by Bob Blanton
Catie looked confused. “Why?”
“We have to be ready to start using the material once we get it up there.”
“We should just dump it out,” Catie said. “One blob for the oil, another for the iron. If we grind the iron up and put it in oil, then it’ll form a nice blob and freeze. Do two lifts a day; that gives you six hours of work each lift. Once we have a place to work, then you can change to three lifts per Oryx per day.”
“How do we carry the oil and have a manufacturing space?” Liz asked.
“Use the lower cargo hold,” Catie said. “You won’t even be able to fill that given the weight of the oil.”
“Okay,” Liz said. “That maximizes our lift capacity and gives us plenty of time to get the sprayer and parts built. We can carry the iron up in palletized containers. I’m not sure we want to try to pump that slurry. There’s no reason to since we really can’t lift that much volume of iron anyway. That will give us plenty of room to make the larger parts. We can push the pallets and containers out while the team works, then just bring the empty ones back inside.
“We’ll manufacture a couple of the apartment segments to leave in orbit. We can use them to house the crew full time. Once that’s up, we can shift one of the Oryxes to three lifts per day,” Liz continued.
“That will cut a few months off of our schedule,” Marc said. “And hopefully, we can lift enough material to finish out the hub in a couple of months. We’ll also need to start buying and manufacturing what we need to mine the asteroids. We want to be ready to start consuming them by the time they’re in orbit.”
“Marc, that should take care of your other worry,” Liz said.
“What worry?” Blake asked. Catie swallowed the same question as Blake beat her to it.
“I want enough material in place before any of the major powers down here realize what we’re doing,” Marc said.
“Are you worried about an embargo?” Catie asked.
“That’s exactly what I’m worried about. But this way we can really step up our order of petroleum. We have the two small tankers here; they’re both full, so we’ve got about twenty thousand metric tons we can lift now, then we can have another tanker here in a month. That will refill our tankers for Delphi City and give us another twenty thousand metric tons we can lift. If we order a third tanker for delivery in two months, probably nobody will notice the excess orders since we’ve been using about thirty thousand metric tons per month for the last six months,” Marc said.
“That will give us sixty thousand metric tons to lift. We should be able to finish the hub with that and any ancillary production,” Liz said. “We’ll try to get a few superconductor matrices made ASAP so we can expand our lift capacity.”
“Speaking of lift capacity,” Marc said. “How’s our airport coming?”
“I knew I wouldn’t get away without having to do an airport update,” Blake laughed. “We’ve got enough columns and pontoons to do about half of it. If we just turn the Oryxes around and send them back up, we can get by with half,” Blake said. “We’re ready to start running the beams and decking. I think we can start putting columns in this weekend, and start landing operations on a shoestring, two weeks later.”
“Can you weld the columns to the pontoons ahead of time?” Marc asked.
“Already doing that. We were running out of space, so we started to weld them together and leave them floating nearby. They’re all chained together out where we want to build the airport.”
“Great! So that means we’ll be doing four lifts a day off of the city airstrip,” Marc said.
“If you want to start lifting right away,” Blake said.
“Alright, that’s the plan,” Marc said. “Liz, are you ready to take over the logistics?”
“Sure thing. You go and do mayor-y type things, and we’ll take care of getting Delphi Station built.”
“What are you going to do when they notice the station?” Samantha asked.
“I don’t know,” Marc said. “It depends on what they do and where we are in our schedule.”
Liz caught Blake after the meeting. “You could have let her be the test pilot,” she chided.
“That’s what I said, but her dad and Sam said no. Marc said she needs to learn that she can’t have everything go her way.”
“When was this?” Liz asked.
“Last night, I had drinks with them after dinner.”
“So, he is paying attention to raising her,” Liz said.
“More than you can imagine.”
“Good, I was wondering who was in charge in that family.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that,” Blake said. “Marc tries to make it look like things just happen, but he has every detail planned out. He reviews everything she does with ADI.”
“Oh lord, when does the man sleep?” Liz asked.
“Not much, and with all the stuff Catie picks up, it’s really getting hard on him.”
“Anything I can do?” Liz asked.
“Just keep being her friend. Marc says that you’ve made a huge difference in her,” Blake said. “He’s a lot more comfortable with the decisions she’s making and what she’s doing since you two started rooming together.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Liz said. “I really like her, kind of weird since she’s only thirteen.”
“Yeah, thirteen going on thirty,” Blake said.
◆ ◆ ◆
“Who approved this?!” the president yelled as he threw a newspaper on the table. The headline of the business section read, “Tata introduces all-electric trucks and electric fuel-cell trucks to US market.”
“Mr. President, it went through a standard approval process within the department of transportation,” Secretary Blackburn, the current Secretary of Transportation, said. He looked around the Cabinet meeting room hoping to find some support, but none of his fellow cabinet secretaries seemed interested in speaking up for him.
“And why wasn’t I informed?”
“I wasn’t even informed,” Secretary Blackburn said. “It was a standard submission.”
“And how are our truck manufacturers going to compete against this?”
“I would expect them to adapt, license some of the technology, roll out their own improvements,” Secretary Blackburn said.
“Like the car manufacturers are planning to do,” the president yelled. “I get a call every day from one of them crying about how they’re going to be ruined if we don’t do something to curtail those cars coming in from Mexico.”
“They’ll have to compete on other factors,” Secretary Blackburn said.
“Sure, what factors will they compete on? The cars from Fuerza Motores are based on one of the most popular selling cars in America, so they’re already competitive based on features and style. Add those damn batteries, and they’re impossible to compete with. Anyone can make a nice car, but how do you compete against one that runs four times as long on a charge, and recharges five to ten times faster.”
“You’re right,” Secretary Blackburn said, impressed that the president actually understood those details.
“So, what are you going to do about it? And what about the trucks coming in now. What are American manufacturers going to do about them? They say these trucks will cut fuel costs by over thirty percent on long-haul routes, forty percent or more on local routes.”
“That could potentially alter the climate change situation,” said Director Carols, the head of the EPA.
“There is no such thing as climate change!” the president yelled.
Admiral Michaels stifled a chuckle. He had been asked to attend the cabinet meeting with the secretary of defense because of his historical knowledge of the activities of MacKenzie Discoveries.
“Admiral, what do you find so funny?” the president demanded.
“Sorry sir, just stifling a sneeze,” Admiral Michaels said.
“Is this design from our friends at MacKenzie?” the president demanded.
“It has to be,�
�� Admiral Michaels said. “The design is almost exactly a scaled-up version of their car. They are not openly selling their battery technology to any vehicle manufacturers except for Honda and Tesla. It was obvious that they would be introducing a truck soon.”
“Apparently not obvious enough! What do you have to say for yourself?” the president turned to Bill Lassiter, the Director of the CIA.
“We didn’t have any indication other than conjecture that they were planning to extend their designs to major trucking, much less any indication that they could.”
Admiral Michaels tried to hide his shock at the director’s statement. But apparently, he didn’t do a very good job of it as the president cornered him again. “Admiral, what now?” the president demanded.
“There was a publication about an induction brake that could be applied to semi-trailers. It was in the journal of mechanical engineering. The author was one of the scientists that MacKenzie Discoveries has collected. It makes sense that they would want to maximize the number of trailers in service that have brakes that could feed into the batteries to improve the value of a diesel fuel-cell, electric-truck combo.”
“I am getting tired of hearing how MacKenzie Discoveries is introducing technology that we don’t have and that they won’t share with us!” the president fumed. “What’s the latest on that new jet of theirs?”
“We have the design of the jet engine,” Director Lassiter said. “They’ve contracted with Rolls Royce to produce the engines for them.”
“Can we get them from Rolls Royce?” the president asked.
“Unfortunately, the deal is exclusively to provide engines to MacKenzie,” Director Lassiter said.
“Can’t we work with Rolls Royce to have them make a few extras?”
“Not really. There is a part that MacKenzie provides. It’s the coils that the exhaust is forced through; the coils superheat the exhaust from eight hundred degrees Celsius to three thousand degrees. The coils are heated to over five thousand degrees Celsius. We don’t have the ability to make that material or anything similar that can withstand the temperature and the pressure.”
“Do we need the coils?” the president asked.
“They’re what give them the increased efficiency to reach the higher Mach speeds without having to use so much fuel,” Director Lassiter said.
“Get our guys on it. Have them figure out how the coils are made,” the president ordered.
Chapter 12
Maiden Flight
Catie sat in the copilot’s seat while Blake taxied the Oryx to the end of the runway. “Delphi control this is Oryx One, requesting permission for takeoff.”
“Oryx One, Delphi control, skies are clear, you’re cleared for takeoff.”
Blake pushed the throttle forward, and the Oryx shot down the runway. The Oryx accelerated hard and took off well short of the ski jump at the end of the runway.
“Nice takeoff, Uncle Blake.”
“Yes, but she’s empty, we’ll have to see how she does when she full.”
“Okay, so you didn’t notice any issues?” Catie switched to her business mode. They were, after all, on the Oryx’s maiden flight.
“No problems,” Blake said. “I’m going to take her up to thirty thousand meters and see how she handles in the thin air up there.”
“What about handling down here?”
“We’ll check that out on the way up.” Blake banked the Oryx into a circle as he had it climb. He tightened the circle up with each revolution. “Nice handling while banking left.”
Blake then let the Oryx straighten out. After a few miles, he started a slow right-hand bank as he continued the climb. Again, he tightened the circle up with each revolution. “Nice handling while banking right.”
“Fifteen thousand meters,” Catie read off. “Engines at fifty percent, speed Mach one-point-two.”
“Accelerating,” Blake said as he pushed the throttle forward again.
“Speed, Mach two-point-four,” Catie read off, “altitude twenty thousand meters, engines sixty-five percent.”
“So, we’re dropping enough air resistance to allow for faster speed without cranking her up too much,” Blake said.
“So far,” Catie said. “We still have ten thousand meters to go, and we’re only at Mach two-point-four.”
“Well, let’s fix that,” Blake said as he pushed the throttle all the way forward.
“Engines at seventy-five percent,” Catie said. “Speed now Mach five; approaching twenty-eight thousand meters.”
“Engines are at eighty percent; speed Mach six-point-four; altitude twenty-nine thousand meters.”
“Engines eighty-five percent; speed Mach six-point-five; altitude thirty thousand meters.”
“Why won’t the throttle go forward anymore?” Blake asked.
“It’s designed to limit engines to eighty-five percent,” Catie said. “You’re climbing without a load, so we’ve reached max V. You can probably go a bit higher since we’re not loaded, but the air thins out real fast up here.”
“Okay, so we’ve maxed out altitude and speed at Mach six-point-five and thirty thousand meters.”
“That’s the design.”
“If the air thins out too fast to go much higher, how are we going to reach orbit?”
“The engines are in atmospheric mode,” Catie said. “They’re just using the air they scoop up and superheating it to generate the thrust. If we want to go higher, we have to start spending O2 and hydrogen to power them. You shift to fuel mode on that switch, and the engines’ capacity goes up thirty percent.”
“Do you want to try that?”
“Next time, Uncle Blake; just take us back and land us. We’ll do a loaded flight tomorrow; then you can become an astronaut on Monday.”
“Oh, you just love to rub that in,” Blake said. “You get into space a month before I do, and you’re never going to let me live it down.”
“Don’t forget Mars,” Catie laughed.
Second Flight
“What did you load this thing with?” Blake asked as he was pushing the throttle of the Oryx farther forward.
“Saltwater,” Catie said. “ninety thousand kilos. You’re not going to put us in the drink, are you?”
“Don’t worry your sweet head,” Blake said. “We’re going to make it,” he groaned as he extended the flaps. The Oryx slowly lifted off, just clearing the ski jump.
“Can this baby take that jump?” Blake asked.
“I wouldn’t recommend it,” Catie said. “Maintenance crew will ream you if they have to go through and inspect everything after you do.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll also see if we can get decking on section two, quad one, right away so we can extend the runway.”
“I like that,” Catie said. “How is she handling now?”
“She’s doing nice, not as nice as she did unloaded,” Blake said, “but nobody’s going to complain.”
“Okay straight ascent, eighty percent power,” Blake suggested.
“That’s the plan.”
“Read it off,” Blake adjusted the throttle and pulled the nose up.
“Mach zero-point-five; engines at eighty-five percent; altitude at five thousand meters.”
“Mach one; engines at eighty-five percent; altitude at seven thousand meters.”
“Mach two-point-two; engines at eighty-five percent; altitude at twelve thousand meters.”
“Mach three; engines holding at eighty-five percent; altitude at twenty thousand meters.”
“Mach four; engines holding at eighty-five percent; altitude at twenty-five thousand meters.”
“Mach five-point-eight; engines holding at eighty percent; altitude at twenty-seven thousand meters.”
“Why did the engine efficiency drop?”
“Air’s too thin, you have to add fuel if you want to push harder.”
“So, we’re maxed out,” Blake said.
“Yes. We could do a little better if we were farther nor
th, but that’s not great for orbiting, so this is it.”
“You want me to switch to fuel mode?”
“No, tomorrow. We should see how we land with this load,” Catie said. Although Blake was the test pilot, Catie was still the program manager for the Oryxes. “Don’t ding the runway.”
“In your dreams,” Blake laughed.
Third Flight
“Today, you get to become an astronaut, or I get to become a failure,” Catie said.
“Hey, a little redesign doesn’t signify failure,” Blake said, “so, don’t worry about it.”
“I’m not worried,” Catie said.
Blake got clearance from the tower and started his takeoff run. “Why no load this time?”
“Don’t want to change too many variables at the same time,” Catie said. “Tomorrow, we’ll take a load up.”
“Okay, let’s get up there,” Blake said. It only took them an hour to get up to thirty thousand meters and Mach six-point-five.
“Ready to switch on the fuel to the engines?”
“I’m ready,” Blake replied. “Switching modes now.”
Blake flipped the switch, and the engines started receiving a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen. When mixed and ignited, the gas burned at three thousand degrees C. When it went through the coils, it was compressed and heated to forty-five hundred degrees C before it was allowed to explode out of the rear of the engines. The Oryx accelerated slowly.
“Space engines at thirty percent,” Catie read off. “Speed at Mach six-point-six; altitude holding at thirty thousand meters.”
“How high can I go before I have to use thrusters to adjust the pitch?” Blake asked.
“You did read the preflight and specs?”
“Of course, but it’s nice to have it refreshed before I do it. That is why you’re here.”
“Okay,” Catie laughed. “We can probably use the wings for another ten thousand meters, then you’ll have to go ballistic.”
“Can do. Read it off.”
“Speed Mach eight; space engines at forty percent; altitude thirty-three thousand meters.”
“Speed Mach ten; space engines at forty-five percent; altitude forty thousand meters.”
