"Our Prime Minister" — Hagura looked at the President while Yamagata Isoroku stared straight ahead—"has suggested that he and Foreign Minister Katsumoto meet with you and Secretary Tidwell in Anchorage, Alaska, as quickly as the necessary security arrangements can be worked out.
"Our leaders," the Ambassador went on in a grave and formal manner, "have agreed to a collective plan we feel will be in the best interest of both great countries, and Prime Minister Koyama wishes to personally present it to you."
"That sounds like an excellent beginning." The President smiled broadly and turned to his Chief of Staff. "Scott, I'd like you to work out the details with Ambassador Hagura, and then let's get under way as soon as possible."
Chapter 25
Kitty Hawk steamed slowly downwind eighteen miles northwest of Langsa, Sumatra, while the pilots and naval flight officers emerged from their quiet, air-conditioned ready rooms to preflight their aircraft. All appeared to be in order, business as usual, but a strange sense of foreboding had spread among the officers and sailors.
As the aircrews spread out among the F/A-18 Hornets, A-6 Intruders, S-3 Vikings, E-2C Hawkeyes, and F-14 Tomcats, the tempo of operations rapidly increased. Helicopters, planes, white tractor tugs, and flight crews crisscrossed in a surrealistic ballet of moving aircraft and imminent danger. People ducked under moving wings and simultaneously dodged wheels and other obstacles while they went about their hazardous jobs.
The studious-looking aircrews, encumbered by their green flight suits, boots, g-suits, torso harnesses, oxygen masks, and helmets, scrutinized their airplanes for any structural damage and checked the security of the external fuel tanks, missiles, and bombs. Next, they looked for fuel or hydraulic leaks, then peered into jet intakes to assure that nothing would be sucked through the engine's fragile innards.
Because of the aircraft carrier's relatively slow speed, everyone on the flight deck was breathing the dense, acrid black smoke from the funnels used to vent the exhaust gases from the ship's oil-fired boilers.
When the external checks were completed, the aircrews climbed into their cockpits and began the familiar task of helping the plane captains strap them to their ejection seats. This was an extremely important ritual for each person because their lives might depend on the explosive seat to propel them clear of a doomed airplane.
After they were secured to their ejection seat, each crew member went through the routine of checking the multitudes of dials, switches, buttons, knobs, circuit breakers, levers, and gauges. One small item missed, whether it was overlooked or out of place, could spell instantaneous disaster for the aircrews or the individuals who worked on the perilous flight deck.
Once the prestart checklists were completed, the pilots started their engines and checked all the systems for any anomalies. After satisfying themselves that all the temperatures and pressures were normal, the aviators carefully checked their flight controls and waited for the carrier to turn into the wind and increase speed.
Shortly thereafter, the conventionally powered Kitty Hawk and her array of escort ships commenced a sweeping turn to prepare for the first launch of the day. The flotilla of escort ships executed the course reversal at precisely the same time as the flattop.
Although the carrier provided an airborne knockout punch, it rarely operated alone. Armed with Sea Sparrow missiles to shoot down high-flying threats or surface-skimming targets, and automatically fired Vulcan Phalanx cannons for close-in protection, the floating airfield was still vulnerable to attack and relied heavily on the escort ships.
While the Aegis guided-missile cruiser Cowpens took up station off the starboard side of the 80,000-ton carrier, the plane-guard guided missile cruiser William H. Standley eased into position two miles astern the Hawk.
The Belknap-class cruiser would be responsible for working in harmony with the carrier's designated plane-guard helicopter. Together, they had the responsibility for search and rescue missions during flight operations. The small Sikorsky SH-60 helicopter, which had a specially trained rescue swimmer on board, would fly near the starboard side of the flattop.
The pace on the flight deck increased even more as the aircraft began to taxi forward toward the catapults. The flight-deck personnel had to avoid the searing heat from the powerful jet exhausts while they sidestepped the propellers from the screeching turboprops of the E-2C Hawkeye. Others kept an eye out for the jet intakes, which could suck an unwary deck-hand into the gaping openings leading to the engines.
Operating in international waters, the air group could launch warplanes in international airspace without permission from local authorities, hostile governments, or capricious politicians. The mammoth Hawk, as a sovereign United States territory, is capable of projecting tremendous power with a flexible mobility unknown to other countries.
Although the huge aircraft carrier is highly visible during daylight hours in clear weather, the ship can disappear in bad weather, especially on stormy nights. The aircraft can launch and recover, in almost any conditions, with the ship's radars and communications systems completely shut down to conceal the carrier's position.
The Group Two E-2C early-warning command-and-control aircraft was positioned on the number-two catapult while the carrier's four screws accelerated the flattop to thirty knots. The all-weather surveillance and strike-control airplane would launch first in order to relieve the Hawkeye that was currently orbiting high above the carrier group.
The yellow-shirted catapult officer gave the Hawkeye aircraft commander the full-power signal, returned the pilot's snappy salute, then gave the deckedge operator permission to shoot the straining airplane.
After the E-2C blasted down the catapult and clawed for altitude, the Tomcats, Hornets, Vikings, Intruders, and a radar-jamming EA6-B Prowler taxied forward to be launched.
From a standing start, each jet rocketed the length of the catapults in approximately 21/2 seconds, reaching speeds up to 170 knots as they flew off the bow.
From his large, comfortable chair perched on the left side of the flag bridge, Rear Admiral Isaac Landesman scanned the expansive flight deck and then focused his attention on a single Grumman F-14 Tomcat as it approached the number-two catapult track.
When the primary emphasis in carrier aviation strategy shifted from the Cold War open-water tactics to littoral concerns, some of the F-14s were fitted with racks for Mk-80 series bombs. The newly configured fighter/bombers were quickly dubbed "Bombcats" by the aircrews.
The swing-wing, twin-engined Mach 2 air-superiority fighter, which had been plagued with a mechanical problem during the frenzied launch sequence, was finally fixed and ready to fly its mission.
With the variable-sweep wings extended for maximum lift, the pilot shoved the synchronized throttles forward to military power, then into afterburner. The nozzles on the aft section of the powerful turbofan engines squeezed the superheated thrust into a screeching, white-hot tongue of flame that scorched the jet-blast deflector.
After a thorough check of the engine instruments and a full sweep of his flight controls, the young aviator gave the catapult officer a casual salute, braced his helmet against the ejection-seat headrest, and held his breath.
Suddenly, the sleek fighter squatted down and shot forward while the pilot and his radar-intercept officer were instantaneously shoved back into their ejection seats. The heavy g-forces rendered the crew helpless until the Tomcat hurtled off the bow and into the air.
Landesman reached for the ringing phone that was his direct link to the command-and-control facilities. "Landesman."
"Admiral," the senior watch officer said, "Square Dance Seven-Zero-Three reports at least five Japanese Aegis destroyers, along with various support ships, have entered the strait… and Square D confirms two Chinese guided-missile destroyers are about to enter the strait."