Continuity mistake: The aircraft carrier used in this episode, the USS Coral Sea, had the correct hull number on the ballcaps worn by the crew - CV-43, but the hull number displayed on the ship was "65". CVN-65 is in reality, the USS Enterprise.
JAG (1995)
1 mistake in Vanished
Vivian Blackadder: Amad bin Atwa supplied money and explosives to Hasan Mohammed, who executed the attack on the Cole. They're an all-Jihad team that's been together for nine years. If Bin Atwa gives up Hasan, I want in on the kill.
Gibbs: We're not tasked with capturing Hasan Mohammed.
Vivian Blackadder: Gibbs, my brother died on the Cole.
Gibbs: I know that.
Vivian Blackadder: Then get me in on this!
Gibbs: You're not here to use NCIS as your personal instrument of revenge. You get your head around this murder case, or you pull your tailored suit out of mothballs and you march your butt right back to the J. Edgar Hoover Building.
Question: In the episodes where Harm flies F-14s, what does it mean when pilots are told to "call the ball"?
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Chosen answer: When landing on an aircraft carrier, a pilot "calls the ball" by confirming to the landing signal officer (LSO) that they have the carrier, and more specifically its landing guidance systems in sight. Carriers use a Fresnel lens system which is a light only visible at a certain angle, so if a pilot sees the "ball" they are at the correct altitude and glide slope for landing.
Sierra1 ★