Brown, Dale - Independent 02

by Hammerheads (v1. 1)

  As the weird aircraft made a few tight high-speed left turns over the Customs Service parking ramp, Long recovered sufficiently from his initial surprise to say, “That’s gotta be Hardcastle.” And this is his big surprise . . . ? A miniature C-130 . . . ?”

  “That’s not a C-130,” Geffar said. “Look at it.”

  The strange aircraft completed its last left turn, rolled out, then completed a tight right turn out across Homestead’s main runway and rapidly descended to less than fifty feet above ground.

  “Great,” Long said. “That S.O.B.’s going to buzz us . . .”

  But the aircraft didn’t race overhead as expected. With a sudden roar of engine power, the two engine nacelles at the wingtips swiveled upward until the propeller spinners were pointing vertically, with the propeller blades horizontal, helicopter-like. The plane- turned-helicopter decelerated rapidly, the nose swinging high in the sky, and like a giant eagle it swooped onto the parking ramp and settled in for a landing, the landing gear popping out of the fuselage just in time for a gentle touchdown.

  As the twin engines were shut down a smiling Admiral Hardcastle stepped out of the entryway on the right side of the hybrid and walked over to Geffar and Long. “Nice to see you again, Inspector Geffar,” he said, then turned to Long. “Agent Long. We’ve never met but I’ve heard a lot about you.” Likewise, Long thought. A moment later another man in a flight suit and carrying a helicopter- style flight helmet came up to them. “Agents Geffar, Long, I’d like you to meet Lieutenant-General Bradley Elliott, U.S. Air Force.”

  “Air Force?” Geffar heard Long exclaim under his breath.

  “I’ve heard a lot about you, Inspector Geffar,” Elliott said, shaking hands with her and then Long.

  “Let me explain what you’re thinking but not asking,” Hardcastle said quickly. “Elliott is the director of an Air Force weapons testing center in Nevada. HAWC. High Technology Aerospace Weapons Center. He and his organization, I’m damned pleased to say, are on long-term loan to me. HAWC has already been helping me with some advanced aircraft design. Brad, why don’t you show them your newest toy here?”

  Long watched unhappily as Elliott led Geffar toward his aircraft, noting that his boss seemed damn near mesmerized by the strange aircraft.

  “Officially, folks, this is the V-22C Sea Lion,” Elliott began. “What we did was take the basic Bell-Boeing V-22 tilt-rotor chassis, lengthened and strengthened the fuselage and added bigger turboprop engines. She can carry, for example, twenty hospital rescue litters plus six crewmen, or ten full-size rescue-raft packs. It has the performance of a small cargo aircraft—top speed of about two-fifty, fully loaded range of about nine hundred miles—but it has the added advantage of helicopter-like vertical flight.”

  He moved to the right side of the Sea Lion aircraft. “The V-22 has two cargo hooks and the capability of lifting over twenty thousand pounds. It’s designed for nap-of-the-earth terrain-following flight, all-weather search-and-rescue and long-range surveillance. It also has a stores pod on each side of the fuselage above the sponsons, where we can mount up to two thousand pounds of stores in retractable hardpoints that can be loaded or unloaded from inside the cargo bay. Fuel tanks, cargo pods, sensors, winches, communications gear—”

  “Or weapons,” Hardcastle added.

  Long stared at Hardcastle. “Weapons? What weapons?”

  “Cannons, guns, anti-ship missiles, rockets, you name it,” Hardcastle said. He motioned to a third crew member who had stayed inside the Sea Lion, and the man now activated a control panel. A panel on the side of the fuselage opened up and a long cylindrical aerodynamic pod motored out from inside the V-22C’s cargo bay and locked into position just above the tarmac. “We’re carrying a Sea Stinger rocket pod on the starboard hardpoint; the pod carries six Sea Stinger infrared-guided missiles capable of attacking air or surface targets from a mile away. The pod can be reloaded from inside the aircraft and we can safely carry another eight missiles. The port pod carries an M230 Chain Gun thirty-millimeter cannon. We can carry up to three hundred rounds of thirty-millimeter ammunition, and the weapons are integrated into the fire-control system, which integrates the infrared scanner and weapon computers to locate and attack targets.

  “I’d say at this point the Sea Lion is the ultimate maritime reconnaissance and security aircraft,” Hardcastle said as they continued their walkaround. “We needed a vessel that could get on scene as fast as an airplane, carry plenty of cargo or survivors, defend itself, hover to carry out rescue or law-enforcement ops, and maneuver on land, sea or air. This aircraft is a synthesis of design and function. The Coast Guard has been looking for something like this for a lot longer than I’ve been around.”

  “Pardon me, Admiral,” Long blurted out, “but what do you want with a tilt-rotor aircraft with weapons in the Coast Guard?”

  “This isn’t a Coast Guard aircraft. The Coast Guard will get several V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft by the mid-1990’s, and eventually they may get the V-22C model. But we’re not talking about new aircraft for the Coast Guard.”

  “Then who’s this for?”

  “For us . . .” was all Hardcastle said, or would say. “We don’t have time, right now. General Elliott and I have a little demonstration for you. Please get on board and we’ll begin.”

  On board Elliott introduced Major Patrick McLanahan, his project officer and the V-22C’s crew chief, to Geffar and Long. McLanahan was the “baby” of the group—although his rank was the equivalent of Long’s and he had authority over the Air Force’s involvement in Hardcastle’s project. Blond, blue-eyed, the Air Force major could not have been much more than thirty-one or thirty-two, Geffar figured as she began strapping herself into one of the crew’s jump-seats. Hardcastle motioned to her to come up to the cockpit.

  “Me? I don’t know how to fly this thing.”

  “Neither did I, two days ago,” Hardcastle told her. “Brad is a great teacher, and the Sea Lion is a dream to fly.” Elliott was pleased to help Geffar into the right seat and assist her in strapping in. She put up with it.

  Elliott pointed inside the cockpit. The interior of the Sea Lion was more like a television control room. The instrument panel was four twelve-inch color-monitors, which could display graphic depictions of flight instruments, engine gauges, large-scale numbers as readouts or text and numerals. The data displayed on the screens was changeable by pressing buttons on the edge of the monitors. The function of each button changed depending on the information desired, so each button could perform a multitude of functions.

  “All your flight- and engine-monitoring information is set and displayed on these screens,” Elliott said. “Navigation, radios, flight instruments, engine monitors, performances, autopilot, weaponry—all selectable and monitored through the CRTs and set using these keyboards on the center console.” There were two large monitors on each side of the cockpit plus one smaller CRT just under the glare- shield in the center, two smaller text-only CRTs on the center console and one large text-only monitor on top of the glareshield in the center of the cockpit. Conventional standby flight instruments surrounded the center monitor for back-up.

  “It must take weeks to learn these screens,” Geffar said.

  “It’s really easy,” Hardcastle told her. “The functions are all displayed on the screen, and you can flip through any one of them in seconds. The copilot—who, in the Sea Lion, sits on the left, by the way, a change left over from Marine Corps aviation—can select functions for the pilot and transfer the selected image to the pilot’s monitor. The top center monitor displays navigation and status information and any computer warnings. You’ll be using the two center MFDs for most of your flight control, power and navigation information.”

  “Pilots familiar with fixed-wing flying usually have no trouble understanding the V-22’s control system,” Elliott said, taking over. “Since you’ve had both, this should be a piece of cake for you,” he told Geffar. “You’ll notice the controls look like a
helicopter’s but they operate more like a fixed-wing plane. The cyclic—the center control stick—raises and lowers the nose and banks the aircraft in all flight modes. The lever on the left that looks like the collective is actually a power control—push forward to increase power, pull back to decrease power.

  “In helicopter mode forward speed versus altitude control is accomplished by varying the angle of the two engine nacelles, which is done using this wheel switch on the control stick—push the switch forward to move the nacelles down, pull back to rotate the nacelles upward. The computer displays will tell you what the best nacelle- angle range is, and in emergency situations the V-22 will put the nacelles in the proper position to prevent any out-of-tolerance conditions. In extreme emergencies the system will automatically switch to full helicopter mode, and autorotation control is much the same as in any large helicopter. In helicopter mode the cyclic will vary rotor pitch for aircraft control, and the rudder pedals will control yaw just like in a regular helicopter. What at first messes up chopper pilots is that you push forward on the control lever to go up instead of pulling back, but most pilots get used to it in a hurry.

  “The system automatically shifts from helicopter-type control to airplane-type based on airspeed and nacelle angle—when the computer decides that you’re in airplane mode, it’ll activate the ailerons and elevators instead of rotor pitch. The transition will be controlled by computer. You’ll hardly notice the change—it’ll seem very natural, logical. You’ll have X and Y velocity readouts on the instrument panel to help you maneuver; those readouts are on this display.

  “You get forward speed by changing the nacelle angle, not by using the control stick—remember, don’t push the stick down to pick up forward speed. When switching to forward flight, power will automatically increase slightly when moving the nacelles because you’ll be changing the power vector from pure lift to lift-and-thrust combined. Your elevator and rudder-trim controls are here, under the nacelle-angle control, and you’ll find you’ll be adjusting trim a lot. The on-board computers will automatically compensate for torque. Once lift from the wings builds up you’ll find your forward speed increasing rapidly, and the power-control computers will decrease power as the wings provide more and more lift.”

  Geffar had to struggle some to keep up with Elliott’s rapid-fire tutorial as he now pointed to another of the digital color-displays on the forward instrument panel. “While switching to forward flight the stick and rudder pedals automatically change from cyclics to fixed- wing flight controls, where the ailerons and rudders combine with computer-controlled rotor-pitch commands to help control the aircraft. The computer display here will prompt you on angle-of-attack and nacelle-angle until the nacelle is horizontal—you’ll be a normal airplane after that.”

  Elliott looked at Geffar. “Pretty simple, isn’t it?” he said, not knowing how close he was to verbal if not physical barrage. “Transitioning from forward to vertical flight is just as easy—the computer will prompt you along, although after an hour or two you’ll recognize when to start moving the nacelle and adjusting the power so you won’t need the computer’s help any more.” He pointed out other controls and switches on the control stick. “Here are—”

  “That’s enough,” Geffar said. “I’ll watch for the time being.”

  “You’ll have time to watch later,” Hardcastle said. “Now, you’re making the takeoff. No argument.” Elliott disappeared, reappeared in a jump seat between Hardcastle and Geffar. McLanahan appeared off the nose to act as fire guard and crew chief, and Hardcastle gave him the signal that he was ready to start. “Starting engines,” he announced to the crew. “Cranking one.”

  The engine-start sequence was remarkably quiet and easy—Hardcastle selected the sequence from a computerized menu on one of the digital readouts, and the computer did the rest. In spite of the huge size of the engine nacelles, their position at the very outer tips of the wings cut noise in the cockpit. Elliott flipped two switches on the overhead engine-control console to engage the rotors, and soon the huge rotor on the port nacelle was turning. Hardcastle showed Geffar the engine-start sequence, and soon the starboard engine was running.

  “One important ground check that needs doing,” Hardcastle said over interphone. “Both rotors can be run off one engine.” He decoupled the port rotor from the port engine, checked to be sure the linkage connecting the starboard engine to the port rotor engaged, then did the same with the starboard engine. “Cross-coupling check completed.” Hardcastle set up the nav and communications radios, then dialed a specific radial and distance into the autopilot flight- director, setting in a point several miles south of the Florida Keys.

  “We going some place in particular?” Geffar asked.

  “Patience,” Hardcastle told her. “It’s your aircraft. I’ll call for clearance, you make the takeoff.” Hardcastle then called and received permission for takeoff.

  “I’ve got the aircraft,” Geffar acknowledged, holding tight to the stick-and-throttle quadrant on the center console. “But what the hell am I doing?”

  “Here’s your nacelle angle, here’s your power, here’s your horizontal and vertical vector-velocity displays,” Hardcastle said, pointing to the color monitors. “Apply power until you get some altitude, then feed in some nacelle angle to get forward velocity. Be careful—it won’t take much to get this baby moving.”

  Carefully Geffar advanced the throttle. It seemed she had scarcely touched it, but instantly the Sea Lion was twenty feet off the ground. She tested the rudder pedals, and the aircraft nimbly swiveled left and right in response; its agility, she thought, was incredible considering the V-22C’s size, and the noise level in the cockpit was so low that she had a hard time believing they were actually airborne.

  “You got it,” Hardcastle said. “Give us a bit more altitude for a safety margin, then feed in a little nacelle angle. You’ll feel the bird drop when you move the nacelles, but the computer will increase engine power to compensate so don’t try to add power yourself just to hold altitude. Be gentle. Easy power inputs. It won’t take much.”

  Geffar touched the nacelle angle-control switch, and the tilt-rotor aircraft shot forward, dipping slightly and losing a few feet of altitude. She watched, fascinated, as the power raced in, arresting the slight drop—it was as if the Sea Lion had been reading her mind. The gray-and-black runway at Homestead Air Force Base disappeared as they raced eastward over the forests and coastal swamps.

  “Good,” Hardcastle said. “Combine nacelle angle and power for altitude and airspeed and let the computers take care of flight transitions. Come right a bit so we can stay away from the nuclear power plant.” Geffar eased the control stick to the right and the Sea Lion gracefully banked right, away from the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Station just east of the Air Force base.

  “Okay, climb to three thousand feet,” Hardcastle said. They were there moments later, and Geffar expertly lowered the Sea Lion’s nose and readjusted power to maintain altitude. “Now follow the HSI and we’ll get the demonstration started.” Geffar checked the Horizontal Situation Indicator, which revealed her desired course and direction, and banked slightly left to center the course-needle on the instrument. “Great. Now we’ll pick up a little speed. Open the throttle to eighty percent and adjust the nacelle angle to maintain at least six alpha. You’ll have to apply a little pressure to maintain altitude. Trim it out carefully but be ready to retrim once the wings start generating lift.”

  Geffar followed Hardcastle’s directions, responding to his unhurried, even voice. As she applied power the upward lift was a force, and it took a large push on the stick to hold altitude. Then, as she lowered the nacelle, she found she had to retrim in the opposite direction to compensate for the loss of lift; then, a few moments later as the forward airspeed started to build, she had to trim away the stick pressure as the wings started to produce lift and the Sea Lion wanted to climb once again.

  “You’re keeping up with the plane very well,
” Hardcastle told her, and meant it.

  “It’s like holding a rattlesnake with a baseball glove in each hand,” Geffar said, still afraid to look in any direction but straight at her flight controls.

  “It’s easier than you think. You got it trimmed up?” Geffar nodded tentatively. “Let go.”

  “Let go of the controls?”

  “You’re not in a chopper any more. Let go.” Slowly Geffar let her hands drop away and was surprised to find the aircraft just as rocksteady as before, with only tiny heading and altitude deviations.

  “With this setup, once you’ve crossed over to airplane mode, you can trim out stick forces and then fly hands-off.”

  Clearly impressed, Geffar gently touched the rudder panels and made a few rudder-only turns, keeping her hands off the stick.

  Hardcastle checked their progress on the V-22C’s navigation instruments, then called Miami Air Traffic Control for overwater flight clearance. “Take it up to two hundred knots,” Hardcastle said after their clearance to operate in the Air Defense Identification Zone was received. “It’ll take us a while to get where we’re going.” Geffar handled the added airspeed expertly, moving the nacelles to almost full horizontal as the forward airspeed increased.

  “So your big idea is putting guns on Sea Lion aircraft,” Long radioed up to Hardcastle from the crew seats in the forward cargo bay. “Pardon my frankness, sir, but I think it’s a bad idea.”