Captain Phelan commands a company of paratroopers in Vietnam, but his men have no faith in him. They hold him responsible for the unusually large number of casualties the unit has suffered, certain that he is an incompetent who will get them all killed eventually. A group of the soldiers tries to convince Payton to join them in fragging (assassinating) Phelan. At first Payton resists, but his grief over the loss of his best friend causes him to reconsider. But there's something about Captain Phelan that his men don't know.