by Dale Brown
"What's going on, General?" Norman asked. "Who is this?"
"This is Special Agent Norris, United States Secret Service, Presidential Protection Detail," General Ingemanson replied. "He and his colleagues are here because that man sitting in my chair is the President of the United States." Norman nearly fell over backwards in surprise as he saw the President of the United States himself swivel around and rise up from the general's chair.
"Smooth introduction, Swede," the President said. "Very smooth."
"I try my best, Mr. President."
The President stepped from behind Ingemanson's desk, walked up to the still-dumbfounded Norman Weir, and extended a hand. "Colonel Weir, nice to meet you." Norman didn't quite remember shaking hands. "I was on my way to Travis Air Force Base in California to meet with some of the returning Desert Storm troops, and I thought it was a good idea to make a quick, unofficial stopover here at Randolph to talk with you."
Norman's eyes grew as wide as saucers. "Talk to… me?"
"Sit down, Colonel," the President said. He leaned against Ingemanson's desk as Norman somehow found a chair. "I was told that you wish to file a recommendation that a Major Patrick McLanahan should be discharged from the Air Force on the basis of a grossly substandard and unacceptable Officer Selection Record. Is that right?"
This was the grilling he'd expected from Harry Ponce or General Ingemanson-Norman never believed he'd get it from the President of the United States! "Yes… yes, sir," Norman replied.
"Still feel pretty strongly about that? A little time to think about it hasn't changed your opinion at all?"
Even though Norman was still shocked by the encounter, now a bunch of his resolve and backbone started to return. "I still feel very strongly that the Air Force should discharge Major McLanahan. His background and experience suggests an officer that just wants to coast through his career, without one slight suggestion that he has or wants to do anything worth contributing to the Air Force or his country."
"I see," the President said. He paused for a moment, looked Norman right in the eye, and said, "Colonel, I want you to tear up that form."
"Excuse me?"
"I want you to drop your indictment."
"If you drop your affidavit, Colonel," Ingemanson interjected, "McLanahan will be promoted to lieutenant colonel two years below the primary zone."
"What?" Norman retorted. "You can't… I mean, you shouldn't do that! McLanahan has the worst effectiveness report I've seen! He shouldn't even be a major, let alone a lieutenant colonel!"
"Colonel, I can't reveal too much about this," the President said, "but I can tell you that Patrick McLanahan has a record that goes way beyond his official record. I can tell you that not only does he deserve to be a lieutenant colonel, he probably deserves to be a four-star general with a ticker-tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes. Unfortunately, he'll never get that opportunity, because the things he's involved in… well, we prefer no one find out about them. We can't even decorate him, because the citations that accompany the awards would reveal too much. The best we can do for him in an official manner is to promote him at every possible opportunity. That's what I'm asking you to do, as a favor to me."
"A… favor?" Norman stammered. "Why do you need me to agree to anything? You're the commander in chief-why don't you just use your authority and give him a promotion?"
"Because I'd prefer not to disrupt the normal officer selection board process as much as possible," the President replied.
"The President knows that only a board member can change his rating of a candidate," Ingemanson added. "Not even the President has the legal authority to change a score. McLanahan received a high enough score to earn a below-the-zone promotion-only the 772 stands in his way. The President is asking you to remove that last obstacle."
"But how? How can McLanahan possibly earn a high enough rating?"
"Because the other board members recognized something that exists in Patrick McLanahan that you apparently didn't, Colonel," the President replied. "Great officers exhibit leadership potential in many other ways than just attending service schools, dress, and appearance, and how many different assignments they've had. I look for officers who perform. True, Patrick hasn't filled the squares that other candidates have, but if you read the personnel file a little closer, a little differently, you'll see an officer that exhibits his leadership potential by doing his job and leading the way for others."
The President took the Form 772 from Ingemanson and extended it to Norman. "Trust me, Colonel," he said. "He's a keeper. Someday I'll explain some of the things this young man has done for our nation.but his future is in your hands-I won't exercise whatever authority I have over you. It's your decision."
Norman thought about it for a few long moments, then reached out, took the Form 772, and ripped it in two.
The President shook his hand warmly. "Thank you, Colonel," he said. "That meant a lot to me. I promise you, you won't regret your decision."
"I hope not, sir."
The President shook hands and thanked General Ingemanson, then stepped toward the door. Just before the Secret Service agent opened it for him, he turned back toward Norman, and said, "You know, Colonel, I'm impressed."
"Sir?"
"Impressed with you," the President said. "You could've asked for just about any favor you could think of-a choice assignment, a promotion of your own, even an appointment to a high-level post. You probably knew that I would've agreed to just about anything you would have asked for. But you didn't ask. You agreed to my request without asking for a thing in return. That tells me a lot, and I'm pleased and proud to learn that about you. That's the kind of thing you'll never read in a personnel file-but it tells me more about the man than any folder full of papers."
The President nodded in thanks and left the office, leaving a still-stunned, confused-and very proud-Norman Weir to wonder what in hell just happened.
Glossary
ACSC — Air Command and Staff College, an Air Force military school for junior field grade officers that prepares them for more leadership and command positions.
AFO — Accounting and Finance Officer — handles pay and leave matters ASAP—" as soon as possible"
AWACS — Airborne Warning and Control System, an aircraft with a large radar on board that can detect and track aircraft for many miles in all directions Backfire — a supersonic Russian long-range bomber Badger — a subsonic Russian long-range bomber Bear — a subsonic turboprop Russian long-range bomber and reconnaissance plane
BIOT — British Indian Ocean Trust, a chain of small islands in the Indian Ocean administer by the United Kingdom
Blackjack — an advanced supersonic Russian long-range bomber Buccaneer — a British long-range bomber Candid — a Russian cargo plane Chagos — the Iliot native name for the islands administered by the British Indian Ocean Trust
Class A's — the business-suit — like uniform of the U.S. Air Force
DIA — Defense Intelligence Agency, the U.S. military's intelligence-gathering service
Diego Garcia — the largest island of the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, part of the British Indian Ocean Trust
Dreamland — the unclassified nickname for a secret military research facility in south central Nevada
Extender — a combination aerial-refueling tanker and cargo plane operated by the U.S. Air Force firewalled — on an Officer Effectiveness Report, when all raters rate the officer with the highest possible marks
Goblin — nickname for the U.S. Air Force F-117 stealth fighter
GUARD — the universal radio emergency frequency, 121.5 KHz or 243.0 MHz
HAWC (fictional) — the High Technology Aerospace Weapons Center, one of the top-secret Air Force research units at Dreamland
Ilots — the natives of Diego Garcia in the British Indian OceanTrust
IRSTS — Infrared Search and Track System, a Russian heat-seeking aircraft attack system where the pilot can detect and feed targeting info
rmation to his attack systems without being detected
Mainstay — a Russian airborne radar aircraft
Megafortress (fictional) — an experimental, highly modified B-52H bomber used for secret military weapons and technology tests
MiG — Mikoyan-Gureyvich, a Soviet military aircraft design bureau
MOI — Memorandum of Instruction, the directives issued by the Secretary of the Air Force to a promotion board on how to conduct candidate evaluations and scoring
MFC — Military Personnel Center, the U.S. Air Force's manpower and personnel agency
Nimrod — a British reconnaissance and attack plane
NOFORN — "No Foreign Nationals," a security subclassification that directs that no foreign nationals can view the material
O-5 — in the U.S Air Force, a lieutenant-colonel
OER — Officer Effectiveness Report, an officer's annual report on his job performance and his or her commander's remarks on his suitability for promotion
Orion — a U.S. Navy antisubmarine warfare aircraft
OSR — Officer Selection Report, the file members of a promotion board receive to evaluate and score a candidate for promotion
PCS — Permanent Change of Station, a long-term job change
Peel Cone — a nickname for a type of Soviet airborne radar
PME — Professional Military Education, a series of military schools that teach theory and practice to help develop knowledge and skills in preparation for higher levels of command
PRF — Pulse Repetition Frequency, the speed at which a radar is swept across a target: a higher PRF is used for more precise tracking and aiming; when detected, it is usually a warning of an impending missile launch
SATCOM — Satellite Communications, a way aircraft can communicate with headquarters or other aircraft quickly over very long distances by sending messages to orbiting satellites
Scorpions (fictional) — the AIM-120, a radar-guided medium-range U.S. Air Force antiaircraft missile
SP — Security Police
Strait of Hormuz — the narrow, shallow, winding waterway connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman, considered a strategic chokepoint for oil flowing out of the Gulf nations
Stratotanker — the U.S. Air Force's KC-135 aerial-refueling tanker aircraft
USAFE — U.S. Air Forces in Europe, the major Air Force command that governs all air operations in Europe
Warning order — a document notifying a combat unit to prepare for possible combat operations
About the Author
Dale Brown is a former U.S. Air Force captain and the superstar author of eleven consecutive New York Times best-selling military-action-aviation adventure novels, including Flight of the Old Dog, Silver Tower, Day of the Cheetah, Hammerheads, Sky Masters, Night of the Hawk, Chains of Command, Storming Heaven, Shadows of Steel, Fatal Terrain, and The Tin Man. He graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Western European history and received his Air Force commission in 1978, serving as a navigator-bombardier on the B-52G Stratofortress heavy bomber and the FB-111A supersonic medium bomber. During his military career he received several awards, including the Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster and the Combat Crew Award. He is a member of the Writers' Guild and a Life Member of the Air Force Association and the U.S. Naval Institute. A multiengine and instrument-rated private pilot, he can be found in the skies all across the United States, piloting his own plane. He also enjoys tennis, skiing, scuba diving, and hockey. He lives with his wife, Diane, and son, Hunter, near the shores of Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
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