History Main / FallingIntoTheCockpit

-->-- ''Anime/CodeGeass: The Abridged Series''

** Suzaku is the only soldier available to pilot the new Lancelot Knightmare Frame because he's at base recovering from [[OnlyAFleshWound a point-blank bullet wound]] while everyone else is out [[KickTheDog slaughtering civilians]]. It later turns out that he's the best match for the mecha. The dialog implies that Suzaku's aptitude was tested when he first enlisted, but since only native Britannians are allowed to pilot Knightmares his high marks meant bupkis. He does mention simulator training at one point.

** Lelouch is a close one. He's not amazing or anything, but he handles a Sutherland quite well on his first try, only briefly admitting that it's not as easy as it seems. He's had some minor training, using the test type Ganymede, but that didn't have even half of the features of the modern Sutherland, like the weapon/grappling cable, and the ''gun'', which he uses to great effect in his first deployment. Admittedly, he doesn't even remotely fall in, but he never gets actual training, either. And, to be perfectly blunt, Lelouch is still a pretty crappy pilot. He may be a notch above the common run of {{Mooks}}, but against trained pilots he's practically a Mook himself. His most impressive feats only happen because his personal machine was made specifically to play to his strengths; it doesn't fight with guns or swords like regular Knightmares, but instead uses a scattering laser weapon and BeehiveBarrier that have to be controlled manually, something only someone with Lelouch's intelligence and quick wits could accomplish.

** Downplayed with Luke in ''Film/ANewHope'', who had only piloted civilian craft before (with no indication he'd flown in space, only in atmosphere) ending up flying a starfighter at a decisive battle--though he was studying to enter the Space Academy, he had not yet attended it. The ExpandedUniverse elaborates that an X-Wing's controls aren't that different from the [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/T-16_skyhopper Incom T-16 Skyhopper]], the "crop duster"-type aircraft Luke has been flying that is seen parked in his garage in the film. (In the original trilogy novels, he's been grounded from it by his uncle for reckless flying, which was why he took the landspeeder when looking for R2. He is also seen playing with a model of it the first time he's talking to the two droids.) When he talks of "tagging womp rats", he's referring to aerial target practice. He is also endorsed by a friend who ''is'' a regular Rebel pilot.

** In ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsJudgment'', playing as Touya will have the unit you picked crash into a school building near him, complete with UnwantedHarem while Anime/MazingerZ and its female sidekick defend the school from enemies. It's also [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by Gai early on, who says that anyone that gets a mech that way is destined for greatness.

** Creator/WillSmith's character pilots the crashed UFO to dock with the mothership. Despite not knowing about aliens until two days prior, he defends himself as the best choice because he's "seen these things in action" and therefore knows of their maneuvering capabilities. But that's more experience than anybody else has, because he's the only member of his squadron to not only survive the first engagement but successfully force one down, so he gets the gig.

* ''Film/TheMatrix'':
** Played with in the first film, because when Trinity needs to fly a helicopter but doesn't know how to, she gets the knowledge uploaded to her brain in an instant.
** Played straight in ''Revolutions''. Captain Mifune is mortally wounded and tells Kid to take control of his APU and keep fighting. When Kid says he didn't complete the training program, Mifune smiles and says "neither did I".

* In keeping with its love of mecha tropes, ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'' does this as well--Nanoha comes into possession of [[SpellMyNameWithAnS Raging/Raising]] Heart completely by chance. The third season later implies that ''trained professionals'' with similar weapons don't even come close to what Nanoha managed to do immediately. They can't match her POWER, but as Chrono made clear, many likely outmatched her SKILL until she underwent her own brand of TrainingFromHell. The difference between latent-talent/power and hard-work practice/skill is one of the minor themes of the series.

* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders'': While the heroes are on a plane to Egypt, [[MonsterOfTheWeek the Stand Tower of Gray]] kills the pilot and sabotage the controls. Joseph Joestar steps up to land the plane, but his last experience piloting was with a propeller-plane before World War II and that ended in a plane crash. Thankfully, they are able to land safely near Hong Kong.

* The ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' episode "Valiant" is essentially a {{Deconstruction}} of the ''Franchise/StarWars''-style plot. An advanced warship on a training mission is caught behind enemy lines when its officers are killed. The surviving crew is a bunch of inexperienced but brave cadets, whose charismatic leader decides to try and destroy the Dominion's new super-battleship with an experimental technique. [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome They fail, their ship is blown up]], and then the Dominion plays SinkTheLifeboats with the escape pods.

* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders'': While the heroes are on a plane to Egypt, [[MonsterOfTheWeek the Stand Tower of Gray]] kills the pilot and sabotage the controls. Joseph Joestar steps up to land the plane, but his last experience piloting was with a propeller-plane before World War II and that ended in a plane crash. Thankfully, they are able to land safely near Hong Kong.

[[folder: Anime and Manga]]

[[folder: Comic Books]]

[[folder: FanWorks]]

* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
** Anakin Skywalker in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace''.
--->'''Anakin:''' Qui-Gon told me to [[ExactWords stay in this cockpit]], so that's what I'm gonna do!
** Downplayed with Luke in ''Film/ANewHope'', who had only piloted civilian craft before (with no indication he'd flown in space, only in atmosphere) ending up flying a starfighter at a decisive battle--though he was studying to enter the Space Academy, he had not yet attended it. The ExpandedUniverse elaborates that an X-Wing's controls aren't that different from the [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/T-16_skyhopper Incom T-16 Skyhopper]], the "crop duster"-type aircraft Luke has been flying that is seen parked in his garage in the film. (In the original trilogy novels, he's been grounded from it by his uncle for reckless flying, which was why he took the landspeeder when looking for R2. He is also seen playing with a model of it the first time he's talking to the two droids.) When he talks of "tagging womp rats", he's referring to aerial target practice. He is also endorsed by a friend who ''is'' a regular Rebel pilot.
--->'''Biggs:''' Sir, Luke's the best bush pilot in the outer-rim territories.
** In ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', Rey is able to pilot the ''Millennium Falcon'' to escape from two TIE fighters in a high-speed chase across the desert ScavengerWorld of Jakku. Admittedly, she does have some initial difficulty with handling the ship, and tends to scrape the ground a lot during maneuvers. She also has a couple of advantages, as her life as a scavenger and regular visitor of Niima Outpost has left her with a deep understanding of machines in general and the Falcon in particular, and the EU states that the crashed Imperial craft she made into her home had a working flght simulator. Also, the Force. She quickly gets the hang of it.
** Also, in the expanded universe, Maarek Stele (the player character of ''VideoGame/TIEFighter'') was originally a mechanic who was in a fighter (testing it), and happened to be in a position to save a high-ranking officer from attack.
** Anakin ''Solo'' gets to use the EmpathicWeapon variant, the hyperspace repulsors of Centerpoint Station. Are we sensing a pattern here?
* Spencer from ''Film/StarKid'' literally got shoved into the cockpit of the intelligent, armor plated, alien super suit Cy.
* In ''Film/FlightOfTheNavigator'', a little boy that had been TouchedByVorlons is recruited to pilot a UFO. Technically, the UFO only needs the starmap stored in the boy's brain, as its own navigational database was wiped by an electrical shock.

* In ''Film/SnakesOnAPlane'', Troy is the one with the most experience to land the plane - [[IKnowMortalKombat through video games]]. Thankfully, he gets some help from air traffic control.

* In ''Film/TheLastStarfighter'', Alex is EverybodysDeadDave coerced into piloting the last fighting starship in the peace-loving part of the universe. The videogame/recruiting device counts as a training simulator to a certain extent: he's already familiar with the controls and with the enemy ships he's engaging, and he was selected precisely ''because'' he was the best player on Earth at a game designed deliberately to prepare him for the experience.

** Played straight in Revolutions. Captain Mifune is mortally wounded and tells Kid to take control of his APU and keep fighting. When Kid says he didn't complete the training program, Mifune smiles and says "neither did I".

* In ''Film/LazerTeam'', a RagtagBunchOfMisfits ends up accidentally shooting down a UFO, which is on the way to deliver a suit of PoweredArmor to the [[ChosenOne Champion of Earth]], who has been trained from birth to use it. The four guys end up with different pieces of the suit, which bond to them and refuse to be taken off. Each piece has its own abilities, but they're meant to be used together in order to unlock the suit's true potential.
* ''Film/TheHuntForRedOctober'': Jack Ryan, a former Marine-turned-CIA analyst[[note]]"former Marine" to the extent that he was a Marine option at the Naval Academy, but was crippled by a chopper crash and completed school from the hospital before being medically discharged after graduating[[/note]], is briefly placed at the helm of the ''Red October'', an ''Akula''/''Typhoon''-class ballistic missile submarine, during some HotSubOnSubAction because there's less than a dozen people still aboard after Captain Ramius tricked his crew into abandoning ship.

* The ''Literature/{{Temeraire}}'' series has Captain Lawrence in a similar situation with a dragon, minus the initial battle. He captured a French warship that was carrying a dragon egg, it hatched before he could reached port, and he ended up bonding to one of the rarest and most valuable dragons in the world. He fits the "staying in the cockpit" part of the trope, though; not only is he forced to leave the Navy for the Aerial Corps, a lot of the conflict is derived from various authority figures trying to get Temeraire to let someone else be his partner.
* ''May Day'' has a light aircraft pilot attempting to fly a damaged supersonic airliner after an accidental missile strike. With most of the passengers in a [[FromBadToWorse near-zombie state]] due to oxygen deprivation.
* Happens literally to Ford in ''Literature/MostlyHarmless'', after he jumps off a skyscraper to see what happens.

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

** In the premiere episode of the original ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' Trini and Billy [[LampshadeHanging comment]] on how piloting their Zords comes naturally to them.

* Played for laughs in a ''Series/GilligansIsland'' episode where Gilligan attempts an escape from the island using a UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Japanese mini-sub. Although he has small-craft handling experience, Gilligan spends a good deal of time circling around the lagoon because the controls of the submarine were unfamiliar to him and labeled in Japanese. Specifically, he blames the compass, but [[FridgeLogic a compass will still point toward magnetic north no matter what language the card is printed in]].
* Deconstructed in a ''Series/BuckRogersInTheTwentyFifthCentury'' episode where a teenager steals a SpaceFighter but quickly ends up in over his head and unable to return to base. Buck talks him through the procedure and compliments him on getting that far...[[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome then turns the kid over to his parents for punishment]].
* The PilotMovie of ''{{Series/JAG}}'' plays with this trope. Harm was a Tomcat driver before he was a Navy lawyer, but was forced to change careers due to an undiagnosed eye problem that resulted in a plane crash. He [[BackInTheSaddle goes for a ride-along]] during a combat recon mission. The pilot is wounded, and Harm has to take the stick. Unusually for the trope, Harm doesn't have to deal with any bad guys, but he has his hands full with an in-flight emergency and [[ComingInHot landing a complicated aircraft he hasn't been in for five years.]]
* In ''Series/RedDwarf'', Lister and Rimmer, essentially the ship's janitors and unskilled odd-job men at the very bottom of the Space Corps ladder, find themselves - by default - in charge of a city-sized mining ship and all the technology it has at its disposal. As EverybodysDeadDave, men who previously only unclogged blocked nozzles in the chicken soup dispensers are now in the captain's chair.

[[folder: Tabletop Games]]
* In the ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' comic ''Titan'', Princepts cadet Hekate is thrust into commanding the massive Warlord Titan Imperious Dictatio when the previous Princeps he was assigned to observe unexpectedly dies in the middle of a battle.

* Mechanically supported in the ''[=CAMELOT=] Trigger'' setting for ''[[{{UsefulNotes/Fate}} Fate Core]]'', where a knight's [[HumongousMecha "armour"]] can be equipped with skills its pilot may not actually have and thus characters less laser-focused on being primarily career combatants can still contribute just fine in action at least as long as those systems don't get knocked out. On the other hand it's also entirely possible to have AceCustom designs that invest the same space into stunts meant to build on and enhance the pilot's existing skills instead and thus include few if any such integrated skill packages; ''those'' will consequently turn out [[SubvertedTrope that much less newbie-friendly in unqualified hands]].

[[folder: Video Games]]

** Dingo Egret is actually an experienced pilot by the time he finds Jehuty. Dingo however was asked if he would like a refresher VR training program since it was several years since he piloted a military grade frame (He was using [[MechaMook civilian LEVs ]]until he found Jehuty)
* Played straight in the rare, yet extremely enjoyable 'Mech sections of ''[[VideoGame/FirstEncounterAssaultRecon FEAR 2]]''. A possible [[LampshadeHanging Lampshade]] in that the manual specifies that only a highly trained 'Mech pilot should even think about touching the controls. Michael Beckett is the furthest thing from a pilot. Michael Beckett in a 'Mech is all but unstoppable.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}'', [[TraumaInducedAmnesia Amnesiac]] Hero Fei stumbles into the cockpit of a downed mech when his DoomedHometown gets caught in the crossfire. Fortunately, he was a skilled pilot before losing his memory. Unfortunately, his forgotten self [[EnemyWithin isn't a very nice guy]]. And by [[ThePlan purest coincidence]], the mech he happens to crawl into is a special kind that only he can unlock the true potential of. [[spoiler: He ends up accidentally wiping out what's left of the town, and the surviving villagers [[DeconstructedTrope blame him for trying to use the thing when he didn't know how]], causing Fei to stop using the mech out of disgust until a few scenes later.]]
* The concept is used in the video game ''VideoGame/SteelBattalion'', where your character is told he will have many months of simulator training before being allowed near the cockpit of a VT. True to form, the enemy attack, the character gets in the cockpit with the manual (the game is trying to tell you to do the same) and begins mission number 0. Actually [[NintendoHard much harder]] than [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Amuro]] makes it look...
* In the US version ''VideoGame/BlasterMaster'', the hero Jason is some kid who just finds a vehicle in a cave. Becomes somewhat justified in ''Zero'', where Jason is noted to be a robotics expert.
* In ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheUnwoundFuture'', the professor must do this at the end.
* A variation occurs in ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar''. Archer ''is'' a trained pilot...more or less. He's been through flight school, anyway, he just...hasn't completed his qualifications training yet when his base comes under attack and he climbs into a spare fighter. He ends up being a member of Wardog ([[spoiler: later Razgriz]]) squadron, ''the'' most accomplished aces in the game.
* ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'':
** Technically, most of your NPC crew. The game starts with Shepard bugging out as the Reapers invade Earth, with everyone aboard the Alliance-impounded Normandy forced to come along for the ride. They're all professionals in one field or another (Anderson was planning to use the ship as his mobile command center), so they make the best of it. Shuttle pilot Steve Cortez is officially your logistics guy, and shares armory duty with Vega - you're just lucky he's ''also'' a damn good pilot. Considering Vega's piloting skills include crashing into other shuttles - deliberately as a case of RammingAlwaysWorks and after Shepard furiously demands that someone take the enemy shuttle down, admittedly - you're lucky to have Cortez. Samantha Traynor, the CommunicationsOfficer, was actually working in R&D, but, like Cortez, she ended up being put into the job and was good at it.
** Subverted with the actual ship cockpit itself, as the two [=NPC=]s that do occupy that area are a fully trained and qualified pilot who has been flying the ''Normandy-[=SR2=]'' since it first launched (Joker) or the ship's computer in an android body ([=EDI=]).
* This happens to the Federation players in ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline''. On your first Voyage, you get attacked by a Klingon fleet. The captain has you run minor tasks, so he can get himself captured and executed, but not before promoting you to the captain. You then proceed to annihilate the attacking fleet with just a bit of help.
* ''VideoGame/TheWarOfEustrath'':
** Powerful [[HumongousMecha GEARs]] have their own persona and are able to choose to their rider. When country girl finds herself drawn into an enemy base by the GEAR Tianerx she hides in Tianerx to avoid detection by the Kradionese soldiers she synchronizes with Tianerx and ends up becoming its pilot. In time she develops into one of the game's best characters.
** In the same game Robin ends up piloting Zeeyown similarly. Even though Zeeyown doesn't have its own persona, Robin has an ability that allows him to communicate directly with the elemental forces that drive [=GEARs=]. Even though his decision to pilot Zeeyown onto the battlefield was intentional he ends up in the cockpit in the first place because the elements respond to his desire to help Tiana.
* ''VideoGame/FarCry3'': A character who has only recently qualified as a fixed wing plane pilot has to fly a helicopter with no preparation, while being shot at. It is said that any landing you can walk away from is a good landing, and that if you can use the plane again it's a bonus. He gets the bonus.
* Downplayed in ''VideoGame/Titanfall2''. While the player character was not an officially trained Titan pilot, by the time they end up with their own Titan they've received ''unofficial'' training from their mentor, Captain Lastimosa. Unfortunately, that training ended 30 seconds before you got to use an actual simulated titan, so it was mostly just jumping.

[[folder: Web Original]]
* Downplayed and deconstructed in ''WebAnimation/GenLock'': Because only one in a million people is gen:LOCK compatible and said program is more or less the Polity's last hope to stop the Union's advance, the new recruits are sent into combat with only minimal training. And while Kazu and Valentina manage to hold their own pretty well, the seventeen-year old Cammie[[note]] who, unlike the other two, has no previous combat experience[[/note]] is [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome still struggeling to perform even basic maneuvers]], cannot bring herself to shoot enemy infantry and almost [[FriendOrFoe mistakes one of her comrades for the enemy]]. And then [[EvilCounterpart Nemesis]] shows up...

-->'''Sarge:''' You do know how to land this, right?
-->'''Grif:''' Sure. That just means "stop flying", right?
-->'''Sarge:''' ''Brace for impact!''
* As part of the work's parody of SuperRobot anime, Moeko of ''Literature/HyperFightingMachineMarmalade'' literally falls into the cockpit of the eponymous mecha, thereby forcing her to pilot it even though she is not suited for the job at all.

[[folder: Western Animation]]

** Played with. Coop finds the Megas in a junkyard after it's flung into the past and becomes the hero and pilot... but only because the cockpit was beyond repair to the point where Coop rebuilt it out of a CoolCar and several [[IKnowMortalKombat jury-rigged video game systems]], which means that Coop is literally the only one who can pilot it.

* ''Animation/CubixRobotsForEveryone'': In the first season finale, four of the Doctor K's five personal mechs are revealed to have cockpits and manual overrides (up til then, they just followed his orders). The kid heroes end up piloting them when they sneak into his base to [[spoiler: retrieve the damaged Cubix.]] This comes in very handy when K [[spoiler: ''transforms the entire base'' into the skyscraper-sized Kulminator.]]
* This is how Taz ends up piloting a space shuttle to save earth from a meteor swarm in the ''WesternAnimation/TazMania'' episode "Astro-Taz". Of course, he thinks it's just a video game.

[[folder: Real Life]]

* The ''Mazinger'' series:
** ''Anime/MazingerZ'': The first HumongousMecha anime used this trope showed it [[UnbuiltTrope in a more realistic way than later shows]]. Kouji Kabuto, the first HumongousMecha pilot, knew absolutely nothing about piloting a giant robot — or any manner of robot, really — and in the first few episodes [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome it shows]]. Mazinger went on a rampage the first time he activated it because he kept punching random buttons as he tried to learn controling the damned thing (in the original manga he almost destroyed one whole city; and in the anime he almost gets his little brother killed), and he got beaten in his first battles. Sayaka and her father did their best to teach him quickly, but until then he only survived due to Mazinger's impressive weaponry and sturdy body armor... and Kouji soon revealed he was a quick-thinker that could come up with new strategies on the fly.
** It was subverted with Sayaka, who was taught to pilot Aphrodita A.
** And averted by Tetsuya and Jun from ''Anime/GreatMazinger'', that were trained for years.
** On the other hand, Duke -and Hikaru- from ''Anime/UFORoboGrendizer'' play it straight. Maria, on the other hand, was trained to pilot the [[MidSeasonUpgrade Drill Spacer]].
** On the other hand, Kouji avoided the trope twice: Kouji tried to pilot Grendizer once during an emergency, and he was unable. He stated the controls were too complicated to him. In another occasion he got to pilot Great Mazinger, and he was worried he wouldn't know how to pilot it. Fortunately, Great Mazinger's controls were pretty similar to the original's, and by that point he had several years of experience.
** It happens again in ''Anime/{{Mazinkaiser}}'' - when Kouji finds and takes up the titular mecha, it goes on a rampage. It isn't until episode four that Kouji's actually shown controlling it without it falling on its ass.

* ''Anime/KotetsuJeeg'' subverts it: Since Hiroshi transforms into Jeeg, he did not need prior training.
* ''Anime/{{Raideen}}'' subverts the trope. Raideen was a sentient mecha that led Akira into his cockpit by telepathy. When Akira woke up from his trance and saw he was inside a HumongousMecha and surrounded by monsters, the first thing he did was to scream: "LET ME OUT OF HERE!". Raideen calmed him down stating he could read minds, so the only thing Akira needed to do was think about what he wanted Raideen to do.
* The ''Anime/RobotRomanceTrilogy'':
** ''Anime/CombattlerV'' played it straight with the main characters. The first time they deployed Combattler, they handled it reasonably well in spite of Chizuru being the only pilot who had been trained. It was justified later: there is a computer built into each one of their helmets, and it helps them to pilot it. And it was deconstructed, too. In one episode, a child sneaked into the cockpit, thinking he could use Hyoma's helmet to drive Combattler. As a matter of fact, he could not, and he almost got himself, and everyone else, killed.
** It was apparently played straight but quickly subverted in ''Anime/VoltesV'': When the Voltes team was roughly shoved into their vehicles, Kenichi protested they didn't know how to drive them. Then his mother reminded him flatly that they ''had'' been trained to pilot aircraft.
** ''Anime/{{Daimos}}'' justified the trope: Kazuya was a space pilot but nobody had taught him to pilot Daimos before shoving him into the cockpit. However, his MotionCaptureMecha was piloted through a mental interface, allowing him to pilot it and use his martial arts to fight (and still in the first battle he needed to be informed of the weapons of Daimos).
* ''Anime/{{Zambot3}}'' justifies it: Kappei gets roughly shoved into the cockpit of Zambot Ace by his grandparents and big brother. Before he can ask "What the heck am I supposed to do now?" he realizes he just ''knows'' how handling it... and his family informs him they taught him to pilot it through SleepLearning.

* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'':
** Shinji Ikari. Initially, he refuses to pilot it owing to his sense of self-survival, but agrees once he sees that Rei is in no condition to even [[YouCanBarelyStand stand on her own]]. Of course with no training, combat experience or even a clue where the power button is, Shinji basically gets his ass kicked in his first Angel fight until his Eva takes over and beats it up. (However, given the nature of what Evangelions are, it wasn't a matter of luck that Shinji was designated a pilot.)
** Averted with the other pilots. Asuka was selected from age six and trained for years to earn her title. Rei was literally ''built'' to pilot the Evangelion. Kaworu's pretty much perfect for the job. If only he [[spoiler:weren't an Angel]]. And Mari? She's just nuts.
* Akito Tenkawa in ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico''. He was trying to run for it and the mecha was a handy getaway vehicle; everyone else thought he was volunteering to draw the enemy's attention.
** Also, being a machinery operator back on Mars meant that he still had an active implant for controlling vehicles, and luckily for him the mecha in the setting use the same interface that everything else appears to be standardized on. Otherwise the mecha would not have even started up for him.
* Renton in ''Anime/EurekaSeven'' ends up almost literally falling into the cockpit of the Nirvash typeZERO while delivering a crucial part to it. He then proceeds to unlock its true potential and earn his place as co-pilot. Although really, the cockpit falls on Renton (the Nirvash crashes into his house) before he takes the leap that puts him in the driver's seat. He also does jack squat for quite some time. His first solo sortie in the Nirvash is in episode 15.
* A variant of this trope is used in ''Literature/FullMetalPanic'': Sousuke is already a highly skilled HumongousMecha pilot when he is forced to pilot the experimental BlackBox Arbalest mecha, though he does return to using his normal mech type for a bit eventually he is forced into becoming the Arbalest's designated driver when it turns out the machine's AI calibrated itself to him and can't be reset.

* ''Anime/CodeGeass'':
** Suzaku is the only soldier available to pilot the new Lancelot Knightmare Frame because he's at base recovering from [[OnlyAFleshWound a point-blank bullet wound]] while everyone else is out [[KickTheDog slaughtering civilians]]. It later turns out that he's the best match for the mecha. The dialog implies that Suzaku's aptitude was tested when he first enlisted, but since only native Britannians are allowed to pilot Knightmares his high marks meant bupkis. He does mention simulator training at one point.
** An oft-overlooked example are the Japanese rebels; it's overtly stated that, until a certain point in the series, they don't have any Knightmare Frames of their own, only ones that they've stolen from the Britannians. Given how large the things are, what opportunity would they have had to practice with them enough to be good enough to go toe-to-toe with the military? Particularly JustForFun/{{egregious}} in Kallen's case, since her group operate in a city; at least the JLF could conceivably have found a quiet patch of countryside. Not only that, but she later manages to master the new [=KFs=] sent to the Black Knights by Kyouto and Rakshata with extraordinary speed and ease... Her group does manage to get hold of a single Glasgow - the older military-use KMF type - and apparently they all try it out. Kallen, of course, is the best, and gets to pilot it in their operation.
** Lelouch is a close one. He's not amazing or anything, but he handles a Sutherland quite well on his first try, only briefly admitting that it's not as easy as it seems. He's had some minor training, using the test type Ganymede, but that didn't have even half of the features of the modern Sutherland, like the weapon/grappling cable, and the ''gun'', which he uses to great effect in his first deployment. Admittedly, he doesn't even remotely fall in, but he never gets actual training, either. And, to be perfectly blunt, Lelouch is still a pretty crappy pilot. He may be a notch above the common run of {{Mooks}}, but against trained pilots he's practically a Mook himself. His most impressive feats only happen because his personal machine was made specifically to play to his strengths; it doesn't fight with guns or swords like regular Knightmares, but instead uses a scattering laser weapon and BeehiveBarrier that have to be controlled manually, something only someone with Lelouch's intelligence and quick wits could accomplish.
* ''Franchise/{{Zoids}}'':
** The main protagonist in ''Anime/ZoidsNewCentury'' (the first series broadcast in America) Bit Cloud fits this trope to a T. Not only is he thrust into piloting the Liger Zero in the first episode, with no piloting experience beforehand, but the Liger also refuses to allow anyone else to pilot it.
** In ''Anime/ZoidsChaoticCentury'', the first series in Japan and the UK, Van comes across an abandoned Shield Liger in the desert, but would not have been able to pilot it were it not for [[RobotBuddy his robot companion]] [[MacGuffin Zeke's]] help. Unlike many examples of this trope, he keeps piloting it not because others make him, or because only he can, but because the [[HumongousMecha Zoid]] belongs to him, having previously been abandoned.
** In ''Anime/ZoidsGenesis'', a shockwave causes protagonist Ruuji Familon to LITERALLY fall into the Murasame Liger's cockpit when he first pilots it. Ruuji continues to pilot the Liger to save his village and to eventually seek out a generator mechanic.
* ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'':
** Simon ends up having to pilot the Lagann almost immediately after he finds it, despite his protests. Fortunately for him, it's an EmpathicWeapon of sorts. And '''''[[HotBlooded HOT BLOOD]]''''' accomplishes everything in TTGL.
** ''ALL'' HotBlooded characters end up being able to pilot a Gunman eventually, usually after only a little bit of fumbling. Rossiu manages to learn in the brief time he's in Gurren's cockpit and Kamina's away during the HotSpringsEpisode.
** Gunmen are explicitly stated to have ridiculously intuitive controls. It's said that one just has to "do what feels natural" and the machine practically pilots itself, which does provide some [[JustifiedTrope Justification]].

* Ayato from ''Anime/RahXephon'' has this happen.[[spoiler:Sort-of. He thinks he's an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent, but the mech was actually made for him and he was guided to it mid-battle on purpose.]]
* Hibiki Tokai in ''Anime/{{Vandread}}'' is a partial subversion: He was trying to steal the mecha in the first place. Also he made his mech at the Factory, and knows which part is what so he knows, in theory, how to pilot it.
* Hokuto and Ginga come near the eponymous mecha of ''Anime/GearFighterDendoh'' during an enemy attack, while the assigned pilots are still on their way; predictably, they end up inside. In fact, the mech itself picks them up and deposits them in the cockpit... At which point, showing more common sense than most other mecha pilots, [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere they use it to escape]], and have to be ''tricked'' into fighting.
* ''Anime/StrainStrategicArmoredInfantry'' also features Sara Werec, another trained field mecha pilot, getting into an experimental machine in the middle of a battle. Her ''superiors'' have no idea that she's ever piloted a Strain before.
* In ''[[Anime/SuperDimensionCenturyOrguss Orguss 02]]'', HumongousMecha mechanic Lean is forced to pilot in order to escape an ambush of the cargo plane he was in. This trope is subverted in the following episode; he's brought into the organization that pilots Decimators, but told flat-out that only the best of the best are even considered as pilots. He does fall back in in the last episodes, where he's the best pilot available to stop an OmnicidalManiac -- even though he's ''blind'' at the time...
* ''Anime/FafnerInTheAzureDeadAggressor'' is a perfect example of this. In the first episode Kazuki has to pilot Fafner despite the fact that up to that point he was not even aware that such a mecha existed. It's later [[JustifiedTrope explained]] that he was made (literally) to pilot the mecha, along with the rest of his generation.
* In ''Anime/DualParallelTroubleAdventure,'' Kazuki Yotsuga only climbed into that mecha cockpit to rescue its injured pilot... then it slammed shut on him, and he had no other choice...
* Subverted in ''Anime/FangOfTheSunDougram'' - the good guys take the protagonist to their secret base where they keep the eponymous HumongousMecha and offer to let him pilot it. Suddenly, enemies attack, and just as our hero gets ready to invoke this trope, the Dougram is snatched away by a cargo helicopter.

* Subverted in ''Manga/PilotCandidate''. In very first episode main hero of series finds 5 most powerful mechas during a battle and literally falls into the cockpit of one of them. Yet, even when MECH ITSELF was asking him to pilot it and join the battle, he refused because he didn't know anything about piloting.
* In ''Anime/ZettaiMutekiRaijinOh''. [[TheHero Jin]], [[TheLancer Asuka]], and [[TheHeart Kouji]] [[spoiler:(and later [[TheHeart Maria]], but only through remote control)]] become mech pilots only because they happened to be there when the Mech's previous owner was dying. Then it's played literally as OnceAnEpisode, during the school's massive TransformationSequence, the said pilots are literally ''thrown'' into the cockpit before launch.
* ''Manga/BrokenBlade'': Averted. Rygart was a gifted student in the military academy who couldn't operate a golem because he is an Unsorcerer; he suddenly has to pilot an ancient Golem he can use.
* Keita Aono from ''Anime/{{Betterman}}''. Not only fits the trope to a T; he almost literally falls into the cockpit of the mecha, and happens to be a Dual Type, able to pilot it.
* Seina Yamada of ''Anime/TenchiMuyoGXP'' is actually ''tossed'' into the cockpit, mostly because the people who did so realized the ''god'' (the machine he was tossed into) had chosen him. And mostly because he accidentally dragged a bunch of pirates in with him and they wanted him to get rid of them.
* In ''Anime/IdolmasterXenoglossia'', Haruka Amami falls into an iDOL's open cockpit after being tossed high into the air by the same iDOL. Later we find that Haruka had passed a blind test on her aptitude as a potential iDOL Master, however, even the ones who set up the test were surprised that the iDOL had a seemingly arbitrary attraction to Haruka, when it had not even respond to a trained and experienced Master.
* Non-mecha example: in ''Anime/FutureGPXCyberFormula'', during a delivery of Asurada GSX to the Fujioka circuit, the machine is attacked, and Hayato Kazami ends up driving it to get out of the mess. Unfortunately, Asurada locks Hayato's driving data, so he has to enter the Fujioka race since Sugo's present driver can't even get the GSX to move and he quit the team because of that.
* The first experience of piloting [[SuperRobot Gaiking]] that [[IdiotHero Daiya]] has in ''Anime/GaikingLegendOfDaikuMaryu'' s initiated by {{Robeast}} Daiku Maryu ''eating him''. The head then detached and flew off, [[CombiningMecha combining with head and leg parts]] to form Gaiking, the Daiku Maryu's head forming the torso and head, with the cockpit inside, where Daiya had been "eaten" into. [[JustifiedTrope It's explained that]] Daiya's the only one who can pilot the thing in any case, since Gaiking will only respond to his signature [[AppliedPhlebotinum Flame Energy]].
* Zigzagged like crazy in ''Anime/BuddyComplex''. After being hurled into the future, the lead character finds himself inside the cockpit of an experimental mecha, during an armed attack. That particular mecha was designed to synchronize the two brain patterns of the designated pilot and the AcePilot. The entire series is spent training him how to both pilot the mecha and "couple" with the ace.

* Subverted in ''Anime/DarlingInTheFranxx''. Hiro was a piloting prodigy, but washed out of the Parasite program due to an inability to properly synchronize with his co-pilot. When he does fall in with a partner he can synchronize with, he still only has basic skills and it takes a few sorties for him to live up to her potential - and he only gets that opportunity due to ending up less dead than said co-pilots previous partners.

--->'''Shinji''': Um, Asuka, how do you know how to pilot one of these things? You didn’t this morning!\\
'''Asuka''': And I’ve had a whole morning to learn. Relax, Third, I know this beautiful beast inside and out. They’ve got some awesome learning gear around here. I’ve already had the full basic piloting and technical course zapped into my head.
** She also lampshades the trope when Shinji and she talk about Shinji’s first time piloting:
--->'''Shinji''': Wait, I don’t know anything about how to drive one of these things!\\
'''Asuka''': And you didn’t know anything about how to pilot an Evangelion when you tore apart the third Angel. Since when has not knowing anything slowed you down?
* ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'' has Harry pilot a Quinjet, evading missiles, and does pretty damn well. Aside from it not being real, just being a simulation to see how he handles himself, it is explained as a mixture of Harry's raw talent in flying, and the fact that per WordOfGod, aircraft are actually surprisingly easy to fly... once they're actually in the air. Take off and landing are a very different story.
* ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'': When Matarael and its spawn came along and invaded the city Shinji was dragged along to the Evangelion Unit 01 and ordered to pilot it. Later he describes the episode to Asuka and she is flabbergasted -since he piloted an Eva without prior training - and horrified - since nobody informed him of the risks (most people die or go mad when they try to pilot one).

* ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'': A hilarious example. In chapter 2 Asuka wants to drive a car for first time in spite of she has never got driving lessons. Shinji thinks it is not a good idea, but she argues if she is able to drive a HumongousMecha, she is able to drive a car. Shortly after she finds out that... nope. She is not able. At least she did not crash the car and them...
* In the first FanFic/MarissaPicard fanfic, ''Enterprized'', the kids' shuttle pilot (named [[RedShirt Ensign Throwaway]]) dies, leaving the kids to pilot the shuttle to safety. The kid chosen to take the controls was the one who had the most experience with the shuttle simulator, which is kind of like selecting your pilot based on who's played Microsoft Flight Simulator the most. Later fanfics have the Kids Crew taking over for entire incapacitated ''starship crews.''
* Discussed and ultimately averted ''Fanfic/{{Origins}}'', a ''Franchise/MassEffect''[=/=]''Franchise/StarWars''[[spoiler:[=/=]''[=Borderlands=]''[=/=]''[=Halo=]'']] MassiveMultiplayerCrossover. The younger Maya (ItMakesSenseInContext) ''wants'' to do this, but neither [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Admiral Nimitz]] nor [[CoolBigSis Samantha Shepard]] are about to stick an inexperienced youngster into an advanced starfighter without at least some semblance of training lest her first time out become a SuicideMission. By the time she's allowed to pilot a SpaceFighter, she's already trained properly.
* Parodied in "[[https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/nge-father-knows-best.375333/#post-20744330 NGE: Father Knows Best]]". During an Angel attack, Gendo tells that Shinji is capable to pilot Unit-01. Assuming that Shinji must be trained, everyone ask him to pilot. When they realize that Shinji has no idea what he's doing and they sent out a rookie, everyone wants to punch Gendo.
-->“He doesn't know what he's doing!” She spins on Ikari, pushing past Akagi. “You said he was trained!”\\
“I said he had potential, not training.” Gendo smirks. “This will take care of itself.”
* Suzaku in ''FanFic/MyMirrorSwordAndShield'' becomes the Lancelot’s pilot while trying to escape the Battle of Shinjuku due to the death of the original test pilot. While he was given a choice to leave, he decides to fight for Lelouch by returning to the Britannian army. Along with [[BeginnersLuck his natural talent,]] Suzaku had two things on his side: [[IKnowMortalKombat years of playing Knightmare simulators ]]and being [[KidFromTheFuture the future adoptive son]] or the Lancelot’s creator.
* ''Fanfic/DoingItRightThisTime'' makes a point of averting this trope: Since Unit-00 didn't go berserk during the activation test and Rei was able to deal with the Third Angel, Shinji doesn't have to be thrown into battle with no training out of desperation and his first day in Tokyo-3 is taken up by getting some proper training. [[PeggySue Not that he really needs it]], but Misato doesn't know that. [[spoiler:At first.]]

** This is more or less how Ziggy becomes Ranger Green in ''Series/PowerRangersRPM''. He was in charge of finding a suitable candidate for the role; unfortunately, the only decent one turned out to be the DarkChick out to give the morpher to [[BigBad Venjix]]. Ziggy activates the morpher to prevent it from falling into enemy hands...and immediately wishes he hadn't. It takes him quite some time to even barely improve, with much of his battles -- morphed and unmorphed -- being very one-sided in the enemy's favor.

*** Eri/Suletta replaces Uso as the youngest pilot to fall into the cockpit of a Gundam, doing so at the age of ''four''. Admittedly, her mother did most of the piloting as they evacuated their home colony, but the little girl turns out to have amazing compatibility with the system and destroys three mobile suits with the Gundam's AttackDrones while [[AchievementsInIgnorance marveling at all the pretty lights on the screen]], considerably freaking out her mom in the process. Admittedly, Eri didn't so much ''fall'' into the cockpit as the lead researcher was showing her how it worked, and when an emergency occurred, Eri had somehow bonded with the Gundam.

* A variant of this trope is used in ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic'': Sousuke is already a highly skilled HumongousMecha pilot when he is forced to pilot the experimental BlackBox Arbalest mecha, though he does return to using his normal mech type for a bit eventually he is forced into becoming the Arbalest's designated driver when it turns out the machine's AI calibrated itself to him and can't be reset.

* Subverted in ''Anime/{{Patlabor}}''. While Noa ''literally'' falls into the cockpit of the Ingram in the first episode, and was technically uncertified to pilot at the time, the reason she was on the base the Ingram was stolen from, and thus end up in the chain of events that caused her to fall into the cockpit, was because she was there to take her Labor operator's licensing examination. As such the only things she didn't know how to use right from the start were model-specific features.

*** And completely averted during the second generation. Flit deliberately leaves the Gundam where Asem can find it because he had always intended to give it to him.
*** Inverted in the third generation when Flit literally ''brings'' the cockpit to his grandson, Kio, when Kio's home town is under attack. The cockpit then becomes a jet which attaches to the rest of the Gundam.

** Eri/Suletta replaces Uso as the youngest pilot to fall into the cockpit of a Gundam, doing so at the age of ''four''. Admittedly, her mother did most of the piloting as they evacuated their home colony, but the little girl turns out to have amazing compatibility with the system and destroys three mobile suits with the Gundam's AttackDrones while [[AchievementsInIgnorance marveling at all the pretty lights on the screen]], considerably freaking out her mom in the process. Admittedly, Eri didn't so much ''fall'' into the cockpit as the lead researcher was showing her how it worked, and when an emergency occurred, Eri had somehow bonded with the Gundam.
** Years later, Miorine steals Suletta's Gundam for a duel... [[SubvertedTrope except]] not only does she have precisely zero understanding of how to bond with a bleeding-edge AceCustom, but she has no skill whatsoever with a ''normal'' Gundam, either. She promptly loses her own gun due to being unprepared for the recoil and then falls over.

** ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamTheWitchFromMercury'': Eri/Suletta replaces Uso as the youngest pilot to fall into the cockpit of a Gundam, doing so at the age of ''four''. Admittedly, her mother did most of the piloting as they evacuated their home colony, but the little girl turns out to have amazing compatibility with the system and destroys three mobile suits with the Gundam's AttackDrones while [[AchievementsInIgnorance marveling at all the pretty lights on the screen]], considerably freaking out her mom in the process. Admittedly, Eri didn't so much ''fall'' into the cockpit as the lead researcher was showing her how it worked, and when an emergency occured, Eri had somehow bonded with the gundam.