Personal rivalries surface in the JAG office when Mac assures Harm that she'll beat him to the finish line in the Jagathon for charity. Harm then sticks his foot in his mouth by giving Mac a six-minute head start in the race. Meanwhile, testosterone levels rise when Gunny and Tiner battle head to head to see who is in the best condition for the race. And, true to form, Lt. Singer starts a betting pool on who will finish the race last, leaving Lt. Roberts feeling crushed when he discovers that his co-workers favor him.

A Navy P-3 spy plane is rammed by a Chinese MIG and is forced to land at a Chinese Air Base. (The second such incident; the first being the actual incident that occurred early 2001)

The SecNav requests Adm. Boone re-activated to active duty, in order to travel with Harm to the Air Base to negotiate with the Chinese for the release of the plane & crew.

After the Chinese Commander is presented with photographic evidence that the MIG & its pilot that rammed the P-3 is alive & well (contrary to claims by the Chinese that the pilot was killed), the Chinese immediately release the P-3 crew; however, they would ship the P-3 back, piece by piece.

Lt. Barrett flying out to escort the plane from Chinese Air Space back to the USS Thomas Jefferson. After telling his wingman a lie to leave the escort, Lt. Barrett disobeys orders, flies into Chinese airspace & destroys the P-3 on the ground.

Harm returns to Washington, DC and is shocked to discover that Admiral Chegwidden had actually processed his resignation through official channels. Also, a female petty officer listed as missing in action during Desert Storm is located in Iraq, married to a bedouin sheik. As a result, the Navy charges her with desertion.

When a female Naval officer is found brutally murdered, its up to Mac to defend the suspect - a male petty officer who was intoxicated and has absolutely no recollection of the entire evening.

Also, a Navy SEAL Commander finds himself facing charges of larceny and fraud - his victim: the United States.

Mac continues to be tormented by her feelings over her having to kill Sadik Fahd, which begins to interfere with the other parts of her life - including her defense of a former Marine.

Mattie continues to deal with how she feels toward her father.

Mac learns to be careful what she asks for - as she is assigned to escort a female Marine prisoner, after having made the request that the prisoner should be escorted by someone able to control her.

A Naval Academy sailing team (that includes Bud's younger brother Mikey) is fighting a squall during practice when a female sailor is swept overboard and drowned. The JAG staff investigate whether the Commander was negligent when he ordered his team to sail through the squall.

A Navy psychiatrist in Afghanistan is accused of malpractice and a age discrimination suit are the cases assigned to Harm, Mac & Bud.