Keith Douglass
Tropical Terror
This one is for
KATHLEEN,
who kept the home fires burning during the wounded-wing times.
Thanks for saving our ship.
FOREWORD
On every book project there are always new developments and technology that beg to be included. Some of them are far-out and off-the-wall, but some are so intriguing and fascinating that they must be included.
Watch for two of them in this book. One is the slippery little machine the Army is trying out to be used as a genuine replacement for the World War II Jeep. The Humvee isn’t in the same class. It’s too big and too observable by the enemy for actual front-line action. This new little horse is called the “Flyer,” has a diesel engine, four-wheel drive, and four-wheel disc brakes. It has a top speed of sixty mph, but has an extremely low profile, no top, mount for a .50-caliber machine gun, and is rugged. The driver sits in the single front seat, and two men in the rear seat. It has a high road clearance so it can work off-road. Price tag, about $100,000. It looked very good in testing when Marines put it through its paces recently at Camp Pendleton in California.
The other interesting development, which will soon work into civilian use, is the British Stealth Diving Suit. It’s being used now by Britain’s Ministry of Defense. It’s the most technologically advanced underwater breathing apparatus yet developed. It’s self-contained, no tell-tale bubbles. The heart of it is a computer-controlled oxygen and supplemental gas-delivery system to the closed breathing unit. This other gas often is nitrogen.
The unique part here is that the computer automatically controls the right mix of gases so the body can go up or down with total safety. Most current closed breathing systems are hard put to function at even fifty feet for any length of time.
Do you have any new weapons or systems that the SEALs might use? If so, drop me a line at my pickup box at: Keith Douglass, 8431 Beaver Lake Dr., San Diego, CA 92119.
Now, you have a good day.
— Keith Douglass
San Diego, CA
SEAL TEAM SEVEN
Commander Dean Masciarelli. 47, 5-11, 220 pounds. Annapolis. Commanding officer of SEAL Team Seven and its 230 men.
Master Chief Petty Officer Gordon MacKenzie. 47, 5-10, 180 pounds. Administrator and head enlisted man of all of SEAL Team Seven.
Lieutenant Commander Blake Murdock. 32, 6–2, 210 pounds. Platoon Leader, Third Platoon. Annapolis graduate. Six years in SEALs. Father important congressman from Virginia. Murdock recently promoted. Apartment in Coronado. Has a car and a motorcycle, loves to fish. Weapon: the new Alliant Bull Pup duo 5.56mm & 20mm explosive round. Alternate: H & K MP- 5SD submachine gun.
Willard “Will” Dobler. Boatswain’s Mate Senior Chief. Top EM in platoon. Third in command. 37, 6–1, 180 pounds. Nineteen years service. Wife, Nancy; children, Helen, 14; Charles, 11. Sports nut. Knows dozens of major league baseball records. Competition pistol marksman. Weapon: Alliant Bull Pup duo 5.56mm & 20mm explosive round. Good with the men.
David “Jaybird” Sterling. Machinist Mate Second Class. Lead petty officer. 24, 5-10, 170 pounds. Quick mind, fine tactician. Single. Drinks too much sometimes. Crack shot with all arms. Helps plan attack operations. Weapon: H & K MP-5SD submachine gun.
Ron Holt. Radioman First Class. 22, 6–1, 170 pounds. Plays guitar, had a small band. Likes redheaded girls. Rabid baseball fan. Loves deep-sea fishing, is good at it. Platoon radio operator. Weapon: Alliant Bull Pup duo 5.56mm & 20mm explosive round.
Bill Bradford. Quartermaster First Class. 24, 6–2, 215 pounds. An artist in spare time. Paints oils. He sells his marine paintings. Single. Quiet. Reads a lot. Has two years of college. Squad sniper. Weapon: H & K PSG1 7.62 NATO sniper rifle or McMillan M-87R .50-caliber sniper rifle.
Joe “Ricochet” Lampedusa. Operations Specialist Third Class. 21, 5-11, 175 pounds. Good tracker, quick thinker. Had a year of college. Loves motorcycles. Wants a Hog. Pot smoker on the sly. Picks up plain girls. Platoon scout. Weapon: Colt M-4A1 with grenade launcher; alternate, Bull Pup duo 5.56mm & 20mm explosive round.
Kenneth Ching. Quartermaster’s Mate First Class. Full-blooded Chinese. 25, 6–0, 180 pounds. Platoon translator. Speaks Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish. Bicycling nut. Paid $1,200 for off-road bike. Is trying for Officer Candidate School. Weapon: Colt M-4A1 rifle with grenade launcher.
Harry “Horse” Ronson. Electrician’s Mate Second Class. 24, 6–4, 240 pounds. Played football two years in college. Wants a ranch where he can raise horses. Good man in a brawl. Has broken his nose twice. Squad machine gunner. Weapon: H & K 21-E 7.62 NATO round machine gun.
Lieutenant (j.g.) Ed DeWitt. Leader Bravo Squad. Second in command of the platoon. From Seattle. 30, 6–1, 175 pounds. Wiry. Has serious live-in woman, Milly. Annapolis graduate. A career man. Plays a good game of chess on traveling board. Weapon: Alliant Bull Pup duo 5.56mm & 20mm explosive round. Alternate: H & K G-11 submachine gun.
George Canzoneri. Torpedoman’s Mate First Class. 27, 5-11, 190 pounds. Married to Navy wife Phyllis. No kids. Nine years in Navy. Expert on explosives. Nicknamed “Petard” for almost hoisting himself one time. Top pick in platoon for explosive work. Weapon: Alliant Bull Pup duo 5.56mm & 20mm explosive round.
Miguel Fernandez. Gunner’s Mate First Class. 26, 6–1, 180 pounds. Wife, Maria; daughter, Linda, 7, in Coronado. Spends his off time with them. Highly family-oriented. He has relatives in San Diego. Speaks Spanish, Portuguese. Squad sniper. Weapon: H & K PSG1 7.62 NATO sniper rifle.
Colt “Guns” Franklin. Yeoman Second Class. 24, 5-10, 175 pounds. A former gymnast. Powerful arms and shoulders. Expert mountain climber. Has a motorcycle, and does hang gliding. Speaks Farsi and Arabic. Weapon: Colt M-4A1 with grenade launcher.
Tran “Train” Khai. Torpedoman Second Class. 23, 6–1, 180 pounds. U.S. born Vietnamese. A whiz at languages and computers. Speaks Vietnamese, French, German, Spanish, and Arabic. Specialist in electronics. Understands the new 20mm Bull Pup weapon. Can repair the electronics in it. Plans on becoming an electronics engineer. Joined the Navy for $40,000 college funding. Entranced by SEALs. First hitch up in four months. Weapon: H & K G-11 with caseless rounds, 4.7mm submachine gun with fifty-round magazine.
Jack Mahanani. Hospital Corpsman First Class. 25, 6–4, 240 pounds. Platoon medic. Tahitian/Hawaiian. Expert swimmer. Bench-presses four hundred pounds. Once married, divorced. Top surfer. Wants the .50 sniper rifle. Weapon: Alliant Bull Pup duo 5.56 & 20mm explosive round. Alternate: Colt M- 4A1 with grenade launcher.
Anthony “Tony” Ostercamp. Machinist Mate First Class. 24, 6–1, 210 pounds. Races stock cars in nearby El Cajon weekends. Top auto mechanic. Platoon driver. Weapon: H & K 21E 7.62 NATO round machine gun. Second radio operator.
Paul “Jeff” Jefferson. Engineman Second Class. Black man. 23, 6–1, 200 pounds. Expert in small arms. Can tear apart most weapons and reassemble them, repair, and innovate. A chess player to match Ed DeWitt. Weapon: Alliant Bull Pup duo 5.56mm & 20mm explosive round.
1
Third Platoon assigned exclusively to the Central Intelligence Agency to perform any needed tasks on a covert basis anywhere in the world. All are top secret assignments. Goes around Navy chain of command. Direct orders from the CIA.