Star Trek: 10 Dumbest Decisions By Starfleet Officers
8. Living Life A Little Dangerously - Engineer Olson
In orbit of the planet Vulcan, the Narrada is attacking the surface with their mining drill. The Enterprise's transporters are being affected by the distortions from the weapon, requiring a novel way of getting men onto the drill to shut it down. Captain Pike has an idea that involves officers skydiving, thus negating the need for a transporter.
All good so far.
Kirk, Sulu, and Engineer Olson are selected for the mission. Engineer Olson doesn't even get a first name, which suggests just how well this jump is about to go for him. He is given the charges that are needed to destroy the weapon, which itself could have been a decision that landed on this list.
Pike releases the three men from the shuttle and they drop toward the platform. Kirk and Sulu, who are in fact not idiots, deploy their parachutes at the correct moment and land on the platform. Olson decides that this is the perfect time to be an adrenaline junkie. He fails to open his shoot at the right moment, enjoys the descent a little too much, all in the name of 'kicking a little Romulan arse.'
His chute deploys, it blows under the platform and he, along with the charges, are vaporized by the drilling beam.
Oh, Olson.