“So they’re off to a good start,” Vice President Kennett said.
“They’ve started as planned,” Wilding replied.
Butler looked worried. “A plan never survives the first thirty seconds of combat,” he intoned.
For the first time in four weeks, Wilding smiled. “I think this one will. And for good reason. The first convoy arrived eighteen hours early and is docking as we speak. We will have the troops and equipment in place and ready to commence Operation Anvil Monday. The Air Force has destroyed the tunnels at the northern end of Saddam’s Spider, and nothing is moving on the southern end.” He looked at his president with deep respect. “Madam President, your strategy to trap the bulk of the UIF in the Spider was brilliant.”
Bobbi Jo couldn’t contain herself. “When can we go public with this?”
“For now,” Turner replied, “we’re not. We’re simply going to let the facts speak for themselves.” She looked around the table. “I’ve got an election to win. Is there anything else?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Butler said. “But given the sensitivity, perhaps it would be best if Miss Reynolds…”
“Bobbi Jo,” Turner said, “would you be kind enough to meet with me later?”
Butler waited until Reynolds had left. “Madam President, I’m very worried about Malaysia. If I may.” He punched at a hand controller, and the center screen changed to a map of central Malaysia. “The PLA is pushing hard down the center of the peninsula. SEAC’s main forces have taken up a defensive line anchored on the town of Segamat and are reported in contact with advanced elements of the PLA. The analysts at DIA don’t think SEAC can hold Segamat and will have to fall back to here.” He pointed to Camp Alpha. “Alpha is not defensible, and my analysts expect it to fall within days. There is nothing between Alpha and Singapore to stop them.”
Turner stood up. “How soon before we can redeploy to Malaysia?”
“We have some hard fighting ahead of us in the Gulf,” Wilding said. “Without Operation Anvil, the Germans are at risk.”
“I’m not asking for you to be a miracle worker,” Turner told him.
Wilding thought for a moment. “Two weeks at the earliest.”
Bobbi Jo floated back to her office on the second floor of the West Wing. Grau, she thought, calling up an image of a barbecued seal, you’re dead meat. She sat down at her desk and kicked back as it all fell into place. “Lordy, Lord, Lord,” she sang. “Patrick, you should have been there.” She cocked her head, thinking. She rummaged in her gigantic handbag for the tape cassette he had given her at the debate. The clarity of the tape surprised her when she played it, and she instantly recognized Leland’s voice. Is that the secretary of defense? she wondered. Where did Shaw get this? She replayed it, and all the pieces fell into place. “Oh, my God!”
Shaw had trained her well.
Twenty-nine
It was still dark when the pilots gathered at the back of the hardened shelter for the mass briefing. Pontowski and Maggot stood at the back while Waldo went down the lineup, detailing each pilot to an aircraft and going over the ATO Pontowski had delivered just after midnight. In principle it was simple enough. SEAC wanted them to keep two A-10s for close air support on station throughout daylight hours, with two more on five-minute alert. When the first two had expended their ordnance or had to return to base to refuel, the two alert birds would launch. Then two more Hogs would come on status, ready to launch in five minutes. But as Waldo pointed out, the simple things are always hard. Then he turned it over to an Intelligence officer to update the situation.
It was the young lieutenant’s first briefing, and his face was somber and his voice matter-of-fact as he reviewed what they were up against. “The PLA is in contact with SEAC here, sixty miles to the northwest.” He pointed to the town of Segamat. “If the PLA can capture the bridge across the river at Segamat, there’ll only be three minor river crossings, all fordable, between them and us.”
“Can we go home now?” a pilot called.
“I’m working on it,” the lieutenant replied, never missing a beat.
The weapons and tactics officer was next. He quickly outlined how the Singapore Air Force would have two F-16s on station for SEAD, or suppression of enemy air defenses. SEAD was a three-dimensional chess game in which the goal was to kill surface-to-air missiles and cheating was required. Then it was Maggot’s turn. “This is the big Kahuna,” he told them, “the reason we’re here. Let’s do it right.”
The pilot called Neck, short for Red Neck, taxied his heavily loaded Hog into position on Waldo’s left side. He gave Waldo the high sign that he was ready to go. Waldo ran his engines up and released his brakes. Neck punched at the clock on his instrument panel, starting the elapsed-time hand. Fifteen seconds later he ran his engines up and, when the second hand touched twenty, released his brakes. The Hog rolled down the runway, slowly at first, then gaining speed. He eased the stick back, and the nose gear came unstuck. He caught a glimpse of Pontowski standing beside his car at the first taxiway intersection. Just as he lifted off, Pontowski threw him a salute.
Waldo turned out to the left, giving Neck cutoff room to join up. Neck slid into an easy route formation on the left. “Fence check,” Waldo ordered. Neck’s hands flew over the switches, making sure his Hog was ready for combat. He double-checked everything, leaving only the master arm switch in the off position. Four minutes later Waldo radioed the ALO, the air-liaison officer, at Segamat. The ALO cleared them into the area and told them to contact the FAC, the forward air controller, on the ground. High above, two F-16s cut a graceful arc, trolling for action. Almost immediately Neck’s radar warning gear was screaming at him. He glanced at the scope. A monopulse radar was active, signifying a SAM launch. Above him, the two F-16s jinked hard, splitting apart. One rolled in on a target, buried its nose, and then pulled up. A missile streaked by, not able to turn with the F-16. The F-16 did a violent Split-S as a second missile flashed by. Then the second F-16 was in. An antiradiation missile leaped from under its left wing. It was Neck’s first combat mission, and he would not have believed the speed of the antiradiation missile if he hadn’t seen it. His warning gear continued to scream at him, and he turned the volume down. He saw a flash on the ground, and his RWR gear went quiet. The antiradiation missile had done its job.
Waldo contacted the FAC, who asked if he had the green smoke on the northern edge of town in sight. “Affirmative,” Waldo answered, his voice calm. The FAC cleared them to engage any target north or northwest of the green smoke. “Understand cleared in hot,” Waldo transmitted. “Take spacing,” he ordered, dropping to the deck. As they had briefed before taking off, Neck peeled off to the left and leveled off at a hundred feet above the ground to run in at a cross angle behind Waldo. He double-checked his armament-control paneclass="underline" bombs ripple, stations three and nine, high drag, nose fusing, gun high rate of fire. He was ready. He breathed faster. Ahead of him, Waldo was pulling off, and he saw the silver ballutes, inflatable balloon/parachutes, deploy behind each bomb, slowing them so Waldo could scamper to safety and avoid the bombs’ blast.
“Your six is clear,” Neck radioed. “I’m in.” He headed for the road running north out of the town. Four trucks and what looked like two armored vehicles were at his ten o’clock position. People were scattering in all directions, running for cover. He pulled back on the stick and popped to fifteen hundred feet. He rolled the Hog and apexed at eighteen hundred feet, too high, as he brought the nose around, placing the lead vehicle at the top of his HUD, or head-up display. The target moved down the projected bomb-impact line and into the bomb reticle. Looking good. He depressed the pickle button so the system would automatically release the bombs when all delivery parameters were met. For a fraction of a second the pipper was on the target, centered in the bomb reticle. Six bombs should have rippled off the ejection racks, but nothing happened.