Upon reviewing the battle on VHS, it looks like the
Galactica has a through deck flight deck, a la the old
Essex -class carriers. So, when Lee and Kara crashed, they must have hit the forward hull bulkhead where the flight deck meets the hull when the deck is retracted. That's my guess.
As of flying over the other fighters... looks like Kara got REAL lucky and missed them all. Good spot of flying overall.
Any guesses as to the anti-aircraft guns? Are they manned or are they not?