act so oddly, as they can take out a tank with one "shack on the target" but need two to blow through a plane, at least in ''Shattered Skies''. [[LikeRealityUnlessNoted Strangereal is weird]].

* On the same note, ''[[VideoGame/{{HAWX}} H.A.W.X.]]'' also incorporates a lot of this, especially in "OFF" mode, where in order to shake missiles, the plane performs maneuvers that would more than likely paste the pilot.
** Also in the game, the player must fly through an ERS "Low-altitude" tunnel through a zone covered in SAM sites. While all the player sees is himself flying through the tunnel avoiding the missiles, some replays of the mission may show the pilot's craft zooming near ground level and outrunning or outflying six or seven [=SAMs=] locked on the player. So what LOOKS like a normal tunnel flight to the pilot seems like a high speed missile dodge to the observer.
*** There's also the almost constant chorus of "Missile evaded" and the also constant alarm that plays when there's a missile coming at you.

* Generally averted in the ''VideoGame/XWing'' series. Proton torpedoes and concussion missiles lock on to targets before firing, will swerve to match dodges, and have a proximity fuse. Still, it's possible to avoid a lock, and fancy enough moves can let a pilot survive.
** There's only three consistent methods to keep a locked on missile from hitting in the older ''X-Wing'' and ''TIE Fighter'' games: You can try to [[TimTaylorTechnology dump all power into the engines]] and pray you outrun it. If it was fired from far enough out, you can turn toward it and blast it out of the sky. Or you can do the sensible thing and use your chaff/flares, which is generally far more effective than either of the other options. Fancy flying sometimes works, but the lighter missiles are generally just as maneuverable as your craft, so don't count on it.
** I seem to recall the missiles' turning radii being fairly unimpressive. If you dodge the initial approach, you can usually get inside a "safe sphere" and shoot it down. Chaff/flares are for surviving several at once.

* The AS-Mothership map of ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'' features spacefighters with homing missiles as secondary armament. Dodging them is not especially hard: their tracking abilities are rather pathetic, merely flying directly at the missile on a narrow angle will do the job. Man-portable [=AVRiL=] missiles however are VERY hard to dodge: they automatically lead a moving target and are capable of pulling extremely sharp 180° turns. Either pull off a WronskiFeint or break line of sight with the launcher to make the missile lose guidance.

[[caption-width-right:350:Sure, [[VideoGame/MetalGear his]] missile didn't [[DoubleEntendre hit]] [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} her]], but at least he's got [[MsFanservice a fine]] [[MaleGaze view.]]]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Sure, [[VideoGame/MetalGear his]] missile didn't [[DoubleEntendre hit]] [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} her]], but at least he's got [[MsFanservice a fine]] [[MaleGaze view]]]].

[[caption-width-right:350:Sure, [[VideoGame/MetalGear his]] missile didn't hit [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} her]], but at least he's got [[MsFanservice a fine]] [[MaleGaze view]]]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Sure, [[VideoGame/MetalGear his]] missile didn't hit [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} her]], but at least he's got [[MsFanservice a fine view.]]]]

* Hotsuma of ''VideoGame/{{Shinobi}}'' not only dodges a missile matrix style, he uses [[EvilWeapon Akujiki]] two slice it in two, ''in mid-flip''. [[ArtisticLicensePhysics Said missile halves then explode]] as Hotsuma lands.

* A cycle of tales in the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' of Creator/AAPessimal deals with the [[BikerBabe Air Service]] of Ankh-Morpork. Initially a division of the City Watch staffed by Witch Police Constables, it evolves over the course of the tales (spanning two decades) into something like an efficient and combat-ready Air Force. Its test as an Air Force is in the fighting between Witches and Elves, which happens in the canonical novel ''Discworld/TheShepherdsCrown''. The Air War sees the whole of the Air Watch taking a "grandmother's funeral". All at once, to fight in Lancre. Vetinari permits this, and Sam Vimes has no choice other than to accept it. During the air fighting, one Witch, pursuded by an overwhelming number of Elves and dodging arrows and missiles being fired at her, has an epiphany born out of desperation: her Feegle air crewman, normally a navigator, craw-steps her briefly into "Feegle Space" [[note]]a parellel dimension used by the [=NacMacFeegle=] when "craw-stepping", ie taking their Witch out of this dimension and re-entering our world in a different place, which could be thousands of miles away by the direct route[[/note]]. The Feegle counts to "tetra" and brings her back in exactly the same place - except for the fact all the Elves have overshot and are now in front of her. Where she can fire back and get them from behind with a combination of crossbow bolts and air-to-air fireballs. This becomes a standard Air Service fighting tactic.

* A cycle of tales in the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' of Creator/AAPessimal deals with the [[BikerBabe Air Service]] of Ankh-Morpork. Initially a division of the City Watch staffed by Witch Police Constables, it evoplves over the course of the tales (spanning two decades) into something like an efficient and combat-ready Air Force. Its test as an Air Force is in the fighting between Witches and Elves, which happens in the canonical novel ''Discworld/TheShepherdsCrown''. the Air War sees the whole of the Air Watch taking a "grandmother's funeral". All at once, to fight in Lancre. Vetinari permits this, and Sam Vimes has no choice other than to accept it. During the air fighting, one Witch, pursuded by an overwhelming number of Elves and dodging arrows and missiles being fired at her, has an epiphany born out of desperation: her Feegle air crewman, normally a navigator, craw-steps her briefly into "Feegle Space" [[note]]a parellel dimension used by the [=NacMacFeegle=] when "craw-stepping", ie taking their Witch out of this dimension and re-entering our world in a different place, which could be thousands of miles away by the direct route[[/note]]. The Feegle counts to "tetra" and brings her back in exactly the same place - except for the fact all the Elves have overshot and are now in front of her. Where she can fire back and get them from behind with a combination of crossbow bolts and air-to-air fireballs. This becomes a standard Air Service fighting tactic.

** The SR-71 "Blackbird" was designed to not need an escort or any kind of defense, as it could fly so high and fast that any missile would run out of fuel before it caught it. Standard evasive action was simply to accelerate.
*** [[BadAssCreed "Though I fly through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil. For I am at 80,000 feet and climbing."]]

* This is a regular occurrence in the ''[[VideoGame/{{X}} X-Universe]]'' games, since missiles are often slower than the ships they're fired at. In fact, one of the most effective tactics in an OldSchoolDogfight is to use the missile as a ''distraction'' and make the kill with guns.

* Another Western example is ''VideoGame/{{Freelancer}}''. As soon as you hear [[DarthWiki/MostAnnoyingSound the loud beeping and your ship screaming "INCOMING MISSILE!"]], you know it's time to swerve with afterburners at max!

* ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe'': Gru does this when Vector launches a MacrossMissileMassacre at him. The missiles redirect and blow up Vector's house. [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome And then he]] [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments punches a shark]].

* In the 2008 ''Film/IronMan1'' film, during the saving of Golmera, the titular character narrowly avoids a missile fired from a tank by sidestepping it in the nick of time. In a SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome, Iron Man fires a smaller missile back at it, and [[UnflinchingWalk walks away as it explodes behind him]].

* Another Western example is ''VideoGame/{{Freelancer}}''. As soon as you hear [[MostAnnoyingSound the loud beeping and your ship screaming "INCOMING MISSILE!"]], you know it's time to swerve with afterburners at max!

A [[MacrossMissileMassacre swarm of seeking projectiles]] is flying right at a character, and they're almost certain to be rendered into a fine paste by the attack ... but through an extreme display of evasive maneuvers, the character escapes without the slightest scratch. Sometimes the dodging is merely swerving from side to side or taking sharp turns, sometimes it's done like in ''Anime/{{Macross}}'', where the pilot puts his [[TransformingMecha Valkyrie]] through aerial acrobatics that would logically cause [[InertialDampening massive G-forces]]. At other times, the pilot maneuvers so as to [[MisguidedMissile cause the missiles to hit each other and explode]], or supplements his evasive maneuvers with the use of some weapon to actually shoot down the missiles instead of being PointDefenseless (but merely being able to ''[[DestructibleProjectiles shoot]] [[ShootTheBullet down]]'' missiles doesn't make for a High Speed Missile Dodge).

** Part of the famed "Keyes Loop" maneuver involves dodging homing plasma torpedos and [[DeadlyDodging having them hit an enemy ship instead]]. The book emphasizes that Keyes came up with the maneuver out of desperation against a vastly superior force, and Keyes himself notes that he would have failed any student who suggested the idea to him in class.

* Hotsuma of ''VideoGame/{{Shinobi}}'' not only dodges a missile matrix style, he uses [[EvilWeapon Akujiki]] two slice it in two, ''in mid-flip''. [[YouFailPhysicsForever Said missile halves then explode]] as Hotsuma lands.

* Likewise, ''Franchise/DevilMayCry 3'' had Dante dodge a missile by bending over Neo-style...and then leaping atop it and ''surfing around the room on it'' before aiming it at a wall and jumping off.

[[caption-width-right:350:Sure, [[Franchise/MetalGear his]] missile didn't hit [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} her]], but at least he's got [[MsFanservice a fine view.]]]]