Air Force Two

"Air Force Two" is the thirteenth episode of the seventh season of Scandal, and is the hundred-and-nineteenth overall.

Plot[]

When Cyrus and David embark on a trip to Lisbon for the digital piracy summit, their plane is hacked, leaving their friends and colleagues on the ground little time to save them.

Scandals[]

Recap[]

Cyrus Beene is being sent to Lisbon for a Digital Piracy Summit despite him having written a great speech for an upcoming dinner. Mellie Grant tells him to give the speech to Jake Ballard but he responds that he isn't going to hand it over to Jake. David Rosen is also heading off to Lisbon. He asks Abby Whelan if she has plans on Thursday and invites her to dinner for when he comes back. Abby is concerned that David is going to ask her to marry him so she has Charlie and Huck hack into his computer. Cyrus is taken to Air Force 2 where David admires the plane. Cyrus is complaining about it when the captain comes in and tells him that the plane has been hacked. They no longer have control over the plane. Olivia Pope goes to visit her mom in order to celebrate her birthday. Her phone starts to ring but Olivia turns off her phone. Mellie and Jake are trying to figure out who is responsible for the hacking of Air Force 2.

Cyrus tells the crew and passengers about the hacking. He collects everyone's devices because the virus was somehow brought onto the plane that way. Hannah, Cyrus's secretary, pulls Cyrus aside and tells him that she may be responsible for the hacking. Her laptop had been missing but was mysteriously returned when she came back from getting coffee. Suddenly, the plane jerks as it turns around. Jake and Mellie realize that it isn't a hostage situation. Someone's using the plane as a missile. Cyrus doesn't tell the FBI about Hannah because he believes that Jake is behind all of this. David and he visit a lieutenant in the cockpick and ask her if she can remove the virus in order to send it to someone outside of the airplane. She's able to by using the national weather service and sends the virus to Charlie and Huck. They almost get rid of the virus but David has attached a message to it confirming that it's from Air Force 2. Jake suggests the possibility of having to shoot down the plane. Mellie asks if he's behind this and tells him to leave her sit room that she'll deal with him later.

Abby is anxious because she can't do anything to help with the virus. Mellie tries to reach out to Olivia but Olivia doesn't answer. Olivia is having a rocky visit with her mom when she reveals that it really isn't her birthday. Olivia turns her phone back on and learns about what's happening. Mellie calls Fitz and he asks her if she wants to know what he'd do in this situation. She says no. David and Cyrus are talking about David's relationship with Abby when Air-15s pull up next to the plane. Huck talks to Abby about her previous marriage and how perhaps she needs new memories of being married so that David proposing isn't so scary. David says that they need to talk to the president and inform her about Jake. Cyrus says that they must prepare for the worst. One of the reporters on the plane goes to the lieutenant and asks her to turn the wifi on in the cabin. That people should know what happened here. Cyrus talks to the passengers and tells them that the White House may have to shoot them down to save thousands. He tries to reassure them that their deaths will help protect their country. The reporter is able to stream live Cyrus's speech and everyone on the ground is watching.

Olivia leaves her mom after having an argument with her. Mellie confronts Jake and asks again if he had anything to do with this. He says no. Cyrus grabs a bottle of alcohol and sits with David during the final ten minutes. Charlie is finally able to get them into the system and Huck tries desperately to fix the airplane. Suddenly, the airplane shakes. Abby is waiting at home when the doorbell rings and David walks in. She tells him to just propose already that she knows about his plan. David says that he wasn't going to propose because he knows that he'd lose her if he did. Fitz and Mellie are sharing a drink. Fitz tells Mellie that she made the right call. Olivia is at home watching the news while wrapping a gift. She hands it over to a delivery man who takes it over to her Mom. Inside is a white coat, bank account information, and a ticket to Paris. Olivia goes to visit Cyrus. She's figured out that it was Cyrus who is behind the attack because why would anyone settle for Air Force 2 when they could have Air Force 1. She says that that was one hell of a gamble. Cyrus says that gambling is for fools. That he isn't a patient man and can't wait for Mellie to get out of office. Olivia asks what he's going to do but Cyrus dismisses her. She leaves.