John Wayne & Janet Leigh Josef Von Sternberg's "Jet Pilot" 1953 theatrical trailer

Jet Pilot is a 1957 Cold War romantic comedy film starring John Wayne and Janet Leigh. Written by Jules Furthman, the Technicolor movie went through several directorial changes. Josef von Sternberg directed between October, 1949 and February, 1950. After that Jules Furthman, Philip Cochran (second unit director), Ed Killy (assistant), Byron Haskin (for the model work), and Don Siegel also directed scenes (Siegel's weren't used), as did Howard Hughes himself.

Filming dragged on for nearly four years. The last day of shooting was in May 1953, but the film was kept out of release by Howard Hughes' tinkering (something he was notorious for) until October 1957, by which time Hughes had sold RKO. Universal ended up distributing Jet Pilot.

Though the film was publicised as showcasing the U.S. Air Force's latest jets, by the time it was finally shown most of the aircraft in the film were obsolete and had been supplanted by more modern aircraft. In one aerial scene, the two lead characters fly a F-94 Starfire to test a radar approach to intercept a propeller driven B-36 bomber.

Jet Pilot was reportedly Howard Hughes's favorite film, one he watched repeatedly in his later years.