Factual error: The White House has security zones inside the building. The terrorists would have had to penetrate many of these, with a security force coming at them from the outside.
Factual error: In the case of an evacuation, the President and VP are separated to different secure areas to avoid precisely the situation that occurs here.
Character mistake: The interceptors give the bandit way too much leeway. One would have locked on, the other would have attempted contact, and then within moments of no response, the trailing plane would have shot him down.
Factual error: When the FBI tactical team arrives, they stay on the perimeter. They had not been told to stand down, and would have assaulted the White House and trapped the terrorists in a pincer movement with the SS attacking from the other side.
Plot hole: The fact that a five minute timer starts after the three Cerberus codes are entered defeats the purpose of the program. If they program was made to destroy their own nuke warheads in case of a misfire you would expect them to be destroyed as soon as all three codes are in. (01:38:20)
Factual error: Near the finale, Kang sends a command to all US based missiles to self-destruct in their silos, thereby detonating their warheads. Ignoring for the moment why "self-destruct in silo" would ever be a desirable scenario programmed into ICBM protocols, detonation of a nuclear warhead requires an extremely precise sequence of events, none of which would include a nearby, conventional explosion. (01:38:20)
Continuity mistake: As Mike drives to work in the morning, he removes his sunglasses from his clean-shaven face. A moment later, after he vainly attempts to call his wife, his face now has what appears to be a two-day growth of whiskers. (00:15:00)
Factual error: When one of the terrorists fires an RPG into the security hut, all the windows in the cars standing nearby shatter. Ordinary windshields are made of laminated glass that doesn't shatter, not to mention that at least the SUVs used to transport the prime minister and his escort would surely be armored and therefore possess security glass. (00:28:20)
Other mistake: At the end of the movie, when the president gives a speech, Mike Banning's face still shows the unhealed cuts from his fights at the White House, suggesting that this is only a couple of days or so after the event. However, the President, who was shot in the gut and on the verge of dying, is completely recovered.
Character mistake: When the main characters are watching the news on TV, the headline reads "Terrorist seize Whitehouse". It should be "Terrorists".
Factual error: When the AC-130 gunship flies over the White House, some of the Secret Service agents on the roof are firing bolt-action sniper rifles without pulling the bolt back, like a semi-automatic gun. (00:25:20)
Continuity mistake: Towards the beginning of the film, Mike is in a diner with a woman. A group of people walk up and they have a conversation. Mike sets down his white cup on the table. This cup continually vanishes and reappears throughout the scene. (00:12:05)
Continuity mistake: The wound on Mike's left forehead changes position between getting it from his fall from the roof to the end of the film.
Factual error: The Secret Service has more than 3,000 Special Agents across multiple government organizations. Other than those who work the White House and Presidential Detail, it is highly unlikely that others would have any White House access, much less current security codes, as Mike does. Agents would not have passwords to the President's laptop - but Mike is able to log in and delete all the classified data on it.
Factual error: Toward the end of the movie, when the US 7th fleet is ordered to withdraw from the Sea of Japan, two US aircraft carriers are shown maneuvering. One has '67' painted on its island, the other displays '73'. This represents the hull number of the ship. CV-67, the USS John F Kennedy, was decommissioned in 2007, and the F-14 Tomcats on the carriers' decks were retired in 2006.
Factual error: The security booth is a hardened building and would not disintegrate like that from a RPG. It is made to withstand attacks.
Visible crew/equipment: When Banning is collecting guns just after the power goes out, he kills one terrorist in an orange top. When crouches down to pick the gun up, the whole place is in darkness. As he stands up a round white light is reflected in a picture on the wall behind him. (00:41:05)
Continuity mistake: When the Speaker is asking if anyone has contact with anyone in the white house (besides Banning) his hands are crossed left over right then right over left depending on the shot. (00:47:05)
Continuity mistake: When the president is talking to his son about eating ice cream, the tie around the son's neck keeps changing positions. (00:16:30)
Continuity mistake: When the secretary of state is punched to the floor before giving up her Cerberus code, she falls and lands a good distance from 2 blood pools on the floor. When the camera changes to a close up, she is right over said pools of blood. (01:10:50)
Answer: Kang wanted the USA to suffer famine and be a 3rd world country. His plan was to get in, set off all the warheads and plunge the USA into the dark ages. During one of the exchanges between Kang and Mike, Kang says "I just want the USA to experience poverty and famine." So he had no plans to survive his mission. He needed the president to gain the 3rd code incase it couldn't be broken by the hacker. He faked the presidents death to give himself more time with the president.
Ssiscool ★