In December 1995, amidst the concluding phases of a NATO peacekeeping operation in Bosnia, US Navy flight officer Lieutenant Chris Burnett (Owen Wilson) and pilot Lieutenant Jeremy Stackhouse (Gabriel Macht) are stationed aboard an aircraft carrier in the Adriatic Sea. Tasked with a reconnaissance mission over Bosnia, they unexpectedly discover illicit activities taking place in a restricted demilitarized zone where military operations are prohibited. Eager for a closer view, Burnett convinces Stackhouse to divert their F/A-18 Hornet jet, leading to a grave mistake—they unknowingly capture images of mass graves.
The local Bosnian Serb Army, led by General Miroslav Lokar (Olek Krupa), is engaged in a covert genocidal initiative against the local Muslim population, and they quickly spot the jet. To protect his secret atrocities, Lokar gives the order to shoot down the aircraft. Despite their desperate maneuvers, the duo is struck, forcing them to eject. After landing, a Serb patrol discovers Stackhouse; in a harrowing scene, he is interrogated and then executed by Sasha (Vladimir Mashkov), a tracker loyal to Lokar. Burnett, witnessing the horror unfold from his vantage point, screams in despair, inadvertently revealing his position to the Serbs. Now with a target on his back, Lokar dispatches Sasha and his subordinate Colonel Bazda (Marko Igonda) to hunt down Burnett.
Burnett reaches out to his commanding officer, Admiral Leslie Reigart (Gene Hackman), to report his plight. Under increasing pressure from admiralty, including a warning from Admiral Piquet (Joaquim De Almeida) about risking the peace process, Reigart instructs Burnett to vacate the no-fly zone for a safer extraction location, despite Burnett's protests. As he begins this perilous journey, Burnett narrowly escapes detection by Bazda’s Serb patrol. However, his trek leads him into the very mass graves he had previously photographed, where he must hide to evade capture.
Determined to survive, Burnett's journey becomes a fierce battle against the odds as he evades Serb forces, including a near-fatal encounter in an abandoned factory. By fortunate chance, he meets a group of Muslim guerrillas who initially offer him refuge, only to thrust him into the midst of combat in Hac, a war-torn area. Amid the chaos, Burnett ingeniously escapes by donning the uniform of a deceased Serb soldier, but this clever disguise prompts confusion among Serb soldiers who believe they have found Burnett.
As the situation spirals out of control, Lokar's regime propagates a narrative of Burnett’s death, staving off a rescue operation that is perilously close to reaching him. Frustrated and yearning to prove his survival to his carrier group, Burnett leverages his proximity to his abandoned ejection seat, reactivating his rescue beacon in the hopes of drawing attention back to his plight. This maneuver, however, does not go unnoticed by the Serbs.
Reigart, aware that his decision could cost him his command, nonetheless prepares a task force to retrieve Burnett. Meanwhile, Lokar dispatches Bazda and Sasha to execute Burnett. Fate intervenes when Bazda inadvertently triggers a landmine, allowing Burnett an advantage as he hears the explosion. The ultimate confrontation culminates in a fierce clash between Burnett and Sasha, where Burnett manages to turn the tables, killing Sasha with a flare.
As the American helicopters led by Reigart arrive just in time, a fierce aerial assault ensues against the Serb forces. Just as Burnett retrieves the evidence of Lokar’s crimes from the ejection chair, he is whisked away to safety by the US Marine Corps, receiving a hero's welcome upon his return to the carrier. Ultimately, Lokar's horrific actions are brought to light, culminating in a trial for his war crimes while Reigart faces consequences for his defiance but chooses to retire with his honor intact. In a poignant twist, Burnett, who once sought to leave the Navy, decides to recommit to his service.
