Catch-22: Chapter 35 Summary & Analysis

Nately tells Yossarian he wants to fly more combat missions, even though he already has 70; if he stops flying he’ll be sent home, and if he’s sent home, he can no longer see his girlfriend, the prostitute in Rome. Yossarian can’t believe Nately wants to stay in the combat zone.

Milo has also been asking Cathcart for more missions. Milo, who has spent the past few months building his business, M & M Enterprises in large part by selling goods to the Germans, decides he wants to do more to “help the war effort.” He tells Cathcart he has only flown five missions, but Cathcart says Milo’s work with M & M has been important and noteworthy, despite Milo’s lack of combat missions.

Cathcart admits he’s only flown two missions himself—and the men in the group know this. Milo pretends that he is willing to take on an enormous number of new missions, and he begins explaining the complexities of his cartel to Cathcart, who initially believed he could take over for Milo in running M & M Enterprises while Milo was flying his missions (and perhaps reap some of the profits as well).

But the cartel proves so complex that Cathcart cannot begin to understand it. Cathcart instead tells Milo that, since he is needed to run M & M, he, Cathcart, will get someone else to fly Milo’s missions for him. This was what Milo wanted the entire time—he fooled Cathcart, but Cathcart doesn’t understand the trick, and even promises that Milo will receive any heroic citations earned by the men flying his missions in his place.

One of these ensuing missions, over La Spezia, is flown by Dobbs, and Nately, among others. They encounter heavy flak and are shot down by Germans defending the port. No parachutes deploy, and Dobbs’ plane crashes into the water. No parachutes are released. Dobbs and Nately, along with others, are killed.