In post-war Shanghai, at a U.S. Army hospital, aviation war hero Major Larry Briggs learns that his buddy, Captain Mike Perry, has only two months to live due to a head injury.  Rather than break the bad news to Mike, who has no family, Larry and Sergeant Pete Rocco decide to pack Mike's remaining two months with "one hundred years of good living" after their discharge from the Army.

To this aim, Larry accepts a flight assignment paying $10,000 from Alex Maris.  Maris claims to be fanatical about promptness, but when his secretary, Susan Cleaver, shows up on time for the trip, and Maris arrives a half hour late with police gunning for him, Larry takes off without him in the interest of self-preservation.

Although they are headed for Saigon, Larry is forced to make an emergency landing after both engines fail.  Susan takes an immediate dislike to Larry, especially after he forcefully wrests his $10,000 payment from her.  After checking into a small hotel, the Americans come under suspicion from police lieutenant Keon, who believes they might be smugglers.  When Larry realizes that Mike is falling in love with Susan, he confronts the beautiful blonde, who is carrying $500,000 in a briefcase, and demands that she leave immediately.

Larry later changes his mind because Mike is crushed by Susan's apparent disappearance, and blackmails her into agreeing to entertain Mike or be turned over to Keon.  To their surprise, Keon joins them on a boat sailing for Saigon.  Larry cleverly steals the money and has it mailed to himself at the post office in Saigon, so that Keon finds nothing incriminating when he searches Susan's room.  Susan accuses Larry of double-crossing her, but he insists that he has saved her, and she softens when she learns of Mike's prognosis.

By the time they reach Saigon, Larry sees a kinder, gentler Susan, who, in turn, has fallen in love with Larry even though Mike has proposed to her.  Soon after, Maris shows up unexpectedly in Susan's hotel room and threatens to tell Mike the truth if she does not return his money.  Maris and his brutal valet, Simon, hold Larry hostage until morning, when the post office opens.  When Pete realizes what is happening, he struggles with Simon, but both men die after they fall from a balcony.

Susan, meanwhile, cooperates with Keon, who arranges for the post office to release the package early, and explains that Maris, who stole the $500,000, is actually a war conspirator.  After Maris gets the money, he and Simon open gunfire on Larry and Mike, and both Mike and Maris are killed.  After Mike's funeral, Susan and Larry start a new life together.