Russell Casse
Background
Russell Casse is a crop duster in Imperial Valley, California. His daughter is Alicia and his sons are Miguel (Independence Day)|Miguel and Troy. Russell served during the Vietnam War as a pilot and was stationed at Quang Tri Air Base in 1971. He has a brother-in-law named Hector who lives in Tucson, Arizona. Russell was abducted by aliens and probed.
During the events of Independence Day (1996) played by Randy Quaid
Miguel rides his motorcycle and waves at Russell who is flying his plane above a field and then crop dusts it. Russell lands the plane and Miguel tells him, Lucas' field is on the other side of town as Farmer Kid and his family watch and stare at Russell take a drink of liquor. Later, two Mechanics walk into a cafe and one of them starts harassing Russell about his supposed alien abduction. The cafe starts to shake and an alien spaceship appears out of the sky. The news shows Russell being arrested for placing leaflets everywhere and the Mechanics are interviewed and tell the reporter that Russell was abducted by aliens and abused sexually. As Miguel is driving their RV away, Russell is dropped off after being released from prison. Russell listens to the radio as a news broadcast tells the audience that Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and New York City have been destroyed. Troy's health starts to deteriorate and Miguel tells Russell that the other people in the RV camp are leaving. Philip stops by their RV and offers Alicia some penicillin for Troy. As Capt. Steven Hiller is dragging a Harvester in the desert he comes across the RV convoy and is picked up by Russell and the others.
Later, Major Mitchell goes out to where the RV convoy is and asks for volunteer pilots. Mitchell and Lt. Peterson give a briefing to the volunteer pilots and President Thomas J. Whitmore gives a speech about human unity and how afterwards the 4th of July will not just be an American holiday, but one celebrated by the world. He finishes his speech and then gets inside his own jet. President Whitmore and the others attack the spaceships and the missiles hit their targets. Me fires his last missile at the main alien spaceship firing device but misses. Peterson goes to fire his missile, but is blown up by an alien space craft. Russell is the last remaining pilot with a missile and attempts to fire his last missile, but it malfunctions, forcing him to kamikaze into the firing device.
