enlisted men and women responsible for all the electrical gear on the birds
died away. It took Quality Assurance inspectors longer to get around to
certifying electrical branch repairs, and Chief Franklin had just dumped a
two-foot-high stack of repair part inventories on his desk, with a note
attached saying that the Chief was sure the pilot might have some input for
the latest parts requirements request. While Bird Dog’s peers seemed to spend
more time in the rack than they did in their work centers, Bird Dog’s in box
was filling up at an alarming rate.
The problems just convinced Bird Dog that Electrical Branch was even more
in need of his personal attention than he’d originally thought. And as for
Chief Franklin, Bird Dog hoped that a little more of an officer’s leadership
would bring the man around to the new Navy way of doing things.
CHAPTER 3
Tuesday, 25 June
1438 local (Zulu +5)
JAST Development Program Office
The Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
Captain Wayne studied the satellite imagery carefully, and then compared
it with the one from the day before. No doubt about it–the South China Sea
was missing one rock.
“Son of a bitch,” he breathed, as he leafed through the rest of the
briefing package. Even after his months at the Pentagon, the capabilities of
satellite surveillance still stunned him. Pictures of events happening over
five thousand miles away were hand-carried to his desk by an armed courier
before the on-scene commander even had time to figure out what had happened.
“Not a chance anyone survived that blast long enough to drown, Batman,”
Admiral Dunflere said. “Hell of a way to go. It’s not like that boat could
even fight back.”
Both men shivered slightly. The idea of being trapped in a small boat,
at the mercy of almost any other platform, was repulsive to any fighter pilot.
At least in the air they’d die fighting back.
“Where was this, Admiral?” Batman asked his boss. “Anywhere near
Mischief Reef?”
“Five miles to the south,” Admiral Dunflere replied. “That whole area’s
thick with reefs, shoals, and rocks. The Vietnamese outposts are damned near
within spitting distance of the Chinese ones. That battle group commander
must be sweating some water space management problems just trying to keep from
going aground. And if he has to maneuver worrying about sea-skimmers …
better him than me. Interesting tactical situation, don’t you think? Suggest
anything to you?”
“That’s Stoney’s battle group, you know,” Batman remarked casually. “Old
friend of mine from way back.”
“He’s on the scene,” the admiral agreed pleasantly. “Helluva
coincidence.”
“If you’re thinking what I’m thinking, it’s more than that. Stoney’s got
a sea-skimmer problem, and we’ve got a new toy that might just make his life a
little easier. Course, we’d make the same offer to any on-scene commander,
but it sure does make it easier if it’s Stoney.”
“Great minds think alike,” his boss said, and grinned. “Why don’t you
give your old lead a call, and see how life’s treating him? Let’s get a
response before we start generating message traffic–I want us all singing in
the same key on this before we go public.”
“Roger, copy, Admiral. If I know Stoney, he’s going to be awful glad to
see his old buddy about now.”
“As glad as any operational commander ever is to see someone from
Washington,” the Admiral replied.
Wednesday, 26 June
0700 local (Zulu -7)
Flight Deck
USS Jefferson
“AE Branch! Atten-hut!” the Chief snapped.
Bird Dog walked toward the eighteen technicians assembled in three neat
ranks for morning quarters. Some were in dungarees with chambray shirts or
green pullovers while others wore coveralls. A scruffy-looking lot, he
thought as he approached them. Although Bird Dog had been on the carrier for
almost a month, he was still struggling with names and faces of the
technicians who worked in AE–Aviation Electricians–division.
Appearances were important, he reminded himself. He’d taken extra care
with his uniform that morning, even polishing the gold belt buckle to a
brilliant shine to convey the impression of leadership, of a sharp, polished
officer. By God, it was time for a change in attitude in AE Branch. These
people would know they didn’t have a slacker for a Branch officer.