Haunted by the death of a young gunner, all-too-sane Capt. Yossarian wants out of the rest of his WW II bombing missions, but publicity-obsessed commander Colonel Cathcart and his yes man, Colonel Korn, keep raising the number of missions that Yossarian and his comrades are required to fly. Yossarian realizes that the whole system has lost it, and he can either play along or jump ship.