|
Feature
My First Medal!
A Lock On: Modern Air Combat Air to Ground Mission
by Cat
Spasibo,
my friends! Today, I am very happy. I have some... you call
it, “fruit salad”? for my uniform! Vasily,
and all the 586th, are very proud of me. But not so much as
I am of myself.
We hit
Muqtadeh today, where it would hurt the most. After Vasily
and I attacked the Turk base, Turkish F-16s attacked our cruiser
Moskva and her consort Neustrashimy. And again, they failed,
for Moskva downed all four while they were still outside
range of their laser bombs. Now, the Turk is more circumspect.
And it came to us that the Sheikh was planning revenge most
foul indeed. In a small factory complex, placed near to a
former resort hotel north of the Sukumi airbase, they began
to make what you call weapons of mass destruction. The nerve-gas,
called VX. Only Muqtadeh is so cruel as to use this for what
he intended — terror attacks upon innocent, brotherly
Georgians who choose not to follow him.
We would
stop him.
At Sochi
base we now have new friends from your NATO. The Americans
have sent to us their A-10A Thunderbolt II aircraft.  I
do not understand why you call this a "hog".
It is beautiful like our own Su-25! And it flies like silk,
not wallow like pig in mud. The Americans think it is funny
that I do not understand. It is a joke, da? And the
British are here with Tornado jets, which will be part of
our mission today.
The Americans
are from your 52nd wing, from Germany. They are ill-equipped,
tough — not like we had expected. Your war in Iraq and
Afghanistan takes much in the way of equipment, and this we
know well from our own war in the East. Even the very last
Humvee is gone to the Iraq now. And your A-10 squadron came
to Sochi with only “slick,” low-drag bombs and some
Rockeyes. Thankfully, the Americans are amply supplied with
your peerless Maverick missile! This is most eagerly anticipated.
We will
step up to help our new ally today. I have been dispatched
to the A-10 squadron with Sergeant Kulikov and his team, and
special kits that your China Lake experts have tested. These
allow the use of Russian bombs on your A-10! I will fly with
the American squadron and teach the use of our PB-250, FAB-250
and 500, RBK series cluster munitions, ZB and ZAB napalm bombs,
and KMGU-2 dispensers. Our 250-kilo bombs are roughly equivalent
to your 500-pounders, and our 500 kg bombs to your 1000 pounders,
but heavier both; the American technical representatives from
Republic are sure the pylons will handle the strain. Of all
of us in the wing, only I have flown American aircraft before
— I am type-rated for your F-16. And now, I will fly
your A-10 as well!
Go
To Page 2
Click here
to go to top of this page.
|
