Arctic Fire Read Online Free PDF Page A

it.”
    “Colonel!” Anger now clearly replaced the
irritation in the young lieutenant’s voice. “Hang on Lieutenant,
let me get out of the way first. Standard rules of engagement
apply.” Madison pulled back on his stick as his Eagle leapt above
the two combatants. He had the best seat in the house and he wasn’t
about to miss this show.
    Pike edged up beside Packard, the two aircraft
now flying in formation, looking like a fly-by for a local air
show.
    “On my mark.” Madison called out.
    “Roger.” Both men replied in unison.
    “On three…two…” but before Madison had said
‘one’ Packard broke hard left and fired his afterburners, streaking
up and away like a shooting star. Pike turned in toward Packard to
follow, although he knew he could never match the speed of his
opponent. He knew his only chance was to stay close and use his
only real advantage of being able to out turn his bigger and faster
foe. He hoped that Packard wouldn’t pull straight out a couple of
miles and just turn and fire a missile, he had to keep him
close.
    “Giving up already Lieutenant.” Pike taunted. “I
didn’t think you’d turn tail and run quite so quickly. Maybe you’re
good with missiles, but how long would you last in a knife fight?”
Pike jeered.
    The radio remained silent, but the message had
its desired effect as the F-15 pulled straight up and over in a
tight loop and came straight back at him. Pike smiled, with that
sharp of a yank on the controls, he knew Packard was pushing it for
all it was worth, he was mad. Self-confidence, a supreme belief in
one’s own abilities, and an ego to match were all qualities of a
good fighter pilot, but there was one other quality that Packard
was missing right now, patience; and Pike was going to exploit it
as much as he possibly could.
    The two aircraft were two miles apart but
closing at a combined speed of over 900 knots. Both pilots had just
seconds to react. Pike put his plane in a shallow dive, gaining
speed and keeping just enough angle that Packard couldn’t get a
good firing solution. Pike kept pushing the stick forward, forcing
Packard into a steeper angle, putting him into negative g-forces,
making it very difficult to maneuver and very, very uncomfortable,
even with modern g-suits.
    A smart pilot, a patient pilot, would
continue on in the pass and extend out for another run, Pike was
betting everything he had that Packard wouldn’t do that, but a
little extra insurance never hurt. “Your Eagle can fly fast in a
straight line, but can she turn?” Pike said with a measured tone of
sarcasm in it. Pike thought he heard the Colonel snicker, which
meant that Packard could hear it too, a broad smile filled Pike’s
face, that was the icing on the cake he needed.
    A split second before they merged, Pike pulled
back on the stick and shoved it to the right. Looking over his
shoulder he saw that Packard was doing the same thing, only he was
moving way to fast to make the turn. Pike began losing color in his
vision and felt a little light-headed as the pressure of g-forces
drained the blood from his head. He hated the odd sensation but he
didn’t have the luxury of a g-suit. With the pressure, he was
beginning to feel every second of his age and he knew his body
would give him hell to pay in the morning, but if he could just
pull this off….he gritted his teeth and continued to pull back on
the stick. Pike came up and over the top of his loop and caught
Packard half way through his. Had this been a real fight, Pike
would have raked the length of Packard’s fuselage with gunfire,
shooting straight into his canopy. As he was “shooting,” Pike
called out “guns, guns, guns, over the radio, simulating his
firing. Pike then rolled the Yankee Clipper over and locked
into a good firing position on the Lieutenant’s six and again
called out guns. He stayed within range for a solid three to four
seconds, which is an eternity in aerial combat before the F-15s
superior speed