only regret is that I never followed him into Chinese territory. I should have. As his superior officer, I should have never let him complete those flights alone. But I had my doubts about what he was doing, and about my own skills. I will admit that I never had the courage.” He swallowed hard, suppressing the lump in his throat.
He turned to Chen, whose humbled expression and tearing eyes remained trained on the floor ahead of him. “But after what I saw last night, I have no more doubts, and I have no more fear! I will fly with Chen to the Forbidden City if need be! All of us will!” With that, Gao popped to attention and remained silent as he forced back the tears. The staff members, impressed but still resolute, turned to Tang who was still looking at Gao.
“Your loyalty to your friend is commendable, Major. But don’t forget your loyalty to your country, the air force and the squadron. Is this not the conduct of an officer?”
“Yes it is, sir.”
“You are correct in your summation of our forces versus the Chinese. Man for man, missile for missile, ship for ship—we don’t stand a chance. But in the air, we do have some measure of equality against them, and if we’re going to maintain this small but significant advantage, we have to support our chain of command and trust in its decisions no matter how we feel emotionally. Is this not true, Major?”
“It is, sir.”
“Then you can appreciate why we must protect Captain Chen?”
Gao lowered his head as the bigger picture crystallized in his mind.
“I do, sir.”
“Very well, Major. You will assume command of the squadron and continue your missions and training as scheduled.” Tang then looked at Chen.
“Captain Chen, you are grounded until further notice.” Both Chen and Gao closed their eyes and lowered their heads before the colonel completed the sentence. “However, there is an upside to this.” Instantly the men raised their heads.
“We received a call from an American naval command in Japan that is studying the flight recording from the OPTICA satellite which was tracking you.”
“I was tracked by OPTICA?” Chen’s voice reflected surprise laced with flattery.
“Yes, Captain. They even sent the footage to us and we reviewed it this morning. It appears that your flight uncovered a few important details that they would like to discuss with you.”
“Discuss? With me?”
“That’s right. Some representatives from that command will be coming here to discuss your flight, the OPTICA footage, and the footage recorded from your wing camera. They will arrive sometime within the month, and they’ve asked that all intrusion flights be put on hold.” Tang nodded to the air marshal on his right who then spoke.
“Because the 41st is the only squadron with F-15s, you will conduct squadron training, focusing on defensive maneuvers and aerobatics with the F-15. It’s important that any of our pilots be able to answer any questions from the Americans concerning the aircraft’s handling and performance.”
“I agree, sir.”
“You can use the simulators, classrooms and hangers initially for this training. But then you will get to use the MPD.”
“MPD, sir?” asked Gao.
“Manual Pilotless Drone,” answered Tang. “It’s like a radio controlled plane that can be flown from the ground. Chen will actually sit in a simulator-type cockpit located in the new flight control hanger. “From take-off to maneuvers to landing, the modified F-15 will be in the hands of Chen although its cockpit will be empty. The live views using cameras embedded throughout the cockpit, body and wings are remotely beamed to Chen’s virtual cockpit and will give him all the real-time angles he needs to see all of you.” Tang looked at the members of his staff.
“Do we have anything else for these men?”
“No, sir,” several voiced while others shook their heads.
“Very well. You two are dismissed.”
“Thank you, sir!” both men said in unison. They took one step back and performed an about face towards the door.
“Captain Chen,” called Tang. Chen turned around.
“Yes, Colonel!”
“You must have done something amazing for the Americans to come out here for a visit.” The colonel’s lips formed into an admiring smile. “Don’t get into any trouble before they arrive.”
“I’ll personally make sure of that, Colonel!” blurted Gao to the laughing delight of the staff members.
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