request to use it. The West Coast OTH-B system is in warm storage, and the Alaskan system was canceled about fourteen years ago and was never even completed.”
“Can the West Coast system be reactivated, General?” Goff asked.
“Yes, sir — but it would take about two weeks to calibrate it and certify its accuracy and reliability,” Shepard replied. “Even then it might not be reliable enough to give you the information you want. The AWACS planes are your best bet, sir. You get them airborne, and we can plug them into the network right away and have wall-to-wall coverage. The AWACS information is merged into North Warning and all the other ground-radar facilities, and it forms a very complete three-dimensional picture.”
“The AWACS are on the way, General Shepard,” Venti said. He turned to Goff and said, “Sir, I request that NORAD direct Eielson, Elmendorf, and Cold Lake to generate NORAD-dedicated Bravo-force alert sorties as quickly as possible.”
“Agreed,” Secretary Goff responded. The “Bravo” alert sorties were additional crews and fighters readied for duty behind the frontline planes and crews; unfortunately, it usually took several hours to prepare them for action.
“On the way, sir,” Shepard said immediately, picking up a phone. General Muskoka made a note and handed it offscreen to his deputy. NORAD usually requested support from Air Combat Command for additional planes for the fighter-interceptor alert mission, so he wanted his fighter units ready to get the call and start lining up birds.
“General Houser, what other support can you provide for this operation?” Venti asked.
“Sir, the best support Space Command can offer, other than the systems already mentioned, is the Defense Support Program constellation,” Houser replied. “The DSP satellites are designed to detect the ‘hot dots’ from ballistic-missile launches but can be tuned to detect smaller heat sources, such as bomber exhausts, traveling across the cold ocean or polar icecaps. It’ll take away from their primary function of ballistic-missile launch warning, and as such I recommend against retuning DSP. Once we get the AWACS planes airborne, sir, I think we’ll have all the coverage we need.
“Unfortunately, HAVE GAZE and SLOW WALKER are committed to operations in Central Asia, and it’ll take several days to focus them in on any specific area of northern Alaska or Canada.” HAVE GAZE and SLOW WALKER were infrared satellites and sensors designed to detect and track small missiles and aircraft. But unlike DSP satellites, in which just three satellites could cover the entire globe, the other two satellites had to be focused on a specific area to be effective. “DSP and AWACS are the best options we have without degrading our strategic surveillance.”
“I agree,” General Shepard said. “If the Russians really are gearing up for some sort of offensive, NORAD relies on DSP for the first indication of ballistic missile launch, both land-and sea-based. All our other ballistic- missile launch-warning systems are limited because they require the missiles to cross the relative horizon — that reduces launch-warning time anywhere from two to eight minutes. Only DSP gives us instantaneous launch warning.”
“Very well — we won’t reconfigure DSP,” Goff said. He was ready for the meeting to be over with. “All right, we have AWACS planes on the way from Eielson, plus the alert fighters, plus fighters on the way from the CONUS bases, and we’re firing up the North Warning radars. Anything else we’re overlooking?” No response. “In that case…”
“Sir, I’d suggest dispersing the bomber and fighter fleet to alternate-generation bases or to civil airfields,” Patrick McLanahan interjected. “If the Russians do attack, I believe they wouldn’t go after civilian targets, only military ones. Military aircraft would therefore be safer at civil airfields.”
“General McLanahan, I’ve agreed to the increased surveillance measures because I think that’s a prudent step and because we have much of that infrastructure already in place,” Secretary Goff said irritably. “But I’m not going to agree to any more moves that would disrupt day-today operations or create increased anxiety among our people, our allies, or the Russians until I get more information.” He paused, looking around the conference table. “Anything else?”
“Yes, sir,” General Muskoka of Air Combat Command chimed in. He looked uncomfortable but pressed on: “General Luger of the Air Battle Force submitted a mission plan to me that could supply you with the information you need. His proposal is to send a small armed recon force into Yakutsk, Russia, to ascertain the exact level of tanker-aircraft activity there. According to the satellite images, Yakutsk is turning into some kind of major Russian tanker base all of a sudden. General Luger feels that we may only be seeing a small portion of the aircraft there.”
“That damned Air Battle Force outfit is not an intelligence organization,” Houser retorted.
“Pardon the fuck out of me, Houser,” Muskoka said, “but I’m not here to listen to your opinions about my operations forces!”
“Knock it off, both of you,” Venti warned.
But Muskoka wasn’t nearly done shooting back at Houser. “This is what I’m telling you, Houser: Dave Luger’s Air Battle Force ground team is in the Aleutians, and they’re in position and ready to do a sneak-and-peek operation to Yakutsk,” he went on. “Now, unlike McLanahan, I trust Luger.” Patrick’s face remained stoic despite the direct indictment, but if Muskoka noticed Patrick’s lack of reaction, he made no indication of it. “If it was McLanahan, he’d already be in Yakutsk by now raising all kinds of hell. Luger pushed his men to the limit of his authority and
“What’s your recommendation, General Muskoka?” Secretary Goff asked.
“Luger’s Tin Men are the only assets we have in that entire region prepared to get us the information we need,” Muskoka replied. “His plan is simple, it involves only a few aircraft and men, and it has a fairly good chance of succeeding. In about two hours, we can get the scoop on Yakutsk. I recommend you authorize them to proceed. They might appreciate a Marine Force Recon or Army Special Forces team standing by to back them up.”
“I’ve got a unit ready to go,” offered the commandant of the Marines Corps, General Paul Hooks, after quickly studying a report handed to him by an aide. “Bravo Company, First Battalion, Fourth Marines, Eleventh Marine Expeditionary Unit — Special Operations Capable, is right now at Fort Greely, Alaska, finishing up a joint-forces exercise with the U.S. Air Force. We should be able to back up your guys.”
“Hold it, hold it,” Goff said, raising his hands. “I’m not authorizing an armed incursion into Russia at this time — I don’t care how good they are. Tell General Luger to stand by and wait for my word. I don’t want to aggravate the situation any more than we already have. Anything else?” Goff asked. Before anyone could reply, he said, “I wish you all could be in the room when I give this to the president — maybe you’d have a better understanding of the consternation you cause when communications break down and personalities and emotions get in the way of clearheaded thinking. General Houser, General McLanahan, stay with me. Everyone else, thank you.”
When the others had logged off the secure connection, Goff went on, “General McLanahan, General Houser has requested that you be relieved of command of the Nine-sixty-sixth Information Warfare Wing, pending the results of a court-martial. I think you’re familiar with the charges. As is traditional in these cases, I’m offering you the opportunity to resign your commission in lieu of standing for court-martial.”
“With respect, sir, I object to the offer,” Houser said. “I request that McLanahan be bound over for trial.”
“Your objection is overruled,” Goff said. “General McLanahan?”
“Sir, before I respond to these charges, I have one last report to make to you and to General Houser concerning this air-defense situation—”
“There is no ‘air-defense situation,’ McLanahan!” Houser snapped.
Patrick held the classified folder up to the camera. “May I, sir?”
Goff sighed, then nodded. “Make it quick, General.”
“Sir, I ran a scenario through the Strike Assessment Catalog computers using the latest intelligence data coupled with the information we now know of deployment of Russian strategic forces in Siberia,” Patrick said.
“What scenario?”
“The possibility of success of a Russian bomber attack on the United States of America,” Patrick replied.
“Give me a break, McLanahan!” Houser cried.
“It is the absolute latest information available,” Patrick went on. “To make it even more conservative, I accelerated defensive time frames in our favor by fifty percent and decreased the size of the Russian forces by fifty percent. The results were the same: The United States can be successfully attacked from the air by Russian
