Independence Day Scenes 31-35 Summary

Scene 31

Meanwhile, at the El Toro base, Steve and the other fighter pilots are getting briefed and getting ready to take to the air. Apparently, they're planning some payback. We hope that's a good idea—these ETs seem pretty organized. And nasty.
On Air Force One, the President and other advisors are discussing the damage and an upcoming attack on the ship.
Skipping back over to Jimmy and Steve: they're in their planes, approaching. They lock and load for an attack.
They fire, but the missiles can't penetrate the ships' shields.
Then, a bunch of little alien ships come out to battle the fighter pilots. Ooops. That is not a good sign.
The aliens wipe out a lot of the pilots, including Steve's friend Jimmy.
The aliens then go attack the base, while one alien chases Steve.
Steve manages to escape unharmed, while causing the alien craft to crash.
Having ejected safely and parachuted to the ground, he heads over to the crashed spaceship and punches out the alien he finds inside. Seems reasonable, after what said alien just put him and his now-dead comrades through.

Jasmine, Dylan, and their dog are still wandering the rubble.
But here's a much-needed piece of good luck: Jasmine finds a working truck to drive.

We're back with Russell and his family. Troy's still sick.
Miguel tells Russ the rumor is there's a spaceship on the way. They'd better get moving, then.

Back on Air Force One, David is also feeling crummy (he's airsick). Julius talks to Constance about his relationship with David.
Meanwhile, the President is discussing his options with his team. They learn that NORAD is gone, along with the Vice President and the joint chiefs.
Secretary of Defense Nimziki wants to launch nuclear weapons at the spaceship.
David overhears and his furious—he's a big environmentalist, apparently, so nukes aren't his thing.
Nimziki starts yelling at David to get out, and then Julius gets mad. He starts ranting about how the government has known about aliens since Area 51.
The President assures Julius that there is no such thing as Area 51, but Nimziki corrects him and says that's "not entirely accurate."
Wait, what?