The red light came on.
“Good evening,” Macklin said with a solemn look. He paused to school his voice. Don’t frown.
“My fellow Americans, and our friends around the world, I come to you this evening with a heavy heart. Our nation and our citizens are being attacked by governments that substitute terrorism for statesmanship and anti-Americanism for religious belief.”
Viewers were spellbound. On every continent, in homes, businesses, hotels, resorts, and bars, most conversations came to an abrupt end.
“The despicable acts of terrorism that have killed and injured so many of our citizens will not be overlooked or forgotten. As we mourn our dead and injured, I want to explain some important facts to those who choose to be our enemies.”
Macklin’s eyes were riveted on the camera lens.
“Terrorism will not be tolerated,” he said with deep passion in his voice. “Not while I’m president of the United States of America. As I speak, the sponsors of these cowardly attacks are paying a stiff penalty for their transgressions. If the terrorist attacks continue, their sponsors will pay even greater penalties. If we apprehend these barbarians, we will prosecute them to the extent the law allows. Make no mistake about my commitment. No one, and no amount of condemnation, is going to dissuade me from the course I have charted.”
An eerie quiet pervaded the Oval Office.
“We do not have a dispute with the citizens of the countries that support terrorism. However, if your leaders allow these deliberate and murderous acts of terrorism to continue, lives will be lost on your side, innocent lives.”
The president paused to swallow.
“My fellow citizens, the United States of America is under siege. As long as I reside in the White House, your country will remain safe and secure. Our military, the finest and best-equipped military in the world, stands by to protect each and every one of you. These contemptible acts of violence have shattered our peaceful lives for the moment, but we’re Americans, and, we will rise to the challenge of vanquishing the terrorists and their backers.”
Macklin’s jaw hardened.
“Before I close my remarks, I must make one thing crystal clear to the terrorists and to their sponsors. We know who you are, and we have you in our crosshairs. If this cowardly assault on our country continues, I promise you that I will punish you round-the-clock. I will punish you until you have no military assets or infrastructure left. You will rue the day you attacked the citizens of the United States of America.”
The president clenched his jaw muscles. Easy, nothing dramatic.
“My fellow citizens, I pledge to you that I will stop this reign of terror. Good night, and Godspeed.”
Nine minutes after the president made his promise, the B-2 Advanced Technology Bomber Spirit of South Carolina lifted off the runway and climbed into the moonlit sky. In the space of six minutes, five more stealth bombers from the 509th Bombardment Wing were on their way to the “rogue” nations that supported international terrorism.
The $2.3-billion warplanes were carrying assorted bomb loads, including the Joint Direct Attack Munition, 4,500-pound deep-penetrating bombs, and the B61 “bunker buster” hydrogen bombs. Two of the front-line aircraft, call signs Darth 66 and Darth 63, were configured to carry eighty 500-pound bombs in the two weapons bays.
The most survivable U.S. aircraft in the fleet, the sinister-looking “batplane” is virtually undetectable to acoustic signatures, infrared and radar. With the assistance of KC-10 advanced tanker/cargo aircraft from the 60th Air Mobility Wing at Travis Air Force Base and the 305th AMW at McGuire AFB, the B-2 bombers can take part in a battle mission anywhere in the world within twenty-four hours, then return safely to their base at Whiteman.
Eight F-117A Nighthawks from the 9th Fighter Squadron of the 49th Fighter Wing were in the process of taking off for the long flight to the Middle East. Another eight warplanes from the “Black Sheep” of the 8th Fighter Squadron were preparing to take off. With a radar cross section of one one-hundredth of a square yard — the size of a small bird — the “Wobblin’ Goblin” is an invisible bomber that can hit a target the size of a coffee table.
The unique design of the single-seat stealth airplane provides incredible combat capabilities. Loaded with laser-guided weapons, the sleek strike fighter can destroy hardened targets with devastating accuracy. The pilots had been given extremely high-resolution KH-11 spacecraft images of their target areas and specific objectives. Like the B-2s, the Night-hawk aviators would use KC-10 and KC-135 tanker aircraft to complete their mission.
Oh Hard Luck and seven other supersonic B-1B bombers from the 28th Bomb Squadron roared into the star-studded sky and set course for targets that included terrorist training camps, logistics centers, chemical and biological weapons plants, underground command and control centers, and safe houses for international terrorists.
While the strategic warplanes climbed to altitude, six additional B-1B Lancers from the “Bones” of the 77th Bomb Squadron at Ellsworth Air Force Base lifted into the night and began their long flight to the Middle East. All of the intercontinental planes contained conventional 500-pound and 1,000-pound bombs.
Four additional B-1B bombers based in Thumrait, Oman, would fly multiple missions to destroy terrorist training centers and weapons-storage facilities.
After one of the B-52 pilots aborted his takeoff because of a faltering engine, five other long-range strategic bombers from the 2nd Bombardment Wing departed for a thirty-six-hour, nonstop combat mission to the Gulf region. With an unrefueled range in excess of 8,800 statute miles, aerial refueling gives the eight-engined “Stratofortress” a range limited only by crew endurance.
Although the airplane can carry a significant array of weapons, the heavy bombers from the 20th Bomb Squadron were configured with revolver-type launcher systems to carry eight subsonic Conventional Air Launched Cruise Missiles. This arrangement, coupled with worldwide precision navigation equipment, gives the B-52H an incredibly accurate “drive-by shooting” capability.
The sun was barely above the horizon when Jackie and Scott donned their life vests and boarded the LongRanger. She quickly brought the ship to life and contacted the control tower while he arranged the charts and energized the handheld VHF marine radio.
Seconds later Jackie lifted the helo into the air and headed straight toward the beach. Scott checked his Sig Sauer before he picked up the binoculars and began scanning the vast ocean. Since few pleasure boats were out at this time of the morning, he was looking forward to covering a lot of water in the next hour or two.
Jackie gave him a fleeting glance. “Let’s try about ten miles out at a thousand feet. That way we’ll have a wider reference.”
“That sounds fine.”
“What does your intuition tell you?” she asked with a faint smile. “Will we locate them today?”
“According to my calculations,” Scott said while he searched for large yachts, “we should catch up to them later this afternoon.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“Trust me,” he said confidently, then smiled broadly.
Jackie rolled her eyes as she leveled the helo at 1,000 feet.
The first officer of the corporate-owned Boeing 737 listened to the ATIS information for the Chicago-O’Hare International Airport, then contacted the Air Route Traffic Control Center. The controller cleared the flight to descend and maintain 11,000 feet. He cautioned the crew about reported turbulence below 10,000 feet.