A group of Al-Qaeda-backed local rebels, disguised as lab technicians, and led by Rasheed (Dick Israel) stage a raid on the Sultan Kudarat Airbase, home of the Joint U.S. Tactical Command in the Philippines. Their objective is a "ground control encoder" that locks out the controls and instruments in an aircraft, allowing remote control from the ground. In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, this device was designed to prevent hijacking but the rebels intend to use it to send an aircraft on a suicide mission.