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In the film, the "Little Nellie" was a heavily armed autogyro that could be transported in several suitcases for quick field assembly. It is based on the real-life Wallis Autogyro, and was flown by its inventor Ken Wallis while filming. Its battle with helicopters proved to be difficult to film. The scenes were initially shot in Miyazaki, first with takes of the gyrocopter, with more than 85 take-offs, 5 hours of flight and Wallis nearly crashing onto the camera several times. A scene filming the helicopters from above created a major updraft and cameraman John Jordan had his foot decepated by the craft's rotor. Filming was interrupted. The concluding shots involved explosions, which the Japanese government did not allow in a national park. So, the crew moved to Torremolinos, Spain, which was found to resemble the Japanese landscape.

In Thunderball's intro, Bond escapes another sticky situation by flying away with a jetpack. The "Rocket Belt" was an actual working product developed by Bell Aircraft Corporation. It actually flew in the movie and many times before and after. Some of the most famous uses were during Superbowl I and the 1964-65 New York World's Fair.