Suddenly, without the least warning, there was a silvery flash ahead of
them as a fighter interceptor, coming from below them, pulled up steeply
across their bows.
Jannie shouted with surprise and an eras another two 9 warplanes
rocketed up from under them, so close that they were buffeted by the
turbulence of their jet trails.
They all recognized the type. They were MiG21 'fishheads' sporting the
Egyptian air force livery, and with air-to-air missiles hanging in
menacing pods under their swept-back wings.
'Unidentified aircraft! Jannie yelled into his mouthpiece. 'You are on
collision course. State your call sign!' They all craned their necks and
stared up through -he Perspex canopy over the flight-deck. High above
them they could see the three MiG fighters in formation circling against
the blue of the African sky.
'ZVVU 500. This is Red Leader of the Egyptian people's air force. You
will conform to my orders.'
Jannie looked back at Nicholas, his expression forlorn.
low, A
something has gone wrong here. How the hell did they tumble to us?'
'You' better do what the man says, Dad,' Fred advised miserably,
'otherwise he is going to blow us all over the sky.'
Jarnie shrugged helplessly, and then spoke into his microphone
mournfully. 'Red Leader, This is ZVVU 500.
We will cooperate. Please state your intentions.'
'Your new heading is 053. Execute immediately!' Jannie brought Big Dolly
around into the east and then glanced at his chart.
'Aswan!' he said dolefully. 'The Gyppos are taking us to Aswan. What the
hell, I might as well warn Aswan tower that we have wounded on board.'
Nicholas went back to Royans bunk and shook her awake. She was groggy
and unsteady on her feet from the effects of the drug as she staggered
to the lavatory. However, when she emerged again ten minutes later her
hair was combed and she seemed alert and recovered from the mild draught
that she had drunk in her tea. - here was the Nile ahead of them once
more, 6.. and the town of Aswan on both banks, nestling below the first
cataract and the impounded waters of the High Dam. Kitchener's Island
swam like a green fish in the middle of the stream.
As the voice of the military controller at the Aswan irfield gave Jannie
his orders, Big Dolly settled with unruffled dignity and lined up for
the straight-in approach to the tarmac runway. The MiG fighters which
had shepherded them in from the desert were no longer visible, but their
presence high above was betrayed by their terse radio transmissions as
they handed over their captive to the ground control.
Big Dolly sailed in over the perimeter fence and touched down, and the
voice of the controller ordered them, 'Turn first taxi-way right.'
Jannie obeyed, and as he turned off the main runway there was a small
vehicle with a sign on its roof which read, in both English and Arabic,
'FOLLOW ME'.
The vehicle led them to a row of camouflaged concrete hangars in front
of which a ground crew in khaki overalls signalled them with paddles
into a parking stand. As soon as Jannie applied his brakes and brought
