China's state broadcaster is facing questions after internet users spotted that footage in a report on air force manoeuvres in a national newscast was taken from the 1980s Hollywood film Top Gun.

China Central Television, or CCTV, aired the footage in a January 23 report on a People's Liberation Army Air Force training exercise, showing a plane firing a missile at another.

The second aircraft plane was destroyed in a fiery explosion and the dramatic footage was shown in between interviews with air force officers.

However, some internet users recognised the explosion from the dogfight in the final scene of the 1986 film Top Gun, starring Tom Cruise.

The Wall Street Journal posted a side-by-side video comparison of the CCTV news report and the Top Gun scene on its website, showing the two were identical.

A CCTV representative could not comment on the similarities, the Wall Street Journal said.

The Top Gun footage was aired a week after China vowed to step up its fight to protect intellectual property rights by targeting online piracy.

The original report was removed from the CCTV website after news that part of it had been lifted from the movie spread.

The gaffe has delighted many internet users who often express frustration about having to endure CCTV's propaganda-driven agenda.

"CCTV is the king of copycats," read one comment below a report posted on the video sharing website tudou.com.

- AFP