Original subtitles

Okay.

Take her to the tank!

As a naval aviator, Lieutenant Commander Harmon Rabb, Jr. suffered a crash while

landing his Tomcat on a storm -tossed carrier at sea.

Diagnosed with night blindness, Harm transferred to the Navy's Judge Advocate

General Corps, which investigates, defends, and prosecutes the law of the

There, with fellow JAG lawyer Major Sarah McKenzie, he now fights in and out

the courtroom with the same daring and tenacity that made him a top gun in the

air.

The sexual harassment hotline received your complaint last night.

As you were.

Lieutenant Marilyn Isaac from the F -14 pilot station where the Seahawk, the

alleged incident occurred during a crossing line.

I thought the Navy was going to deep six that ceremony.

It's been toned down, Major.

We're still a great part of Navy tradition.

Something tells me Commander Rabb had his day as a poliwog.

The first time I crossed the equator, I got hosed. I had to do maybe a thousand

sit -ups. I got dunked twice, and I had to crawl through the tunnel of moral

courage blindfolded. What I wouldn't give to have been there.

As an observer, naturally.

There is a complicating factor.

The complaint was filed against the Seahawk CAG.

Tom Boone? The CAG's got nothing to do with crossing the line.

Lieutenant Isaacs claims that the ceremony is only part of a campaign of

harassment Captain Boone has waged against her.

The timing is unfortunate.

The selection board has recommended Boone for a deep -draft command.

Captain Boone was my father's wingman in Vietnam.

That's why I'm sending you along, Major. I expect an impartial inquiry on both

sides. Not that commander -in -chief would be anything but objective.

Commander's known for his dispassionate advocacy.

I don't need to remind you that the naval policy is zero tolerance for

harassment.

There she is!

My first sea duty!

It's your only sea duty, butt!

Ensign Harriet Sims, the skipper assigned me to be your escort aboard the

Seahawk, sir.

Thank you, Ensign.

I wonder if the skipper's aware I'm aboard, sir.

Jenna Roberts was the previous public affairs officer on the Seahawk.

Yes, sir. He's a legend, sir.

If you'll stick to my six, that's what pilots call their tail, ma 'am.

So I've been told.

Ensign Sims, I don't mean to question your sense of direction, but the aft

action. It's the quickest way, sir.

The major here is wearing high heels.

That might be a problem on the knee knockers on the O4 level.

You remember those, sir, seven ladders straight up that top out just after the

bridge? Good call, Lieutenant.

I guess I've been at sea too long. I forgot women wear those darn things.

Follow me.

Commander Rapp.

How does it feel to be back in the real Navy?

Pretty damn good, sir.

Major McKenzie? Yeah, I'm Boone.

Welcome aboard.

Pleasure to be here, sir.

Mr. Roberts, you've made lieutenant.

Yes, sir.

Thank you, sir.

For what? I had nothing to do with your promotion.

For remembering me, sir.

Well, you're a hard man to forget.

I'd like to arrange a time to take your statement, sir.

Let me see if I understand how this works, Commander.

One of my officers has a problem.

But instead of coming to me or the skipper, she calls a hotline somewhere

Washington. And the next day, my selection for command gets put on hold

couple of JAG lawyers fly 6 ,000 miles to interrogate me.

Is that about it?

The Navy takes sexual harassment seriously, sir.

So do I, Major.

You know where to find me.

Two things.

First, you have my full cooperation.

Second, no one will interfere with the investigation, and that includes me.

I'm only interested in the truth.

We all are, sir. And in case you didn't know, the CAG has grounded Lieutenant

Isaacs for unsafe flying.

Was this before or after she filed her complaints?

Two days before.

She came in low, tail hook hit the ramp.

The CAG made a tough call.

Tough on Lieutenant Isaacs. The Navy has a clear duty to give all of its pilots

the best possible chance to succeed, Major.

It also has a duty to keep them alive.

Lieutenant Isaacs, your complaint alleges that Captain Thomas Boone

harassed you?

He was responsible.

Yes, ma 'am.

When exactly did this harassment occur?

It was really a pattern of harassment.

ma 'am. It culminated during the crossing the line ceremony.

Please describe what happened.

I was touched inappropriately.

I was subjected to remarks of a sexual nature.

I was assaulted with a pitchfork.

Master Chief Sullivan forced me into a sexually compromising position with

another woman.

It was... It was the most degrading moment of my life.

Your complaint is filed against the CAG. Why not against Master Chief Sullivan

and the others?

They were just going along, doing what the CAG wanted.

How can you be certain of that?

When it was all over, the CAG congratulated Sullivan for rubbing my

Why would the CAG ask Master Chief Sullivan to give you a hard time?

The CAG doesn't approve of women in combat.

So my failure would prove him right.

Cost a million dollars to train that 14 pilot, Lieutenant. Why would he want to

throw that money away?

I don't know.

I wouldn't presume to guess how his mind works.

What exactly did he do, Lieutenant?

He told me that... that women don't have the psychological hardness to handle

night carrier landings.

And one time, just before I went up, he whispered in my ear that he'd bet $20

that I'd wet my pants.

So the crossing the line ceremony was part of a larger pattern of sexual

harassment and discrimination by Captain Boone designed to discredit you and

have you removed from flight status?

Major, why don't we let the lieutenant tell her story at her own pace?

He knew that I was flying a training mission the next day.

So he got Master Chief Sullivan to mess me up real good during the crossing the

line ceremony.

And then my Rio screwed up, so I had a poor landing.

The CAG got what he wanted. He removed me from flight status.

Did the grounding have anything to do with your filing a complaint against the

CAG? No, sir.

Timing might indicate otherwise, Lieutenant.

Look, this was not an easy decision for me to make.

I'd like to go back to the crossing the line ceremony.

Why didn't you just declare it a red light and walk away?

I wanted to.

But they just, they kept grabbing me.

And they were touching me.

Did you complain?

The more I protested, the more they just, they went after me.

And I just got scared and I just went along with it.

Monte Cristo.

That'll be a violation of federal law.

We're going to have to review Lieutenant Isaac's training records and flat

tapes.

I'll make them available to you, Commander.

If she was a man, she still wouldn't be any damn good.

If she was a man, she wouldn't be filing charges against you.

I'm not going to lower the standards just because she's a woman.

You give her every chance?

There's no learning curve with this lieutenant.

None. She blames other people for her mistakes. The landing signal officer.

Her Rio.

You?

Me. I just received a telephone call from Admiral Drake.

It seems Lieutenant Isaac's complaint has come to the attention of

DeLong. At this point, it's only an internal hotline investigation, sir. How

does a congresswoman know about it? Lieutenant Isaac is DeLong's

Lieutenant's mother notified her.

The congresswoman will arrive aboard the Seahawk tomorrow at 0800.

Talk about a broad interpretation of constituent service.

Admiral Drake authorized the visit.

He doesn't want this to blow up into another tail hook. Congresswoman DeLong

one of the Navy's severest critics.

The Congresswoman was pleased to discover that one of the JAG lawyers

investigating the complaint was a woman.

The Congresswoman believes that you'll give Lieutenant Isaacs a fair hearing.

I give everyone a fair hearing, sir. Including the CAG?

State your name and rank for the record, please.

I'm Master Chief Petty Officer Max Sullivan.

Were you present during the crossing the line ceremony aboard the Seahawk on

April 1st?

I was Neptunus Rex himself.

You have my congratulations, Master Chief.

Well, I know the honor just goes to the oldest sailor, but I like to think that

I earned it, ma 'am. Did you have any interaction with Lieutenant Isaacs

the ceremony?

Yes, ma 'am. Did you direct the Chief's low dance with Lieutenant Hawk?

Yes, ma 'am, I did.

They all had to. That's part of the fun.

Did you order Lieutenant Isaacs dunked in an engine container filled with foul

-smelling water?

Yes, the tank of truth and wisdom. Yes, ma 'am. Three times.

And was that also part of the fun?

Well, the lieutenant had a little trouble getting with the program.

Did you single her out for any special abuse?

No, sir, I did not. She seemed to be enjoying herself, you know, like one of

guys.

Am I to understand that guys enjoy the tank of truth and wisdom?

Well, you enjoy the hell out of it once it's over, ma 'am, if you'll excuse my

language. Well, Master Chief, Lieutenant Isaacs didn't enjoy it during or

afterwards.

Did you treat her any differently than the men, Chief?

I did not.

Master Chief Sullivan, did anybody order you or request in any way that you give

Lieutenant Isaacs a hard time?

No, sir.

You never discussed the ceremony with the CAG?

No, ma 'am.

Did you talk to the CAG after the ceremony?

Oh, yes, yes. He came and informed me that Area 1 had been named the best in

fleet for raising our emergency barricade in under two minutes.

That'll be all, ma 'am.

Sir. Ma 'am, if I may.

The thing is...

She didn't have to go through that ceremony. She knew what she was getting

Then why did she volunteer?

Well, if she hadn't, she'd look like a wuss, ma 'am.

There's something you ought to know. I think I can quote this.

A naval ceremony should follow the long -established rules for its execution

carefully and exactly.

Such attention to detail honors those men who established this ritual.

and all those past, present, future that will take part in the same ceremony.

Lead Admiral Chester A. Nimitz. Yes, sir.

I don't think Admiral Nimitz was talking about dumping jello on women,

Commander, or poking them with pitchforks.

With all due respect, ma 'am, you just don't get it.

Oh, I get it all too well, Master Chief.

The world has changed, and you got left behind.

Don't go too close to the edge. You don't want to fall over.

I can swim.

Not down there.

Vortex sucks you under, you go through the screws, you come out looking like a

spam.

What do you make of Lieutenant Isaac?

Carries herself well.

I like her attitude.

I'd like her case a whole lot better if she'd filed a complaint before she was

grounded. We're talking 48 hours, Harm. It takes time.

How much time does it take to figure out you had your six -pitch?

Time to weigh the consequences.

She put her career on the line by filing her complaint.

Tag put his career on the line by grounding her.

I think she's got a case.

Slow dancing with another woman, getting groped, poked with a pitchfork in the

butt. You know, when I crossed the equator, I spent a half hour slow

with Bob Frederick.

Did you date much afterward?

Detail!

I've made a few notes.

Notes, sir? Well, just because I've done so many of these. The congressperson

will be piped aboard.

As a matter of course, sir.

Be arranged for side boys.

Yes, sir. Six in all, four male, two female.

Female?

Well, that's a nice touch.

Yes, sir.

Everybody gets a chance.

The side boys will form a line at the helicopter door.

They'll salute on the first note of the pipe and finish together on the last

note. Cool honors.

Full honors.

Four ruffled and flourished.

You're doing a great job, Harriet.

Thank you, sir.

Have any more notes for me?

Uh, I must have left them somewhere else.

The good old days are gone, Horn. They ended with tail hooks.

This is a new Navy with new rules.

Hey, whatever may or may not have happened during crossing the line,

evidence the CAG was involved.

Is that friendship talking?

I want to ask you something.

Are you more likely to believe Lieutenant Isaacs because she's a woman?

I've had to fight a lot of prejudice to get where I am, huh? I guess that makes

me want to give her the benefit of the doubt.

Where do you see this?

It was a bad approach from the beginning.

She ruled out on finals, called the ball.

Her approach lights are below the crosshairs. So she's under the glide

Tomcat 204, you are under glide slope.

Power, power. Look at her nose come up.

Now she's got too much power. She's flown right back up through the glide

To compensate, she cuts back on the power.

Tomcat 204, wave off, wave off. She ignores the wave off.

A few feet lower, she'd have had a rain streak.

Sir, Lieutenant Elizabeth Huck, sir. CAG asked me to give you these.

I'm Major McKenzie, JAG Corps.

Everyone on board knows who you are, ma 'am.

I'd be interested in hearing why you took part in the crossing the line

ceremony.

Same reason all the women were.

It's important to be one of the guys.

Were you improperly touched, spoken to lewdly, or otherwise sexually harassed?

Not so that I noticed.

You don't feel you were singled out because of your sex?

No, sir.

Even when you were forced to dance with Lieutenant Isaac?

The only problem was we both wanted to lead.

They treated everyone pretty bad.

Let me ask a hypothetical question. What would you have done if someone had

grabbed you?

A woman who can't handle some jerk playing grab -ass doesn't belong in the

ma 'am.

Thank you, Lieutenant.

Skates, ma 'am.

That's what they all call me.

Skates? Because I grew up on wheels.

Permission to speak freely, ma 'am? Sir?

For a woman to be one of the guys, well, sometimes she has to be willing to give

up something of herself.

You know.

Sometimes it sucks.

The question is, why should she have to be one of the guys?

Permission to speak freely.

Conversation still on record, Lieutenant?

I understand that, ma 'am.

I guess I'm a little bothered by the fact you've been asking questions behind

back.

This is an investigation.

Asking questions is what we do.

What exactly did Lieutenant Hawks say?

All our investigations are confidential, Lieutenant.

She's one of the senior Rios. Her word counts for a lot.

What's your point?

I think she resents the fact that I'm a pilot and she has to sit in the back

seat.

I understand you're under a lot of pressure, Lieutenant, but this is not a

productive line of discourse.

The main thing is, I don't want to do anything that'll hurt the Navy.

I just want the same chance as the others.

We're in the preliminary stages of our investigation. There's nothing anyone

do.

What if I withdraw my complaint?

You still have to go before the Flight Review Board. They decide if the Kang

made the correct decision removing you from flight status.

I've worked all my life to be a pilot.

Flying off carriers is what I want.

The CAG can make the board go away.

You're asking to be returned to flight status?

Yes, sir.

You're still a naval aviator, Lieutenant, subject to the Navy's rules.

want is within the rules.

I don't think so.

Then maybe it's time some of those rules got changed.

I hope this goes well. You got it knocked, Harriet.

Something wrong?

No, everything's fine.

I just thought maybe... You look nice.

Ah, I'm sorry. I did not mean that.

So you don't think I look nice?

Well, I just don't know if it's appropriate to say.

I outrank you, and I may have inadvertently uttered a yellow light

Do you have an ulterior motive, Lieutenant?

No.

I don't think I do.

Then I'll choose to believe you were sincere.

Welcome to the Seahawk, ma 'am.

I can't tell you how good it feels to get out of Washington's smoke -filled

room.

Captain Boone?

Glad to have you with us, ma 'am.

Nice of you to say so, all things considered.

Ensign Thins will show you to your quarters, ma 'am. Thank you, Captain.

Just wait, ma 'am.

If I'm to be your advocate, Marilyn, I need to know everything.

No ugly surprises.

I want nothing more than to get it out in the open. You know how hard I fought

to widen the role of women in combat.

The failure of even one woman puts the entire program at risk.

I don't intend to fail, ma 'am. I don't intend to let you.

You're aware that Lieutenant Isaacs has filed a sexual harassment complaint.

Would you like to respond, sir?

Her complaint's without merit.

You have the right to make a full statement, sir.

I just did so, Major.

Did you deal with Lieutenant Isaacs as you did other aviators under your

command? I treat them all the same.

Did you ever whisper in her ear that she was going to wet her pants, sir?

I did not.

Did you instruct Master Chief Sullivan to cause Lieutenant Isaacs to be groped,

poked with a pitchfork, and or verbally abused during the crossing the line

ceremony?

Now, why the hell would I do that?

That's what we're here to find out, sir.

I did not.

Captain Boone, why did you ground Lieutenant Isaacs?

Because she was an accident waiting to happen.

This whole ship's like a damn men's club. They knew exactly what the CAG

They?

His guys.

The LSO, the air boss.

When a male pilot messes up, he gets spoken to privately.

When I do something wrong, they write up my grade, post it in the ready room for

everybody to laugh at. Come on, Marilyn.

They post everybody's grades. You give me something substantial to work with.

Okay. During a missile shoot, my Rio radar intercept officer had trouble

the drone, so I couldn't lock in on time.

I fired the sidewinder, and the damn thing missed.

It's not my fault.

But the CAG gives me an unsatisfactory. Did he grade the other female pilots the

same way?

All of us. Yes, ma 'am.

You are the only one that's complained so far, Marilyn.

I'm the only one who has the guts.

She should never have been sent to the ship.

Because she's a woman, sir?

Because she's a below -average pilot.

It took her three tries to make her carrier qualifications. That's two more

chances than a man would get.

If she had a shaky training record, why would she move through?

There's a lot of pressure from Washington to get women into the front

Major.

During her tour, Lieutenant Isaacs progressed from undistinguished to

disastrous.

She was a total flop at air combat maneuvers. She never got a shot off.

Who'd she blame that to?

Commander Rabb.

Please don't editorialize.

The Seahawk control her for not getting her into the right position.

Claimed he put her in front of the bogey?

Truth is, Lieutenant Smith had her.

For the record, who was Lieutenant Smith?

That would be Lieutenant Margaret Louise Smith.

I was sexually humiliated and abused in front of the entire crew.

The CAG knew that I'd rattle me.

I had a mission the next day and I screwed up a little bit.

Nothing serious, but they made a big deal about it.

You grounded Lieutenant Isaacs after a substandard landing. The LSO log

indicates... OSCB, EGAR,

DNKH. That's correct.

Can you tell me what those initials stand for, sir?

OSCB overshot came back.

EGAR eased gun at ramp.

What about DNKH?

Well, that's the technical one, Major.

Damn near killed herself.

You have no doubt that you made the right decision, sir?

Lieutenant Isaacs is a danger to herself and to others.

That's why I grounded her.

Enter.

Sir, the skipper requests Commander Rabb and Major McKenzie in the wardroom,

sir. Very well.

Dismissed.

I spoke with Lieutenant Isle.

I believe her.

I'd be interested in knowing what you think.

The investigation isn't complete yet, ma 'am. We want to make sure we have all

the facts before we run with opinion.

You know I won't allow this to be swept under the rug. We have no intention of

doing that.

It's one of the boys, Major.

Major McKenzie has a high regard for the truth, ma 'am.

You'll have to forgive me, Major.

As you were, Commander. Thank you for joining me. I want women to have equal

opportunity in the armed services.

Yes, ma 'am. We should all have the same chance.

I will not tolerate a culture of reprisal, ostracism, harassment, and

retribution against women.

Never forget that naval officers like Captain Boone serve at the pleasure of

government.

It's a new day. It's time he got a clue.

Captain Boone served his country in Vietnam, ma 'am. He has a long and

distinguished record.

In my opinion, Commander, a man can have a long and distinguished career and

still be a pig.

Excuse me, sir.

I'd like to think there's nothing I can't fix.

And right now, this Marilyn Isaac situation presents a major problem for

future of women in combat.

Well, ma 'am, I think it's safe to say that on that point we are in agreement.

How tall are you?

Excuse me?

How would you feel if I told you you looked really cute in that uniform?

You should dye your hair platinum blonde.

Six foot four.

I'll give you regards to my tailor, and platinum really isn't my shade, ma 'am.

Admiral Drake called me earlier today. He understands I'm trying to find a

middle way.

She's totally willing to accept responsibility for a poor landing.

All that needs to happen is that she's given another chance.

That's not my call, ma 'am.

She was grounded for good reason, ma 'am. You're a lawyer, Commander.

That's not your call. Commander Rabb flew F -14s off the Seahawk. Wasn't your

Rio killed in a crash, Commander?

Perhaps you're not the one to pass judgment.

What do you think, Lieutenant?

About what, Harriet?

How do you think it went today?

Oh, excellent.

Great.

There is one thing, though.

Yes?

May I?

May what?

Well, your insignia is... I don't know if that's a red light.

Straightening my insignia?

It's so hard to know what appropriate behavior is sometimes. You know, red

light, green light.

Just straighten the damn thing, sir.

Uh...

Thank

you.

Want to see me, Skipper?

I want Lieutenant Isaacs on tonight's intercept mission.

Flight review board hasn't cleared her to fly.

Well, that's yesterday's news, Tom.

The congresswoman called Admiral Drake.

The admiral wants Lieutenant Isaacs returned to flight status.

They're jumping the gun on this, Admiral. I suggest you tell them to hold

any formal action until our investigation is complete.

Yes, sir. I'll wait right here.

Attention on deck.

Carry on. Aye, sir.

You miss it?

Sometimes. Never at night.

Excuse me, sir.

Flight schedule for tonight's intercept mission?

Since I first typed it, Lieutenant Isaacs Rio has changed twice.

Sudden outbreak of flu, sir.

Trollson. Trollson just came aboard a week ago.

They got my least experienced Rio flying with Isaac.

Get me Lieutenant Hawks. Yes, sir.

I'm going to have to resign my commission.

I don't care.

There's no reason to fall on your soul. I got a United States congressperson

telling me how to run my air wing, and it ain't part of my job to please her.

The Navy can't afford to lose good officers. Well, we got to draw the line

somewhere, Harm. This seems like it might be the right place.

Stand for me, sir.

I need you to fly with Isaacs tonight.

Sir, I may be very blunt with you.

I wouldn't expect anything less.

With the weather forecast for tonight, there's going to be a fair amount of

movement and night landings aren't her best thing, sir.

That's why I need my best Rio in the back seat.

I won't forget this, Gates.

Won't let you, sir.

Wing sweep automatic.

Raptors 204, up and ready.

Now there's a woman who's ready to go to war.

Only one problem, ma 'am.

Catapult gets her off the deck, but she has to get back on all by herself.

Why not just say what's on your mind, Commander?

You had no business getting Lieutenant Isaacs put back in the aircraft.

Mr. Rav. Captain.

I'd like to hear what he has to say. He helped her manipulate the system to get

what she wanted. That's enough.

I'll see you in my at -sea cabin immediately after the mission.

Aye, sir.

204, let's bump heads.

204, roger.

I'm gonna have his ass.

Raptors.

2 -0 -4, intercept an unidentified bogey. Inbound. Bearing 1 -2 -0. 2 -0

roger that.

Take it easy, Marilyn. You're flying into a black hole.

It's okay, Kegs. I got it.

I've got contact.

Bearing 0 -2 -0.

Kegs inbound.

This is Isaac. Diving towards the deck. She's closing at 1 ,300 knots. It's a

mile every three seconds. That gives her a two -second window to fire her

missile. Fifteen miles. Switch to missile.

Going to missile.

She's diving. Pissed it.

Careful. We're getting low.

I'm watching it.

He missed big time. Too wide. He's got to pull a 7G turn to convert. He's not

going to make it.

Wind shifted. He's picking up.

Contact. 50 degrees left. 5 miles opposite direction.

Brake card left.

Further now.

They're coming.

Good turn. Overtake 50 knots.

Hokey on our 6K.

Okay, good.

Oh, that was a big time move.

She just made that incident.

Looks like you spoke too soon, Commander.

Locking on.

Got a good tone.

Fucked away!

Whistle fired.

You missed.

That was a 9G turn. Only the keg could make a move like that.

Good try, 204.

Shoot.

Sir, the squall's moving through.

Penetrating in 15 minutes.

Time to bring them back.

Raptor 206, we're still ready to flag.

Let's go home, Marilyn.

That's a negative 204. We got weather.

You did good.

Let's call it a night.

Wilco, out.

If we had plenty of fuel, we could have made another path.

Remind us, Keto.

Skipper, permission to go onto the LSO platform?

I don't believe you'll be missed.

Aye, sir.

Tomcat 206, you're a quarter mile out. Say your fuel.

Seahawk Raptor 206, commencing approach.

Roger,

206. You are clear for landing.

Watch me spike it on.

I'll settle for just getting aboard, Marilyn.

Flaps down.

Gear down.

Wing sweep automatic.

Put the hook down.

Get your hook down, Marilyn.

Hook down.

Selecting command ejection rear seat.

Raptor 204, you're at a mile and three quarters, well below glide slope.

Check, ball.

I have the ball.

This is Raptor 204 Tomcat.

Ball 3 .5.

Roger, ball.

Pitching deck, you're low.

You're still low.

Give me some attitude.

You're still under glide path.

Come on, Isaacs. Get back on the glide slope.

Don't go high.

What are you doing, Skate?

Soon, but we still need to complete the investigation of the harassment

complaint. So the CAG's not out of the woods yet?

Well, not yet.

Something like this, it's like getting gum on your shoe.

Wow. What JAG lawyers do is so exciting.

I'm not a lawyer yet.

I know.

But you're going to be a great one.

I want you to kiss me.

Green light?

I just had a scary thought.

They're children?