changed back to green, then disappeared.
Jamieson descended down to 100 feet above the Gulf of Oman, daring the Iranian MiG to fly down to that dark expanse of open ocean to pursue. “He might be trying a heater shot,” McLanahan said, warning Jamieson to get ready to counter a heat-seeking missile shot. But the MAWS radar showed the fighter still up at 30,000 feet, not yet pursuing.
“C’mon, this guy’s got to be running out of fuel,” Jamieson said.
“We’re nearly three hundred miles away from his base.”
“With three external tanks for an air patrol mission, he’s good to go for almost a thousand miles,” McLanahan said. He deactivated COMBAT mode once again, keeping the MAWS tracking the fighter.
“Iranian interceptor, this is Ghostrider flight of two, you just committed an act of war,” McLanahan radioed. “Turn back immediately or we will …”
But the ruse didn’t work. The B-2A’s threat scope showed the MiG-29 briefly transmit with its N-019 pulse- Doppler radar, lock on to the KC-10 tanker once again, then flick off. The MAWS radar tracked the MiG-29 until it closed within five miles of the KC-10 …
“Jesus, no!”
“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, Shamu-One-One on GUARD,” the pilot of the KC-10 Extender shouted on the international emergency frequency.
“Position, two hundred miles south of Chah Bahar airfield. We have been attacked by an Iranian fighter, repeat, we are under attack! We have been struck by missiles fired at us by …” And the radio went dead.
“Good-bye, Yankee cowards,” the Iranian pilot radioed, and the MiG-29 turned and headed back toward Iran.
As Jamieson set up an orbit over the area, McLanahan sent another message to the National Security Agency and the Air Intelligence Agency, detailing the events. Using intermittent bursts of the SAR, they orbited the Gulf of Oman over the KC-10’s wreckage for another hour until no more radar-significant debris could be detected. Silently, afraid to speak, frozen and riddled by guilt and anguish, the crew started to climb and set a course for Diego Garcia to arrange another refueling for the long trip home.
THE PENTAGON BRIEFING Room 23 APRIL 1997, 0904 HOURs ET
“I just wanted to express my concern over recent events in the Middle East,” Secretary of Defense Arthur Chastain began.
“Apparently, late last night Iran time, Iran fired several volleys of missiles from air defense sites in the Strait of Hormuz and from their aircraft carrier in the Gulf of Oman.
“The President immediately spoke to President Nateq-Nouri of Iran, who explained that there has been an air defense integration problem with the aircraft carrier battle group, and that a false alert over Bandar Abbas in the Strait of Hormuz caused a similar false alert over the aircraft carrier, causing the missile launches. At last report, no vessels or aircraft were in danger of being struck by these missiles.
“The President conveyed his deep sense of concern over this apparent demonstration of power, and he said that such demonstrations might affect the proposed summit of Middle East nations and negotiations over Iran’s proposal to exclude land-attack warships from the Persian Gulf region. The President, as you know, has endorsed President Nateq-Nouri’s proposal and has even suggested expanding the ban to land-attack aircraft. The President is awaiting a formal draft treaty before presenting it to the congressional leadership.
“To summarize: Iran apparently fired several dozen air defense missiles, anti-ship missiles, and antiaircraft artillery guns into the sky last night, Iran time. No aircraft or ships were struck, and no countries were in danger. Neither the United States nor any of the countries bordering the Gulf has put its forces on alert in response to this demonstration of power. The Defense Department speculates that this was either a malfunction, a response to a false attack alarm, or some kind of demonstration of air defense power that, frankly, wasted a lot of missiles and bullets for nothing. The President has said that he is still committed to peace in the Persian Gulf region and will not let such blatant demonstrations sway him from that objective. Thank you. What are your questions?”
“… No, we are in direct and constant communication with President Nateq-Nouri and Foreign Minister Velayati of Iran, and they assure us that Iran is not gearing up or mobilizing for war in the Persian Gulf or Gulf of Oman, or anywhere else for that matter,” Chastain replied. “He did admit that there are very pro-military persons in the Iranian government that see the Persian Gulf demilitarization treaty as a sign of weakness and as undercutting Iran’s sovereignty and national defense. Privately, some analysts have speculated—and this is only speculation— that these hawkish military leaders staged this air defense demonstration not only to threaten the Gulf Cooperative Council states and others sailing the Persian Gulf, but members of their own government as well. Yes?”
“… Yes, we’ve heard that other Iranian military bases reacted as well, and that Iranian fighter planes were flying around on full alert, but they are farther away from international waters and from routine monitoring by Gulf Cooperative Council forces, so we don’t know much about those reports. Yes, Iran’s chief of staff General Buzhazi is claiming that the United States is flying stealth bombers over his country and is threatening to attack. The idea is ridiculous. The United States has a grand total of ten B-2A bombers in the inventory, and all ten of them are still at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, and they’ve never left. In addition, the bomb wing there is not scheduled to be operational until October first.
“Let me make this point very clear, ladies and gentlemen: Iran is not threatening war with anybody, so why should we fly any aircraft over their country? In fact, President Nateq-Nouri has gone a long way toward promoting peace for the Middle East, and the President of the United States will do nothing to hinder that.
What the right-wing fanatical military leaders or the fundamentalist clerical leaders of Iran will do, and whether or not President Nateq-Nouri can control them or gain their support, is a question I just can’t answer.”
TEHRAN, IRAN LATER THAT MORNING “You arrogant, incompetent fool!” Islamic Republic of Iran President Ali Akbar Nateq-Nouri shouted angrily. He and his Cabinet ministers were meeting with military chief of staff and Pasdaran commander Buzhazi in Nateq-Nouri’s office—the meeting had been bombastic, angry, and threatening to go out of control right from the start. “How dare you march into my office, deliver a report like this to me, and have the unmitigated gall to tell me that I am preventing you from doing your job! I should court-martial you for dereliction of duty—no, I should have you sent to prison for the rest of your life for insubordination as well as dereliction of duty! But this will wait for a better time—the Supreme Defense Council is waiting.”
The Iranian Supreme Defense Council was the approving authority for all military matters in Iran. Along with its president, the Defense Minister, it consisted of the Prime Minister, Hasan Ebrihim Habibi; Buzhazi’s friend, protege, and confidant and commander of Iran’s air forces, Brigadier General Mansour Sattari; ground forces commander General Abdollah Najafi; commander of the navy Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani; chairman of the Majlis’s Armed Services Committee, Qolam Adeli; and Hamid Mirzadeh, director of the Islamic Republic News Agency and the chief of war propaganda.
“What in the name of God …?” Nateq-Nouri exclaimed under his breath, as he entered the cabinet room. Buzhazi noticed with delight that Nateq-Nouri had just realized that both Imams representing the Leadership Council were present for this meeting.
The religious leaders of the Council, together with the Faqih, His Eminence the Ayatollah Khamenei, exercised ultimate political power in the government and ultimate spiritual power in most of the Twelver Shiite Muslim world. It was unusual to have anyone representing the mullahs here at a Supreme Defense Council meeting—everyone was here but His Holiness, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ali Hoseini Khamenei himself.
“Is this a trial or an execution, Mr. President?” Buzhazi asked sotto voce to Nateq-Nouri.
“I advise you to shut your insolent mouth, General,” the President said as they took their seats at the cabinet table.
Buzhazi saw with interest that a political crony of the Defense Minister, an old lingham-sucker named General Hosein Esmail Akhundi, was sitting behind Defense Minister Foruzandeh. So apparently they had already picked his replacement, Buzhazi thought with interest. Akhundi had no military education, no experience—nothing but money and political contacts, and had been awarded a commission and instant promotion to general with seniority by presidential decree. He represented Nateq-Nouri’s slant away from the powerful, hard-line expeditionary military that Buzhazi was trying to build, and a clear movement toward a toothless dragon used merely to bully other Muslim nations.
Just before he took his seat, Buzhazi turned to his aide and said, “Bring him here and wait for my
