“Good. Captains Wong and Chong, have you completed parachute training?” the general asked.
“Yes, but just basic training and the minimum amount of jumps needed,” Captain Wong replied.
“The crew of the HC-130, are you there?” the general asked.
“Yes sir, Captain Pierce here,” the commander of the aircraft answered.
“Captain Pierce, what is the range of your 130 if you take her up fully fueled with a payload of 5,000 lbs., bleed all the tanker fuel into your tanks and, instead of refueling another aircraft you refuel yourself? If I’m right, you can increase your range to 6,800 miles?”
“In that configuration and depending on cruise speed and altitude, I think we could do more than that. I reckon on closer to 7,000 miles, sir. Maximum range is 4,500 miles, plus 2,000 miles of tanker fuel, plus a reduced cruise of 330 miles an hour at maximum altitude; 32,000 feet,” Captain Pierce replied.
“The 747 flights into JFK came in from the east, but I bet they went over the polar route to get here. Am I right Captain Wong? You flew the 747 back here to McGuire, right?” asked the general.
“Yes sir. We had already turned north 30 minutes out of U.S. international airspace at 32,000 feet to head over the polar route and in the direction of China, when we left the transporter and ‘crashed’ due to fuel starvation,” Captain Wong replied.
“This is crazy, but listen to my plan,” continued the General. “I believe that the 130 can get you over the polar icecap to Osan, South Korea. The flight will be about 6,800 miles. If necessary, you can go in early at Misawa, Japan, which will be around 200-300 miles shorter. Carlos can help you navigate. Take the two mobile beacons Lee has repaired with you, and I will give you instructions as to where to leave them once I get to where I’m going. I want as many pilots and co-pilots who can fly 747s or Airbus 380s that you can fill into the back of the 130.
“All the new and modern aircraft are the same to fly in the long run. Captain Pierce, you will have enough pilots in your back seat to help you get there. Refuel in Osan or Misawa and go low into Shanghai Pudong International Airport. I hope to be there to fly in with you. It’s imperative that all the men who can fit in the back of the C-130 are able to parachute out. They will do so at low level a mile or so away from the airport. You can take all the old satellite photos and maps of the area around Pudong in our classified files that you need to finalize your attack plan while in the air. Under the command of Lieutenant Smith, I want you to infiltrate the airport. You should find dozens of beautiful aircraft, and I’m sure they will be fully fueled and ready to go. Beware; there could be thousands of soldiers in the area ready for deployment into New York in a week or two. I want you to fly out as many aircraft as you can. If they are not refueled, fly them into Osan. Even an unrefueled 747 could fly as far as South Korea on reserves. If they are full of fuel, then fly them straight to our base in Turkey.
“Now, the mission will be dangerous and will take as many pilots as you can fit to help fly the aircraft out of there. I reckon there are up to 30 aircraft waiting for us. Even a set of Chinese pilots flying the aircraft with three Marines itching to shoot their nuts off should want them to get airborne and give us another few planes. Captain Pierce, you will drop them in at less than 1,000 feet and then you are out of there if I’m not around, understood?”
Everybody agreed to a plan that would be finalized in the air.
“You guys need to get going, because I’m going to hang around this area and I hope to be over Pudong with our three re-armed gunships in case you need help. One more thing, guys. I don’t believe the Red Army, or the Red Guards, or whatever they call themselves will shoot at the 747s while they are taxiing for take-off. Shooting their own aircraft will piss-off their boss and destroy their only way to get to New York. Major Patterson, Captain Wong, we’ll need you to do your Supreme Commander ‘thing’ again.”
“Yes, sir,” both men replied, smiling broadly.
“You guys prepare. Patterson, get an aircraft immediately down to North Carolina to pick up the parachutes and get them back to McGuire. Actually, Carlos, call up Preston and get Buck in the DC-3 to pick up 30 parachutes and reserves from Camp Lejeune and fly them up to you at McGuire. That will save you an hour. You should be on the ground in China in 24 hours, which gives me enough time to see Beijing and hopefully Moscow before flying back to Osun and meeting up with you. Now go!” The men left.
“Carlos I’m going to put on transponders and leave them on. I don’t want to go into a foreign county’s capital without warning them, if they can see me.” Carlos watched as four transponders began blinking on the screen a second later. The general was 100 miles south of the Capital of China, and still hadn‘t seen one aircraft other than the three around him.
General Allen flew into Beijing Capital International Airport an hour later. It was three in the morning, and the airport was dark and quiet. They had found the main runway through infrared scanners, and they did a sweep over the runway surface with landing lights, noticing thin patches of ice here and there, but mostly dry asphalt. They did not have much information on the airport. It wasn’t one the Air Force frequented, and Google was not available, so they couldn’t just pull up what they wanted.
The three gunships went into a wide arc flying low over the main city, hoping to attract attention, and then flew out a couple of miles and turned into long finals. With the main runway far ahead of them in the dark, the general turned on all their lights, again trying to grab attention, and the fourth aircraft with its lights on was circling above the runway guiding them in. They landed without a problem. One gunship reversed back to the beginning of the runway, and the other two taxied to the other end so that there were lights on either end for the tanker to land.
Once they were all on the ground, they formed up behind Ghost Rider and looked for a place to park. The nearest terminal, full of Air China aircraft, looked the best. It was weird to see a terminal with every one of its bays full with aircraft. The Chinese had certainly known about the pending event, and Pete wondered if any of the aircraft were flyable.
They parked in a line behind a couple of older Air China 747s and brought their engines to a stop. There was no welcoming committee, and the general donned a winter coat. With two pilots carrying carbines, they stretched their legs and walked across to the empty terminal with flashlights. It was totally shut down and there were no lights anywhere. He climbed the ladder up a moveable walkway to the terminal and opened the door. It was unlocked, as was the door to an Air China 747.
He walked in with his flashlight and found his way to the flight deck. He pushed several buttons, which in normal operation would have given him a response, but this aircraft was as dead as the rest around the world. He walked out and down the ladder in time to see an old army jeep with its lights on pull up to the aircraft, guns pointing from both sides. The 20mm Gatling guns in Easy Girl had already swiveled and were pointing directly at the jeep with its four occupants, which was several yards away from Ghost Rider.
General Allen, with his general’s star shining brightly, walked up to the jeep and stated “American Air Force” to the four men, who turned their rifles on him. “Does anybody speak English?” he asked to non-comprehending stares. Two men got out of the jeep. He stared directly at the highest ranking man who looked like a lieutenant or a captain and General Allen shouted out to anyone in Ghost Rider to bring out Mrs. Wang. The Chinese soldier didn’t really know what to do, but saw the insignia on the general’s coat and snapped to attention. The rest followed suit. Rank was, after all, rank.