by Frank Perry
visible cameras. The aircraft location and camera angles are recorded along with the video to immediately locate the target. The launch boat could be seen clearly in the video. Peter watched as the Shadows followed the boat. The northern pair was directed back to Hanscom for refueling.
The team watched the boat speed through the harbor on video monitors. It took about five minutes for the boat to reach a ramp south of Boston. One of the birds designated “Shadow one” descended to 3000 feet to get a more detailed view of the boat and the truck pulling the trailer. The second aircraft, “Shadow Two,” ascended to seven thousand feet to give a wider field of view. Hanscom flight control coordinated with Logan Airport controllers to direct commercial and private airplanes out of the region. The Shadows are designed to be hard to detect from the ground.
At Hanscom, the FBI and Army Rangers prepared to assault. Aircrews finished preflight checks on the helicopters. The PAVE HAWK, MH-60G has twin engines and a stealth rotor system for special operations. The Hawk's primary role was covert insertion and extraction in all weather conditions. Ground-hugging flight avoided radar. Pilots were trained to fly with night vision goggles (NVGs). The helicopter uses radar and infrared cameras for night navigation. It can recover personnel from a hover height of 200 feet above the ground. It has multiple automatic weapons systems and missile defenses. It cruise’s at of 140 knots (160 miles per hour) for over 500 miles without refueling, and can refuel in flight.
Major Shields briefed and led the assault, operating in coordination with an FBI SWAT Commander. Warrants were not required. The team was dressed in black Battle Dress Uniforms (BDUs), including body armor.
Large displays at the command center showed video from the Shadows overlaid on a geographic plot of eastern Massachusetts. The plot was a two-dimensional “map,” which could be enhanced by adding or deleting roads, buildings, county and state lines. Overlaid on top of the terrain were symbols indicating the Shadow course and speed, and with split screens showing video from day and infrared cameras. At another display, analysts were tracing the route followed by the terrorists providing street address updates information on the “bad guys.” GPS information was transmitted to the Pave Hawk pilots.
Peter ordered a team of ten men aboard the helicopter, while Shadows One and Two maintained visual tracking of the shooters. Men strapped in, facing out the open side doors of the aircraft. The Pave Hawk has four rappelling rope stations. Each member of the team carried an M4 assault rifle. Peter also carried a Berretta handgun and two knives. As the aircraft began moving at low altitude, he replaced his Kevlar helmet with a communications headset for intercom to the flight deck.
Flying in the metropolitan area was congested, so pilots maintain almost constant dialogue with air traffic controllers. The flight path took them south of the Boston Commons. Peter instructed them to remain at 1500 feet altitude, five miles behind the truck. He then replaced his helmet and used the handset from the PRC-64A HF radio to call Hanscom control, “Hanscom, this is Striker One, over.”
“Go ahead Striker One, this is Hanscom, over.”
“Hanscom, what is our position relative to the boat crew? Over.”
Hanscom controller’s response, “Striker One, be advised you are leaving Hanscom controlled airspace and bogey is twelve miles LOS (line of site) ahead. Your pilot is getting flight vector instructions from Hanscom traffic control, over.”
Peter replied, ”Roger Hanscom. Instruct ATC (Air Traffic Control) to maintain ten miles separation from Shadow One, over.”
“Understood Striker One. Maintain ten miles separation. Be advised that at present vectors and speed, you should be at rally point with bogey in under three minutes, over.”
“Roger, out.”
The boat was tied to the trailer and the men sped away from the ramp. Something had gone wrong. They had attacked the United airplane from the best possible angle, yet missed the target. They were yelling at each other and screaming curses before slowing down to the speed limit. They had all seen the cascading smoke trails from the airplane underbelly. The missile had followed one and detonated hundreds of meters behind the plane.
The driver spoke in rapid hi-pitched language, barely able to steer with flailing hands. The airplane had countermeasures installed! Even though he had been instructed to avoid communications, he told the man next to him to use his cellular phone. At the house in Canton, Majiid had been watching the television news stations, expecting to see the news break at any time announcing the destruction of the United aircraft. When his phone rang, he sensed a blunder and cursed when answering. The man explained what happened, and Majiid instructed him to not stop at the safe house. Immediately after disconnecting, he placed a call to his handler.
In Washington, Rachael was in the Army Operations Center at the Pentagon with several military and intelligence agency officers. Everyone was fixated on the GIS topographical display from Hanscom. The aircraft had triangular blue symbols and the terrorist truck was indicated by a red rectangle. On a separate display, they saw the live video from Shadow One. It was vital to maintain visual contact with the truck. The room was silent. Rachael knew Peter was leading the pursuit team against her wishes. She felt uneasy that he still volunteered for dangerous assignments. The military was conflicting with their lives. She was both fearful for him and questioning the legitimacy of their relationship. He might not value her enough to give up his adventures.
The driver continued south on I-93, changing to Route 3 at Braintree, heading for Cape Cod. Reaching Plymouth, he steered east briefly on Route 44 then transitioned onto Route 3A, North. This was the coastal road that meanders through several towns en route back to Boston. Aerial tracking was difficult in the narrow streets and trees canopy. The seacoast towns are crowded in the summer, and the traffic was dense. It was difficult to spot the truck from the air with many boats in tow. Meanwhile, men in the truck received a cellphone call with instructions.
As they drove into South Duxbury, there were small tree-lined side roads. Clear vision became difficult from Shadow One. On a long stretch of narrow road, the truck stopped abruptly and all the men jumped out, disconnecting the trailer. The process took half a minute, then the truck did a three-point turn back toward the main route north. The controllers at Hanscom almost lost contact before they realized the boat was gone. They could not tell that two men had also left the truck under the tree cover. Shadow Two investigated the road, with no luck.
The truck turned north again on 3A into Duxbury. The historic town has frequent summer festivals and tourist events. Entering Miles Standish State Park, the driver parked and ran into an evergreen shrouded path on a high bluff leading to the coast. He discarded his fisherman’s sweatshirt and ball cap. If anyone had seen him, he would be difficult to recognize in a faded tee shirt. He wandered for a few moments, pretending to read the historic markers with other sightseers, then walked back toward the parking lot. He changed course under the trees along one of the trails through the nearby woods, heading for cliffs overlooking the shore.
At Hanscom, they lost track of the driver. Local police were alerted to be watching for suspicious-looking Middle Eastern men.
Hanscom radioed to the Strike team. “Striker One, be advised that the target has escaped. You are instructed to return to base, over”
Peter couldn’t believe it. “Hanscom, say again, over.”
The order was repeated and the they returned to base. After debriefing, he rode with another officer to the BOQ to shower and put on a clean uniform. He was bewildered and upset, but the mission was over.
That afternoon, United Airlines sent the following email:
Apostles of Islam. United Airlines will immediately transfer $100 million to your account. Please advise routing information.
Signed: Harold Levine, VP, General Council, United Airlines.
If there had ever been any doubt about the sincerity of the threat from the Islamic fanatics, the failed missile launch removed it.
That evening, another message was sent to United:
“To the owner of United Airlines,
Greetings again from the Apostles of Islam. We are a forgiving and peace-loving people. You will have until 1200 tomorrow, EDT to transfer 200 millions dollars, as the cost of a missile lost in your foolish attempt to deceive us. We will send a message 1145 hours tomorrow with instruction. If you attempt such tricks again, you will only regret it more deeply.”
The following day, the instructions were executed at twelve o’clock.
Peter Returns
Peter contacted air operations and arranged a seat on a C21 jet to Andrews AFB the next night. He had spoken to Rachael the night before after a quick meal at the officers’ club. The call had been brief, lacking the passion-laden words he couldn’t muster after the day’s failure. He spent most of the night awake, alone, sober and annoyed. The plan should have succeeded.
As the small jet taxied to the terminal at Andrews, he saw her standing in front of the terminal. With the wind blowing through her long silky brown hair, he felt a rush of emotion. He wasn’t used to failure and the demons of a past mission had been contaminating his consciousness. These memories evaporated as soon as he saw her.
He was the third
