"Pilot Error" is an episode of JAG that first aired on November 4, 1995. Directed by Les Landau. Written by Donald P. Bellisario, Jack Orman and Robert Cochran.
A Tomcat crashes during testing of a new terrain-following navigation system, killing both crewmembers. Lt. Harmon Rabb and Lt. j.g. Meg Austin must determine whether the cause of the accident was due to pilot error or due to a malfunction of Macroplex's auto precision terrain radar navigation (APTERN) system, a new system that enables very precise low altitude flying.
James Reid (Ken Lerner), the representative for the manufacturer Macroplex, is eager to place blame on the pilot, while Rabb refuses to believe the pilot, Lt. Pendry (Timothy Dale Agee), would have disobeyed orders by turning off APTERN and flying himself into the ground.
There are rumors that Pendry, who died in the accident, was having a sexual affair with wingman Lt. Tess McKee (Francia Dimase). Reid threatens to reveal the unwanted pregnancy and subsequent abortion to the press.
Things are further complicated when it turns out that Rabb and the pilot were old friends, which might compromise his impartiality in the investigation.
Rabb goes to comfort the widow, Annie (Daphne Ashbrook), and her son, Josh (Will Rothhaar).
Tropes
- Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder: Lieutenant Pendry's duties meant he spent quite a bit of time away from his family. Time that was spent primarily with his wingman, Lieutenant McKee. While the two had feelings for each other, they never acted on them.
- Ace Pilot: Lieutenant Pendry has a reputation for this, and some suspect the crash may have been as a result of him disabling the autopilot and attempting to fly the low-altitude approach by hand.
- Subverted with Rabb. During his investigation, he takes a Tomcat through the same flight plan as Pendry's last flight, including 5 traps on a carrier (a difficult task on a good day) before going on the simulated attack run. He's been out of practice at carrier operations, resulting in five very rough landings, much to the consternation of McKee, who has volunteered to substitute for the RIO for the flight.
Rabb: Sorry, I'm a little rusty.McKee: You're not rusty, Lieutenant. You're corroded. - Artistic License – Medicine: Reid says that everyone knows that "D & C" is "a euphemism for abortion." "D & C" stands for dilation and curettage, which is a necessary procedure after some kinds of abortion, but also after some kinds of miscarriage. To the writers' credit, Austin does explain later in the episode that McKee miscarried and that Pendry was not the father of the unfortunate fetus.
- As You Know: At the crash site, a Navy officer explains to Rabb and Austin that APTERN is an automatic precision terrain navigation system. Rabb already knows that, and he also knows that it's an Air Force system. But the viewers don't know that, nor should they, because it's a fictional system by a fictional company. It also gives Austin the opportunity to explain that defense cutbacks have made it necessary for the Navy to use Army and Air Force systems whenever possible.
- Comforting the Widow: Rabb spends time with Pendry's family, having known them when he was still alive.
- Commercial Break Cliffhanger: Rabb is flying inverted and gets too low to fly back up and avoid crashing. Cut to commercials. After the commercial break, we see Rabb climbing out of the simulator, safe and sound.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: Macroplex executive James Reid doesn't believe he is wrong about Pendry's responsibility for the crash, but he resorts to some incredibly underhanded tactics to try and prove it, including a character assassination campaign.
- Death of the Hypotenuse: Unusual example in that it was the object of both parties' affection, Rabb's friend and Annie's husband, rather than one of the competitors, who dies.
- Failsafe Failure: In the event of a system malfunction, shutting off the terrain-following autopilot automatically puts the plane into a 4G climb to prevent the plane from flying into the terrain. But if the autopilot's instruments are knocked into an inverted state by rough landings (like on an aircraft carrier), this can cause the plane to roll and pull "up" into the ground instead.
- Fire-Forged Friends: Pendry and McKee, leading to rumors that they may have been a Battle Couple as well.
- Flawed Prototype: Rabb believes that the system is flawed, while Reid is quick to point out that the Air Force uses the same system and hasn't reported any issues because the Air Force has long runways allowing for smoother touchdowns. The system wasn't designed for the abuse that comes with making a "trap" on a short aircraft carrier flight deck.
- Graceful Loser: Once presented with solid evidence that the autopilot system may have in fact malfunctioned due to not being designed with the abuse of Navy carrier landings in mind, the Macroplex executive accepts this and promises to have the newly discovered flaws corrected.
- Interservice Rivalry: After making five carrier landings with Rabb, McKee says:Thank God that's over, you're making me wish I'd joined the Air Force!
- Love at First Punch: A Marine officer becomes enamored of McKee after she punches him twice and nearly goes to beat his head in with a handy blunt object during a bar argument.
- Meaningful Funeral: Rabb and Austin attend Lt. Pendry's funeral, which is complete with military honors and fighters flying the Missing Man Formation. It is meaningful to Rabb because Pendry was his friend and the loss for the son of the deceased mirrors Rabb's own loss of his father at roughly the same age.
- Red Herring: A growing body of evidence suggests that Pendry and McKee had an affair, including the two going to visit a doctor for what appeared to be an abortion. McKee had actually suffered a miscarriage, and the child was their commanding officer's, rather than Pendry's. Pendry was simply there for emotional support.
- Shout-Out: To Fate is the Hunter, a film with a vaguely similar plot about a pilot investigating a plane crash in hopes of proving his deceased friend was not responsible for the crash.
- Speak Ill of the Dead: Many rumors that Pendry had been having an affair with his female wingman, and that this may have contributed to the crash.
- UST: A significant degree between Pendry and McKee, destined to remain Unresolved due to Pendry being married. Also Discussed between Austin and McKee, who points out that many could make the same claim of Austin and Rabb.
- Turn Out Like His Father: Annie Pendry's biggest fear concerning her son Josh, after his father is killed in a plane crash. She points out that Rabb became a fighter pilot after his own father went missing in Vietnam, further reinforcing her concern.
- Wham Line: "APTERN just inverted!"
- Wouldn't Hit a Girl: McKee punches a Marine captain, then Rabb pulls her back before she can hit the Marine again. The Marine then punches Rabb as a proxy for McKee, because he doesn't punch women. Rabb then punches the Marine again, saying he doesn't hit women either.
As you were...
Dismissed.
