by Hall, Gerald
“Then we will be back to hurling sticks and stones at each other, Ma’am.” Admiral Hawkes grimly replied.
“Or resorting to buying all of our weapons from the bloody Yanks once again. Personally, I’d prefer keeping all of our business in house as much as we can, Admiral.” Judith firmly retorted.
“I’m sure that you would. Then you can sell me so many more of those technological ‘toys’ like your radio-controlled bombers that one of your marketing acolytes told me about recently.”
“Well, our drone bombers don’t use a lot of materials. We can actually control an entire flight of them using radio control directed from one of our AeroPacket cargo transports flying safely dozens of miles to the rear. The controllers aboard the transport aircraft would be sitting at consoles directing their individual charges via television cameras in the nose of each drone. This way, we do not risk nearly as many valuable pilots for high-risk missions. The drones can be flown back home for reuse or they can be considered expendable and crashed directly into the target.”
“That is exactly the argument your representative made earlier. It is very appealed on certain levels. But, for now. Why don’t we get down to what you are really here for, Miss Cavill?”
“Very well, Admiral. We are going to need some assistance from the Navy in securing this area in the ocean for our new rocket launches, Sir. A few naval vessels to cordon off the area for a day or so when we have a heavy rocket launch would be very helpful.” Judith requested as she pointed on a map to an area in the Arafura Sea north of Darwin.
“That is out in the middle of the bloody ocean! What the hell are you launching this time, Miss Cavill?” Admiral Hawkes asked.
“We have developed a new heavy lift rocket that will allow us to push very heavy payloads into orbit. In fact, this rocket is so large that it cannot be launched from a land site. It can only be launched at sea, in fact.
This first launch will only have a test payload. But after we have proven the design, we will be adding significantly to our communications satellite constellation. Our space rockets will later also be launching other satellites that will have cameras that will look into space or down at Earth. This will advance our knowledge of the universe around us and the world that we live on.
“What will you been looking for on the Earth’s surface from one of your orbiting cameras. Ma’am?
“We can look down and predict the weather from space. We also can look for other things, including items with military applications.”
That quickly got the Australian admiral’s attention. This young woman was basically talking about orbiting spy satellites. This would greatly benefit the Australian military to be able to see what any enemy force was doing long before it could attack Australian territory or ships.
“Haven’t you been firing your rockets from land-based launching facilities?” He then asked.
“We have been launching our smaller rockets from northeast of Derby at our facilities at Kalumburu. But these new rockets are much larger than our earlier ones. It is necessary that we launch these new rockets from the ocean because they are simply too large to launch from land. This will also be much safer for all concerned since there will be no chance of a malfunctioning rocket falling on a populated area when we use this method of launching from the ocean.”
The Australian admiral thought silently for a few moments before responding.
“It appears that you have put a great deal of thought into all of this, Ma’am. I will need to talk to the head of Naval Operations at the Admiralty first. But I see no reason why we cannot help with your request.”
“Thank you, Sir. Now, I have to talk to some other people at Government House to take care of some other aspects of this and several other projects of ours.”
“Good luck, Ma’am. I know how difficult it can be dealing with politicians, I’m afraid.” Admiral Hawkes sadly noted.
“Unfortunately, so do I.” Judith replied before turning and leaving the office.
Judith Cavill got out of a taxi in front of Government House, still carrying her black satchel. She took a deep breath and then started to walk up the steps into what her father had referred to as ‘the heart of the beast’.
A few minutes after entering Government House, Judith found her way to the office of the Ministry for Trade and Industry. She knocked on the door. A few moments later, a dour-faced older woman answered the door. Once Judith identified herself, the older woman let Judith in, told her to sit down and wait.
Minister for Trade and Industry Alec McClellan had only recently been appointed to the post. This particular ministry had been reconstituted several years after the war, mostly because of the influence of Cavill Industries upon Australia’s economy and, to a lesser degree, to national policy. The various political parties had difficulty dealing with how Harold Cavill had driven certain elements of national policy even though he had never been elected to any political position.
Labor had controlled the government for most of the time since the end of the Pacific War. The long conflict had worn the patience thin that the Australian people had towards the previous Liberal government. But the Labor Party had always been at odds with Harold Cavill. Since Harold’s death, Labor wanted to limit the influence of the Cavill family. However, this was not going to be as easy of a task as anyone in Labor dared imagine, especially now they had to deal with Judith Cavill.
The well-dressed older man was still sitting at his desk when Judith was finally let into his office. He looked up, stood up and stepped around his desk with his hand outreached.
“Welcome, Miss Cavill. I’m afraid that I was rather occupied with some pressing business that I needed to take care up when my secretary announced your presence. I apologize for making you wait so long.” Alec pleasantly said.
“Thank you for seeing me, Minister. It is sometimes a little difficult to schedule appointments when you have as busy of a schedule as I often do, I know.”
“Of course, Miss Cavill. How can I help you?” Alec pleasantly asked while silently wondering what her real agenda was.
“What I need is much more support from our government in achieving goals for my company that will greatly enhance the lives of our fellow Australians and improve our national defense. I’m afraid that we have had a number of occasions where the bureaucracy of our government has been far more interested in erecting roadblocks in front of my company’s activities than assisting it.”
“What exactly do you mean, Miss Cavill?”
“Running from the founding of my family’s company by our late father all the way up to the present, we have had to deal with periodic government interference, if not outright attempts by government officials to confiscate our company’s assets that we worked very hard for. These acts by certain government agencies do not benefit the Australian people as a whole, nor have they ever fairly compensated my family for the property and income that has been taken from us.
We now face other issues as well. Our country is growing and evolving. My people have been working very hard to provide for the needs of Australia and her people. We have developed new technology and have created wealth which has enabled us to invest in even more exciting ideas.”
“I understand this, Miss Cavill. But we want to protect our people from being exploited by people and groups whose avarice and carelessness threaten what is sacred to others. We only want all Australians to have a fair share of the wealth here.”
“So do I, Minister. But, the future of our country and even our entire world is at stake here. Ours is a resource-rich nation, but we can only cultivate a relatively limited amount of our land, virtually all of it along our coastlines. We have added some more arable land to our nation with the recent annexation of New Guinea. But those jungles will take much work before they will be able to support many people. Our companies can perhaps help change that with the energy available with our new nuclear power stations that we are in the process of constructing.
The second
nuclear power station is already operational near Sydney. We already have started construction on nearly half a dozen more similar facilities including ones near Perth and Darwin. You should be able to clearly see what these would do for the people and industries of our nation. We would be creating jobs for hundreds of thousands of our people.
But even more importantly, our future lies in the heavens above us. We have the opportunity to seize the high ground of space above us.” Judith said just before she opened her satchel and pulled out several photographs to lay out on Alec’s desk.
The photos showed the earth from an altitude of over five hundred miles, revealing images of geography, weather patterns and even the wakes of ships on the ocean. Other images had been taken of the space beyond earth, providing clear images of other planets in the solar system and even several of faraway galaxies that could barely be seen from any earthbound telescope.
“This is just a small sample of what one of our early photographic satellites has been able to observe so far. We are already developing superior optical and data transmission capabilities for our subsequent satellites. Just imagine what we will be able to do when we have people living and working full time in a large orbiting installation.
The science that we can develop out there as well as within our laboratories on Earth will be truly astounding, I promise.”
Alec carefully studied the images that lay on the table in front of him. The detail was remarkable. But the fact that these images even existed utterly amazed him. Still, Alec went back to the party line about exploitation of the poor and wealth redistribution, but not before paying lip service to the achievements of the Cavills.
“Your father has done so much for our country, especially during the war. I must thank you and your family for all of that. But there are still people here who worry about people who have so much wealth and power. History is full of examples of such people who have exploited the poor and powerless. They oppressed the people and even poisoned the land with their abuse and neglect of it.” Alec blandly remarked.
“How can you apply that bloody stereotype to what we and my father have built here? We have not only employed thousands of Australians, but we have also paid them properly. My father built schools, churches and hospitals to take care of the people in the communities where we built our factories. We also built roads, rail lines, telephone networks and electric power plants that everyone in the area benefits from.”
“There are some people who are very concerned about just how much of a role that the local aborigine population have had in your companies. Of course, we want to take care of our native population. But you have them working as workers and even managers in some of your most sophisticated technical businesses. You even allow the abo’s to openly carry arms and play very key roles in the local militia force that you persuaded one of the earlier Liberal governments to permit. Aren’t you afraid of these savages? They do not have the same views of civilization as we of European extraction have.” An impassioned Alec claimed.
“Obviously, if you had a single clue about the aborigines, you would know just how utterly wrong you are about them. Their traditional ways may seem strange to some of us ‘civilized’ blokes. But they are more civilized than a lot of people with white skin who claim to be Christians. Mind you, many of the aborigines who live and work in Derby and the other towns where my family’s facilities have converted to Christianity. These ‘savages’, as you have described them, regularly attend worship services and actually follow Jesus’ teachings far more closely any of the government officials that have come to Derby to meddle in our affairs. I would trust my ‘Abos’ with my life and the lives of my siblings without any question.”
Alec seemed shocked by just how aggressive Judith had been with. Seldom would any Australian citizen be so confrontational to a cabinet minister, even a minor one. The worst part to Eric of the entire exchange was that he knew that Judith was right in every aspect of her claims. That embarrassed Eric. His own response was unexpected for him.
“Alright, Miss Cavill. What can I do for you and your people then to help all of Australia?” He asked, much to Judith’s surprise.
“It’s nice to find someone here who is actually willing to ask that question, especially from this government. Thank you for that, Minister. Where can I start? We must get rid of the obstacles inhibiting my company’s work. Mind you, we will employ the most rigorous safeguards to ensure the safety of our people and environment. We have to live here too, naturally.”
“I see that, Miss Cavill. I’m sorry that so many people in my party don’t understand what you are doing here. I promise that I will do everything that I can to help support you, Ma’am.”
“Thank you, Minister McClellan. We are going to need all of the help that we can get to make things right for all of our people.
One other thing, I know that the military doesn’t fall under your Ministry. But we still need your support within Government House ensuring that our military forces have adequate quality and quantity in terms of hardware and training, even if we are enjoying a period of relative peace. If we continue to build up the strength of our economy, the resulting tax revenues will give the government the ability to substantially increase the funding for our military at the same time.
It is normal for the different ministries to compete for the limited amount of funding available. So I don’t expect you to just give money away to the military. But if you can do other things to help our military out, those little accommodations will save a lot of Australian lives in the long run.”
“I’m glad that you understand my limitations as well. I will do what I can. I have a strong feeling that you will do the same for our people…all of our people.” Judith said with a smile before gathering up her satellite photos, carefully putting them back away in her satchel and quietly leaving.
Chapter Thirteen:
Italian Naval Base
Trento, Italy
April 13, 1956
The various piers were fairly crowded with ships, especially when compared to what it looked like just after the end of the war. Trento had become the main naval base for the Italian Navy’s capital ships including both Littorio-class battleships and the aircraft carriers Aquila and Impero. There are also four Capitani Romani-class light cruisers and a pair of Garibaldi-class light cruisers also docked in the harbor. But the largest number of warships that could be seen were all very small compared to other navies.
Standing on the bridge of the battleship Littorio, Contrammiraglio Carmen Loggia was waiting on a government official from Rome that he had known since childhood. They still had some differences of opinion on certain matters, however.
Finally, a junior lieutenant walked onto the bridge to inform the rear admiral that his visitor had arrived.
“Send Signore Menosini in, per favore.”
A well-dressed middle-aged man with a crisply trimming goatee was led onto the great battleship’s bridge. He had a slight paunch from eating a little too well. But otherwise, the newcomer was very handsome who held himself well.
“Senore, it has been some time since we last met. I trust that you and your family are doing well?” Carmen politely asked.
“They are doing well. My daughter Sophia just made me a grandfather once again. Her son Mario looks very much like his mother. He will be a heartbreaker someday.”
“I am happy for her. The last time that I saw Sophia, she was just a little girl. I do wish that the government had sent someone else to meet with you. You and I have had too many differences. But our leaders felt that I was better suited because we have known each other for so long.” Carmen sadly replied.
“We have been on opposite sides of many issues, I do admit. But I do not wish to have our navy scrapped, contrary to the views of certain people.”
“You did call for our battleships and aircraft carriers to be broken up though.” Carmen replied.
“These battleships are an anachronism. I still do not see wh
y we did not scrap them both immediately after the end of the war. We have even less need for then after the British and French sank that old Turkish battlecruiser.” Antonio grumbled.
“You know why, Counselor. By the end of the war, we had little else operational. Our older battleships and the vast majority of our cruiser force had been decimated by the French and English. Our lighter forces fared little better. So, as a minimum, we needed the battleships as a show of force against our rivals in the Mediterranean.
Besides, it would have cost us a small fortune to send our battleships to the breakers. They are providing to be useful platforms for other weapons in addition to their big guns now.” Carmen explained.
“Well, at least we are no longer adversaries with the French. Our diplomats managed to at least succeed with that.”
“Thank God for that. I don’t think that we could have afforded to engage with another arms race with the French. I still find it ironic that we are purchasing some equipment from them to supply our air force and naval aviation units.”
“Contrammiraglio, we had to find a reliable source for jet engines for our aircraft. The French engines may not be overly powerful, but they are reliable enough. SAI-Ambrosini’s jet-powered version of their SS. 4 aircraft at least makes us somewhat competitive against the German-built aircraft that the Egyptians and Turks have purchased.”
“I still feel that the SS.4 is ugly as hell. It looks like it is flying backwards even though it now has two jet engines mounted behind the cockpit. Those canards mounted on the nose just look out of place to me. We are fortunate that it flies much better than it looks.” Carmen replied with a grunt.
“The Australians do not seem to have such reservations with their jet-propelled Dragonflies that are very similar, however. We had to do much work on the SAI-Ambrosini design to make it suitable for carrier operations. This included strengthening the airframe and making it possible for the wings to be folded for more compact storage.