Fight Fight (Raven One Book 3) by Kevin Miller

Author:Kevin Miller [Miller, Kevin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Braveship Books
Published: 2018-09-03T05:00:00+00:00

Wilson taxied his Rhino to Iwo Jima’s single runway. Air Wing Fifteen aircraft were scattered all over the airfield on any available parking space. Another C-17 was unloading equipment to support the carrier planes as Hancock helicopters continued to transfer men and supplies from the ship. All 49 fixed-wing that took off from the carrier in a historic action made it, but there was no respite from the pace. Before Wilson manned his jet, armed with bullets and a single Maverick missile, he learned that the Chinese had sunk the Japanese helicopter carrier Hōshō some 300 miles to the west. This stunned, and then angered, the island’s Japanese garrison, who now supported the American effort with enthusiasm. Wilson and another Rhino from the Sharks would be supported by a single E-2 from the Lookouts and a single EA-18 Growler. Another section of Rhinos led by Olive was going to search to the southwest. Mother Tucker chafed at his combat air patrol assignment around Iwo. He wanted to get into the fight.

Wilson roared down the runway under blue skies and sucked up the gear and flaps once airborne. He rolled right and headed west, staying low and slowing so his wingman Lieutenant Mike “Mongo” Mangrum could join up. Once joined, Wilson switched them to the briefed radio frequency for Lookout. The nearest “mainland” was Japan, over 600 miles to the northwest.

“Lookout, Flip. Flight of two up for your control.”

“Flips, roger. Search sector as briefed,” Lookout answered.

Wilson’s link display showed a pointer 68 miles to the west that Lookout wanted them to investigate. He centered it, and both Super Hornets cruised toward the linked surface contact. They did not expect PLA(N) surface ships, but Chinese merchants and militia fishing vessels were likely in these waters. Wilson and Mongo would stay high to avoid detection, using their targeting FLIRs to visually identify at range the contacts Lookout directed them to using data link. The reported Hōshō sinking position was another 250 miles beyond the surface contact, or “skunk,” they were investigating.

On the surface they saw a fishing boat, and Wilson was able to maneuver his FLIR to track it. The boat was a trawler, heading southwest, and Wilson took an image of it and sent it to Lookout. The E-2 crew classified the image; the boat belonged to the People’s Republic.

This boat had to be tracked, and Wilson stayed ten miles off and over 20,000 feet above to bird-dog it. He broke an unwritten rule and sent Mongo off alone to follow the link pointer to the next contact of interest, which turned out to be a car carrier heading south. Going from contact to contact, Mongo was able to help build the surface “picture” west of Iwo.

Wilson did not want to alert the fishing boat to his presence, and he watched it maneuver this way and that, in no particular pattern. It was 140 miles from Iwo Jima and could easily have listening antenna. If it detected American carrier aircraft here, that

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