Andrews Fly‑By — The President Calls the Families
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Bartlet notices Colonel Weiskopf approaching and steps out to receive an update on the landing gear situation.
Weiskopf informs Bartlet that the F-16 couldn't get a visual read, necessitating a fly-by at Andrews, which will take over an hour.
Bartlet updates Leo on the situation and decides to call the families of the fallen soldiers while still airborne.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Off-screen; invoked as a symbol of local political pressure rather than an emotional actor in the scene.
Mentioned by Bartlet as a political example ('Mark's got a tough district') during the opening rant; he is not physically present and contributes only as rhetorical context for Bartlet's irritation.
- • Stay politically viable in a difficult district (inferred)
- • Ensure constituent issues receive attention (inferred)
- • Local political pressures shape national political conversations (inferred)
- • Individual district challenges demand White House awareness (inferred)
Irritated and sarcastic about politics, then quickly shifts to solemn, focused resolve—public irritation gives way to private empathy and executive clarity.
On the phone in his compact Air Force One office, Bartlet is mid‑rant about political priorities when he notices Weiskopf, moves into the hallway to receive a briefing, returns to the office, digests the operational timeline, and immediately pivots to order personal outreach to the fallen servicemen's families.
- • Get a clear, authoritative account of the aircraft problem and timeline
- • Ensure the safety and proper handling of the flight (minimize risk)
- • Honor the human cost by personally contacting the families of the fallen
- • The presidency requires personal responsibility for human consequences
- • Operational realities constrain political theater and must be faced directly
- • Political complaints are secondary when lives and families are involved
Controlled urgency — prioritizes precision and protocol over commentary, conveying seriousness without alarmism.
Descends the stairs and briefs the President directly and succinctly: no visual confirmation of the landing gear, plan a fly‑by of Andrews, and estimate an hour and fifteen minutes. He communicates factual, procedural information with professional gravity.
- • Convey accurate technical assessment so leadership can make decisions
- • Obtain buy‑in for the fly‑by procedure and hold pattern
- • Control risk through established aviation and military procedures
- • Clear, direct reporting is essential in an in‑flight emergency
- • Procedural responses (fly‑by, tower observation) are the safest path
- • The President must be informed immediately to coordinate next steps
Not present; represented in Bartlet's frustration and used to underscore shifting political priorities.
Referred to in Bartlet's anecdote about the Vice Chairs pulling out a map of Africa; they function here as the target of his earlier political irritation and as rhetorical background to the interruption.
- • Elevate policy priorities for constituencies (inferred)
- • Use visible, forceful tactics to gain presidential attention (inferred)
- • Direct pressure is required to move the White House on issues
- • Constituency advocacy can and should reshape presidential priorities
Absent and deceased; their loss creates a solemn, grieving emotional current that Bartlet responds to on behalf of the nation.
Referenced by Bartlet as 'the five guys' whose families he will call; they are not present but their deaths are the moral engine that redirects Bartlet's attention from politics to human consequence.
- • Be acknowledged by the Commander‑in‑Chief (inferred from Bartlet's decision)
- • Have their families contacted and honored (inferred)
- • Service members' deaths demand personal recognition from the president
- • Their sacrifice requires the state to respond humanely and directly
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The Air Force One phone is active at the opening of the exchange—Bartlet is on the line with Leo—then becomes the instrument he will use to call the families of the five fallen servicemen. It enables the instant translation of operational delay into personal presidential action.
Air Force One itself is the operational stage: airborne in a holding pattern over Central Tennessee, removed from standard jet routes, and ordered to perform a low fly‑by of Andrews so ground crews can attempt visual confirmation of the landing gear.
The map of Africa is invoked in Bartlet's opening rant as a memory prop—an anecdotal proof of past political pressure—serving rhetorical and thematic purposes rather than direct action in the scene.
A logistical detail made into a narrative beat: Bartlet instructs that the phone numbers for the families be 'sent up' to his office, turning the abstract obligation to contact next of kin into an immediate, actionable item.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Andrews Tower is the operational observation point for the planned fly‑by: Air Force One will 'buzz the tower' so ground crews and tower personnel can visually inspect the landing gear, making the tower the immediate tactical focal point of the emergency.
The President's compact Air Force One office is where the scene begins and largely unfolds: Bartlet phones Leo, receives Weiskopf, steps into the hallway, and returns to make the private decision to call families. It condenses policy argument, operational briefings, and moral choices into an intimate executive space.
Central Tennessee is the aircraft's current airspace location, chosen because controllers removed Air Force One from jet routes; the dark, featureless night below prevents easy visual confirmation, necessitating the Andrews fly‑by and producing the temporal limbo for the scene's moral pivot.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
The Congressional Black Caucus functions as the political subtext: Bartlet's annoyance at their shifting priorities (from Africa to Brooklyn) opens the scene and explains his initial mood, supplying rhetorical contrast to the human tragedy that follows.
The U.S. Armed Forces provide the operational backbone of the event: their officers (Weiskopf) relay the technical assessment, authorize or recommend the Andrews fly‑by, and control air assets and procedures that determine the President's options and timeline.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Bartlet noticing Weiskopf's approach leads to the update about the F-16's failed visual read and the need for a fly-by."
"Bartlet noticing Weiskopf's approach leads to the update about the F-16's failed visual read and the need for a fly-by."
Key Dialogue
"WEISKOPF: No, sir, they're unable to get a visual read. We're going to go ahead with the fly-by at Andrews."
"WEISKOPF: Probably about an hour and 15 minutes."
"BARTLET: The Falcon couldn't get a visual read, so we're going to buzz the tower at Andrews in a Boeing 747. Weiskopf says it's going to be an hour and 15 minutes. I'm going to call the families from up here of the five guys. We'll send up those phone numbers."