Black Star by Robert Gandt

Author:Robert Gandt
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: fa18, fighter, fighter pilots, groom lake, uss ronald reagan, black star, chinese spy, stealth jet
Publisher: Robert Gandt

CHAPTER 16 — RAVEN SWOOP

Chouzhou Air Base, People’s Republic of China

0445, Monday, 15 September

The Dong-jin.

Col. Zhang stood on the darkened tarmac outside his office. Yes, that had to be it. It was his worst fear come true.

They know about the stealth jet, the one they call Black Star. They’re coming for it.A hunched-over figure burst from the office door next to his, nearly running him over. Zhang seized the man’s sleeve. He recognized the panting face of the base commander, Col. Pao.

“What’s going on?” Zhang said, holding Pao back. “How did those helicopters get inside the perimeter? What’s happened to the electrical power?”

Pao yanked his arm free. “What do you think? The damned dissidents you claimed were all rounded up. . . well, there are more out there. They’ve sabotaged the power grid.”

Officially, Pao and Zhang were equals in rank. As base commander, Pao’s responsibility was the security and maintenance of Chouzhou, while Zhang confined himself to operational matters. But Pao understood the reality of the PLA. Zhang had powerful patrons. He could have Pao arrested and executed with a snap of his fingers.

“What happened to the air defense net?” demanded Zhang. “Why aren’t the anti-aircraft guns firing at those helicopters?”

“I don’t know. I was on my way to the—”

Pao stopped in mid-sentence, his mouth frozen open. An orange glare illuminated his face, revealing wide-open, disbelieving eyes.

Zhang whirled to see what occupied Pao’s attention. An orange pillar of flame was leaping a hundred meters into the night sky, lighting up the southwest corner of the base as if it were high noon.

Four seconds later, he heard the deep whump of the explosion.

“The fuel tanks,” he said. “The bastards are attacking the fuel tanks.”

In the orange light, they could make out the silhouette of the gunship skimming past the burning fuel depot. Two of the three huge fuel storage tanks were blazing fiercely.

“We have to save the last fuel tank,” muttered Pao. “I need troops to fight the fire.”

“Forget the tanks, you idiot,” said Zhang. “Worry about the helicopters. They’re inside your perimeter.”

Pao seemed not to hear. “We have to save the fuel for the interceptors. I must order the troops to extinguish the fire.” He yanked his arm free of Zhang’s clutch and ran back inside his office.

Zhang shook his head in disgust. The enemy was wreaking havoc at Chouzhou, and all the base commander could think of was putting out fires. Pao had a thousand troops assigned to defend his base, and he wanted to use them as firemen.

The imbecile. When this night was over, he would see to it that Pao was re-assigned to Tibet.

He climbed into his canvas-topped utility vehicle. Leaving the lights out, he drove along the semi-circular taxiway that led to the number four Dong-jin shelter. With the base under attack, he would have to dispense with the long briefing and the pre-flight target assessment. This was a wartime emergency. They must get the Dong-jins airborne immediately.

Zhang passed groups of soldiers running in various directions, all seemingly without leadership.

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