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SEA OF SHADOWS 241
“Bridge—TAO. Call away General Quarters. Do it now! We’re about
to be attacked. I’ll give you the details in a minute.”
“Bridge, aye!”
The raucous growl of the General Quarters alarm began to blare from
every 1-MC speaker on the ship. After a few seconds, the alarm was
replaced by the amplified voice of the Officer of the Deck, “General
Quarters, General Quarters. All hands man your battle stations. Set
Material Condition Zebra throughout the ship.”
The alarm and announcement were repeated, and as soon as the
speakers fell silent, the TAO keyed into Navy Red. “All units, this is SAU
Commander. Post-mission analysis of every encounter with the hostile
submarines shows that the Germans have attacked during scheduled watch
turnovers on every single occasion. I say again—the Germans have shown
a preference for attacking during scheduled watch turnover. Recommend
all units set General Quarters and prepare for USW action, over.”
The ship’s standard for manning battle stations and setting material
condition Zebra (all watertight doors and hatches closed) was seven
minutes. It was just a few minutes before taps, and a goodly portion of the
crew would be asleep already. They’d be lucky to do it in twelve or fifteen
minutes. The TAO decided to try to speed things up by getting the crew’s
attention. He keyed into the 1-MC and spoke to the entire ship. “This is
the Tactical Action Officer. We have reason to believe that the ship will
be attacked by hostile submarines within the next ten to fifteen minutes.
This is the real thing, people. Get to your stations now! The safety of this
ship depends on it.”
The XO made it to CIC in about two minutes, followed by the captain
about three seconds later. They were both still zipping coveralls and tying
shoes as they gathered at the CDRT. The XO rubbed his left eye. “What
have you got, Brian?”
The TAO nodded toward Chief McPherson. “Chief? It was your idea,
you tell them.”
Chief McPherson pointed to the flat screen display. “The Germans
always attack during watch turnover, sir.”
The CO ran a hand vigorously over his hair several times. “Are you
sure?”
“Yes, sir,” the chief said. “They’ve done it every single time. With us
and with the British Navy.”