Rolling out the Phantoms

Posted on Tue Sep 11th, 2012 @ 3:26am by Major Drake Lexon
Edited on on Tue Sep 11th, 2012 @ 3:28am

Mission: Episode 1.1 - "MystiQue"
Location: Starfighter Command Test Range 115
Timeline: MD(-28), 0700

ON: [[Starfighter Command Test Range 115, MD(-28), 0700 Hours]]

As Major Drake Lexon looked around the Flight Deck, he decided that the pilots under his command were more than ready for this. After months of working in simulators to test and fine-tune the new Phantom-class fighters, they were eager to get in the cockpits and actually run the machines. The Flight Deck bustled with support crews finishing prep work on the fighters, but most of the pilots were already suited up and in their ships. Drake jogged over to where his fighter sat at the lead launch position, quickly climbing the ladder and dropping into the cockpit. As a mechanic pulled the ladder away, Drake glanced over to his XO’s fighter. Lieutenant Halton caught his look and flashed a brilliant smile towards him.

The second-highest ranking pilot in the squadron (due to her Starfleet rank), Lieutenant Susan Halton was also one of the youngest; she had earned her rank through repeated displays of innate skill with starfighters, yet her youthful carefree attitude often made Drake wonder if she was really prepared to lead a squadron of her own. This was most noticeable in her attitude towards him, which bordered on flirtatious. Still, her skill was undeniable, and they could use good pilots leading good squadrons.

Shaking his head, Drake turned to the console in front of him and powered up the Phantom’s systems. As the startup sequence progressed, Drake glanced around at the other fighters. Their non-reflective hulls were black, flecked with a randomized pattern of stars; here on the bright Flight Deck they were fairly obvious, but out in space they would be nearly invisible to both sensors and visual searches. Aiding in that were advanced shields, a small profile, and upgraded engines that all but eliminated thrust trails. In theory, the twelve fighters arrayed here on the Flight Deck were the least visible non-cloaked craft in the quadrant. Returning his attention to his preflight, Drake donned his helmet and keyed the hatch closed.

“Alright, report in,” Drake said once his preflight was done.

“Phantom Two ready to roll,” Halton said immediately, the first to report in as usual.

“Phantom Eight lit and green,” Lieutenant Traise called.

“Phantom Twelve ready,” Lieutenant Winter said, while at the same time his twin sister said, “Phantom Ten ready.”

One by one, the rest of the squadron reported in. As the last pilot reported his readiness, Drake nodded and keyed the comm for Flight Control. “Flight Control, this is Phantom Squadron requesting clearance for departure,” Drake said.

“Phantom Squadron, this is Flight Control. You are clear for departure. Put ‘em through their paces, Major.”

“Will do,” Drake said. He switched back to the squadron frequency. “Let’s fly.”

After the squadron had launched, they reformed far enough from the station to have room for maneuvers. Despite their months on the simulators, it was only with active transponders that they were able to find each other in the vast emptiness that served as part of the testing course. Once they had formed up, however, Drake had them deactivate the transponders.

“We’re all experienced pilots and know how to fly the other fighters with transponders blaring our locations,” he said. “This test phase is to see how well we can compensate for the stealth features on the Phantoms.”

His pilots reluctantly acknowledged, and one by one their transponders deactivated. As they did, Drake reflected that this was an aspect that made the Phantoms so much more dangerous for their pilots. In order to maintain the advantages of their stealth technology, Phantom pilots would have to deactivate their transponders when entering a battle that required such stealth. This mean that – unlike in previous generations of starfighters – there would be no signal to aide rescue ships trying to find any pilots that had to go extravehicular. With a grim smile, Drake decided that he’d just have to prevent a need for going EV.

“Alright, form up in your flights,” Drake ordered over the squadron frequency. The communication system used by the Phantoms was an upgrade from earlier combat comms, incorporating smaller burst-sending so as to minimize the amount of time the stealth was compromised. “We’ll run this just like the simulators, starting with basic formation flying.”

It didn’t take long to discover that the simulators had underestimated the stealth technology of the Phantoms. Ships that had appeared passably noticeable in the simulators were nearly impossible to see in reality. Drake found that he could maintain formation with his wingman and, with some greater difficulty, the rest of his flight, but the three flights were difficult to coordinate without active transponders and while minimizing comm usage. Finally, Drake decided it was time to call a halt to the blind maneuvers.

“Transponders on and reform,” Drake called, activating his own transponder. “It looks like we’ll have to stick to single flights when we want to maintain stealth operations; anything larger is too hard to maintain.”

“Well, once we’re dogfighting the stealth won’t be as crucial,” Phantom Five pointed out. “I’d think we could reactivate transponders then.”

“The stealth still gives us an edge,” Phantom Nine argued. “It would be foolish to throw that advantage away. We just need to train harder.” A veteran of several conflicts, Captain Manisch had a philosophy that she could overcome any obstacle with more hours spent training with her fighter.

“Not everything is about training,” Phantom Two shot back. “What’s the point of a fighter squadron if it can only operate in groups of four?”

“Alright, cool it,” Drake cut in. Halton and Manisch had taken a dislike to each other from their first meeting, and the two women had nursed their grudges ever since. It was inexplicable, but more importantly it wasn’t becoming of experienced starfighter officers. If they kept it up, Drake might have to consider reassigning them.

“The Phantoms are multi-role,” Drake said to the squadron. “We’ll make recommendations about the transponders being limited to single flights, but outside of that it’ll be up to Starfighter Command to decide how best they’re used. Let’s move on to the next test.”

Banking in perfect formation, the squadron headed for the firing range and their next test of the Phantoms.

OFF:

A Post By

Major Drake Lexon
Squadron Leader, Phantom Squadron, Starfighter Command

Played By

Lieutenant Commander Joseph Thompson
Chief of Security/Tactical, USS Yorktown