Viper Pilot_ A Memoi..

“ELI Four, Magnum SA-3 . . . Bull zero-two-one for eight.”
Tilting my head back, I scanned the sky where I thought he should be and was
rewarded by a thick line of smoke streaking southeast toward Baghdad.
“ELI Four . . . continue to the rejoin point and hold at twelve thousand. ELI
Five . . . One is radar contact on your nose, nine miles at eight thousand.”
“Five is radar contact . . . visual.”
“Fighting wing. ELI One is 5.8.”
Overflying the rejoin point, I began a sweeping left turn and caught a flash of
sunlight on metal. Looking up, I saw Klepto float overhead, then invert and pull
himself into a loose fighting-wing formation.
“LAPEL Three . . . Rifle, Rifle. Off east. Lapel Four come east of the river at
eight K or above.”
“ELI 33, this is LUGER.”
“Stand by.” Perfect timing, as always.
I heard the data-link cricket and looked at my MFD. Both LAPELs were south
and east of the target. ELI Five and I were superimposed together northwest of the
SAM complex, and ELI Four was directly over the rejoin point. The Tigris
disappeared under the wings, and off to the west I could barely make out the pale
green smear of Tartar Lake. It was actually Buhayrat ath Tharthar, but Tartar Lake
was easier to say. Thirty minutes ago I’d seen it clearly, but it was now vanishing in
the haze, suggesting we’d have weather problems to contend with very soon.
“ELI 33, this is LUGER.”
I shook my head and reversed the turn slowly to the left. “Go ahead.”
“ELI . . . ah . . . TOGA 76 is going to RTB early for mechanical problems so we
have no one available for your final refueling. Suggest you come south now to
catch TOGA 24 before they leave.”
“Why is TOGA 24 leaving”
“Ah . . . ELI, they’re leaving at the end of their fragged station time.”
I took a deep breath and swallowed the various remarks that bubbled up to my
lips.
“LUGER . . . pass to TOGA 24 to remain on station to cover TOGA 76’s
refuelings. Also ask TITUS 33 if he can remain a bit longer. ELI 33, flight of three,
will be off target in ten minutes.”
“ELI, we’ll try to work it out. They’re pretty tight on their times.”
“And I’m pretty busy at the moment,” I replied tersely. I mean, these guys were
sitting in a safe orbit over Saudi Arabia—why did I have to think of the plan “Tell
TOGA he can move to DOG South if it makes him feel better and we’ll pick him up