Admiral Kamov looked up at the ceiling and sighed. “It would make sense, forward supply locations. Heck, one of them has a two kilometre runway.”
“Yeah, that’s Fiery Cross Reef. You can bet there’ll be a lot of communications traffic as well as resupply flights,” said Kamov.
“Just what do we know about these Island’s facilities?” asked Stockhaisen.
“Not a lot,” said General Cooper, “we can photograph them from space, but that only tells you so much.”
“What about intercepting communications?” asked Commandant Nanut.
“Hard to do,” said Stockhaisen, “the NSA will be trying its best.”
Commandant Nanut leaned forward and placed his palms on the desk. “Nicolaj. You remember that operation in the seventies? In the Sea of Okhotsk, the tapping of Soviet communications cables? Could we do that again?”
Nicolaj rubbed his chin and stared at the desk thoughtfully. “You mean operation Ivy Bells. That was just about the most dangerous classified submarine op of the cold war.”
“But could we?” asked General Weingarten.
“We might,” replied Kamov. “But you know what that is, don’t you? The shallow waters of the South China Sea. That makes it hard for a submarine to hide. If the Chinese locate them, it’s a death mission.”
NSA Stockhaisen cut in. “Nicolaj, I’m not really familiar with this Ivy Bells operation. Could you tell me about it?”
“There was an idea back in the seventies that we may be able to listen in to Soviet communications by tapping into underwater cables. They targeted the cable running under the Sea of Okhotsk, from the Soviet navy base at Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka peninsula to Pacific fleet HQ in Vladivostok. The submarine Halibut found the cable and divers left the boat and placed a device on the cable. It worked by magnetic induction, so it didn’t need to penetrate the cable. The idea worked; they’d tapped into an intel goldmine. Halibut returned to the cable again with a recording device they could leave on the seabed for up to a year.”
“So what went wrong?” asked Stockhaisen. “I’m getting a vibe from you.”
“A spy sold the secret to the Soviets.”
Stockhaisen shook his head.
“Admiral Sutton. What’s your opinion on this?” said General Cotton.
“I’ve seen a report on the Island bases and there are communications sub surface cables laid to them.”
General Cotton looked around the table with a fixed stare. “So there are cables. We think we can do it, but it’s goddamn dangerous. Do we do it?”
Marine Commandant Nanut smiled. “Well pardon me, but this is the US military. We eat fucking danger for breakfast. Do it.”
There were nods from around the table.
“Ok, we’re on,” said Cotton.
“Admiral Sutton. Do you have a boat in mind to carry out the mission?”
Sutton knew whom he’d order into the South China Sea hell. Stealth and cunning would be needed, this was a very hazardous task.
“Yes sir. I know who to send. Old Stonewall’s time has come again.”
Chapter 2
“SIR, WE HAVE A POSTCARD.”
Lieutenant Commander Lemineux, the boat’s Communications Officer smiled as he handed Commander Nathan Blake a communications slip.
“This just came in from COMSUBPAC Sir.”
PRIORITY RED
R 231347Z OCT 88 ZY09
COMSUBPAC PEARL HARBOR HAWAII//N1//
TO STONEWALL JACKSON
PACFLT// ID S072RQ81//
NAVAL OPS/02
MSGID/PACOPS 6722/COMSUBPAC ACTUAL//
MSG BEGINS://
PROCEED TO USN GUAM.
MSG ME IMMEDIATELY ON ARRIVAL.
MSG END//
“What’s old Sooty up to now?” a PRIORITY RED, from Rear Admiral Sutton.
A native of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, Nathan Blake was thirty five, young to be in command of a boat. He was of medium height, black hair with green eyes. He turned to his Executive Officer Lieutenant Commander Larry Sayers. His black skin glistened under a light and he stroked his moustache. A little older than Nathan, he was the Commander’s right-hand man.
“He wants us in Guam. Larry, there goes our shore time in Perth and Freemantle.”
Sayers frowned. “Damn, I’ve not been there. I was looking forward to that; we’ve been working pretty hard on the exercises with the Australian navy this last two weeks.”
“I know, but needs must when the devil drives. Acknowledge the signal, Comms, then rewind the buoy.”
He walked over to his female Navigation officer, Nikki Kaminski. She was fair haired, blue eyed and he knew, she was as smart as a whip. He stood before her and just had to run his eyes over the young woman from Macon Georgia. Nathan had tried his best, but the mutual attraction had proved too strong. He’d become involved with her. She smiled at him. “Sir where do you want to go?” Nikki could be a flirtatious siren. He tried not to notice her fair hair gathered into a ponytail, with blue eyes and trim but curvy build. Nathan tried, but damn it.
“Ok. Lieutenant Kaminski, plot us a course to Guam.”
“Aye sir.” She worked on her plot board for a minute. “Three two five degrees sir. We’ll clear the North West cape and then we’ll come to the northeast.”
If Nikki Kaminski was disappointed at not getting ashore in Western Australia, she hid it well.
“Planesman come to three two five degrees, speed twenty knots.”
If Sooty wanted them in Guam, Nathan knew he’d want them there quick. So, it was full speed now.
USS Stonewall Jackson was the USN’s first diesel-electric boat in a long time. Nathan was her first commander, she was his first command. He was proud of his first command and the change she brought to the fleet. He knew that the USN was an all-nuclear submarine fleet. It was aware that in any conflict it would likely have to face diesel-electric boats; they’re powered by diesel on the surface, and able to charge their large powerful batteries there for underwater propulsion and use. These boats are generally slower and more limited in the time they can spend underwater. But, they’re generally quieter and equipped with the same weapons. But Nathan knew, if a wire-guided torpedo strikes you, it doesn’t much matter what type of boat launched it. The USN exercises against this type of vessel whenever it can. A Swedish Navy boat, the Gotland and its crew had been hired long term as the Navy’s own pet diesel-electric boat for training.
The Navy watched and learned and came up with a tool they didn’t possess: their own diesel-electric boat. Much to his surprise, they gave her to Nathan.
The boat was a development and improvement on Japan’s Soryu class. A development was the addition of Lithium-ion batteries, providing stealth and endurance. This combination proved too hard to ignore and a joint development effort was undertaken. First in the class was the Stonewall Jackson. She was the most powerful and silent, the most deadly diesel-electric boat ever to patrol the deeps, and she was Nathan’s command.
Nathan sat at the conn. “Planesman, up angle fifteen degrees, come to periscope depth.”
The deck angle tilted up at the bow, then levelled.
“Sonar, do we have any close contacts?”
“No sir. Just the usual port traffic, no big vessels making way close by.”
“Periscope depth sir.”
He looked into a monitor at his station and selected full rotation from the touchscreen. Nathan looked at the view on screen and rotated the view, all clear. He could pick off the bearing, range to any targets, and zoom in if necessary. The scope could switch to night mode if needed.
And there it was. Cape Orote, Guam, just three miles to starboard. It would be around the cape and into Apra harbour, then he’d come south into the base.