Luring people into suns -- why does it work so much?

A variation on the Emergency Bat Turn for the 60s TV Batmobile, complete with a support team truck that races out to collect the detached parachute.

 

Reminds me of the Serenity in Firefly trying to outmaneuver a hostile ship, diving into a canyon, pulling off all kinds of impressive piloting only for the crew to realize their enemy simply followed them above the canyon rim to drop bombs.