Empire Rising (21 page)

As the first Hornet rose toward the Flight Deck from the Hangar Deck below, Harrow felt a deepening uneasiness. China had prepared well for America's initial response, and would undoubtedly be prepared for the onslaught of the entire Pacific Fleet. The United States Navy would not make the same mistakes this time, underestimating not only the capability of Chinese missiles, but the accompanying cyber warfare that made the missiles much more lethal. Their Aegis escorts had new software, their fighters were loaded with additional chaff, and each wave of aircraft would be supported by the Wing's entire complement of EA-18G Growlers, the aircraft refueled in-flight so they could support all three cycles. As Harrow turned and headed toward the carrier's Island, he wondered if those adjustments would be enough.

 

30

USS
MICHIGAN

As the eighteen-thousand-ton submarine leveled off at periscope depth, the top of the sail four feet beneath the ocean's surface, Christine checked her watch. Standing in the aft port corner of Control, Christine waited for Captain Wilson to man Battle Stations; in less than twenty minutes,
Michigan
was supposed to begin launching her Tomahawk missiles. As Wilson peered through the submarine's periscope, Christine's thoughts drifted to the orders that had been streaming into the submarine over the radio broadcast.
Michigan
had been tasked with launching all of her Tomahawk missiles. That wasn't surprising considering the circumstances. What was surprising was that the missiles would be launched without a single target assigned.

The Tomahawk missiles loaded aboard
Michigan
were the new Block IV Tactical Tomahawk, or TACTOM variant, capable of loitering after launch, doing donuts in the air while awaiting targeting information. Although Tomahawk cruise missiles were extremely accurate, capable of flying through the window of a house, it took hours for launch orders to be generated, transmitted, and loaded aboard older variants, plus additional time spent during the missile's transit to its destination. During that time, enemy units or mobile launchers could reposition, resulting in the Tomahawk destroying a vacant building or deserted patch of dirt. The new TACTOM missiles overcame this deficit. They would already be launched and loitering nearby, reducing the time between identification and ordnance-on-target from hours to mere minutes.

Wilson stepped back, turning the scope over to Lieutenant Cordero as an announcement came over the Conn speakers. “Conn, ESM. Hold no threat radars.”

Cordero acknowledged ESM's report as Wilson stepped toward the communications panel on the Conn. Wilson pulled the 1-MC microphone from its holster and issued the order his crew had been waiting for.

“Man Battle Stations Missile.”

The Chief of the Watch, stationed at the Ballast Control Panel on the port side of Control, twisted a lever on his panel, and the loud
gong, gong, gong
of the submarine's General Emergency alarm reverberated throughout the ship. As the alarm faded, the Chief of the Watch picked up his 1-MC microphone, repeating the Captain's order. “Man Battle Stations Missile.”

Men streamed into Control, taking their seats at dormant consoles, bringing them to life as they donned their sound-powered phone headsets. Sonar Technicians and Radiomen passed through Control on their way to the adjoining Sonar and Radio Rooms, while supervisors gathered behind their respective stations in Control.

Wilson stepped off the Conn, leaving the safety of the ship in the XO's and Lieutenant Cordero's capable hands, then headed down the ladder to Operations Compartment Second Level. After receipt of launch orders yesterday, Wilson had briefed Christine, explaining the process and where she could observe if desired. She followed Wilson down the ladder and a short distance aft, stepping into Missile Control Center.

Like the Navigation Center behind the Control Room, which had been converted into a Battle Management Center, Missile Control Center had also been transformed during the submarine's conversion to SSGN. The refrigerator-sized computers had been replaced with servers one-tenth their size, and a Tube Status Control Display was now mounted along the starboard bulkhead. The ballistic missile Launch Console on the aft bulkhead had been replaced with four consoles of the same type used in the Battle Management Center and in Control. The two workstations on the right were Mission Planning Consoles. The third workstation was the Launch Control Console, and the fourth workstation, on the far left, displayed a map of
Michigan
's operating area, which was overlaid with one green and several red hatched areas.

Wilson stopped behind the Launch Control Console next to Lieutenant Karl Stewart, the submarine's Weapons Officer, who had been up all night supervising the Tomahawk mission planning teams. Stewart looked over one shoulder of the second class petty officer manning the console, while Wilson looked over the operator's other shoulder. Glancing at the fourth console, Wilson verified that
Michigan
was within the green hatched area—the submarine's launch basket, where all of
Michigan
's Tomahawk missiles were within target range.

Lieutenant Stewart reported to the Captain, “Five minutes to window. Request permission to launch Salvo One.”

Wilson replied, “Permission granted. Launch Salvo One.”

Following Wilson's order, there was no flurry of activity. Stewart simply turned back toward the Launch Control Console, his eyes focused on the time display as it counted down the remaining five minutes. At ten seconds before the scheduled launch, the launch button on the Launch Control Console display, which had been grayed out until this point, turned a vivid green. The Launch Operator announced, “In the window, Salvo One.”

Lieutenant Stewart replied, “Very well, Launch Operator. Continue.”

Finally, the digital clock on the Launch Operator's screen reached 00:00:00. The Launch Operator clicked the green button, and
Michigan
's automatic Tomahawk Attack Weapon System took control.

“Opening Tube Seven,” the Launch Supervisor reported as the green indicating light for Tube Seven turned yellow. Shortly thereafter, the indicating light turned red. “Hatch, Tube Seven, open and locked.”

A few seconds later, the Launch Operator reported, “Missile One, Tube Seven, away.”

The first of
Michigan
's Tomahawk missiles had been ejected from the submarine, the missile's engines igniting once it was safely above the ocean's surface. In rapid succession, another missile followed every five seconds, with the Tomahawk Attack Weapon System automatically opening and closing the Missile Tube hatches as required.
Michigan
's Tomahawks were streaking west; the Pacific Fleet's counteroffensive had begun.

 

31

WASHINGTON, D.C.

It was 7
P.M.
when the president stepped into the Situation Room, taking his seat at the head of the rectangular conference table. Seated next to the president and across from SecDef Nelson Jennings, Captain Steve Brackman held the remote control in his hand, pointing it toward the ten-foot-wide monitor on the far wall. The president said nothing as the nine men and women seated at the conference table stared at the display in silence, watching their Pacific Fleet move west toward Taiwan.

As the president's senior military aide, Brackman had the honor of manipulating the display, zooming in and out upon request, and shifting to alternate displays as the battle unfolded. The monitor was zoomed out to a bird's-eye view of the Western Pacific, displaying the east coast of China, Taiwan, and the Japanese islands to the north. On the right side of the screen, four blue symbols, representing their carrier strike groups, moved across a red dashed line marking the effective range of China's DF-21 missile.

A few minutes after the president's arrival, an inverted U, shaded light blue, appeared next to each carrier strike group as they began launching their air wings. Brackman's grip on the remote tightened. If China employed the same tactics they had used against
Nimitz
and
George Washington
, it wouldn't be long before a barrage of missiles emerged from the Chinese coast and the occupied portions of Taiwan, speeding toward the carriers and their air wings.

Minutes ticked by like hours as the first cycle of each air wing assembled above their carriers, the eighty aircraft finally speeding west toward Taiwan. When they were halfway to the island, red symbols began appearing over China's coast and Taiwan, moving east. The launches continued for several minutes, the missiles breaking into two groups. The nomenclature next to the symbols told Brackman that China had launched eighty DF-21 missiles toward the four carriers and over three hundred anti-air missiles toward the incoming aircraft. Shoulders tensed and eyes tightened as the men and women in the Situation Room watched the red and blue symbols march toward each other.

The last three carrier strike groups had been loaded with every SM-3 missile in the Navy's arsenal. The Navy had downloaded the software patch for the Aegis fire control system onto their cruisers and destroyers, and everyone in the Situation Room was nervous about whether the Aegis Warfare System would remain functional. But what if China simply launched more DF-21 missiles than the Pacific Fleet had SM-3s to shoot them down with? Brackman ran the numbers. They had sufficient SM-3s to handle the first wave of eighty incoming DF-21s.

Turning his attention to the missiles speeding toward their aircraft, Brackman wondered if the modifications made to the air wings would also suffice. The three air wings aboard
Lincoln
,
Vinson
, and
Stennis
had been augmented with additional radar-jamming Growlers, stripped from the Atlantic Fleet's air wings. The density of China's anti-air missile attack against
Nimitz
's and
George Washington
's aircraft had been astounding, and additional Growlers were essential.

Meanwhile, what wasn't on the display were the locations of their twenty-seven fast attack submarines. Each submarine had a chunk of ocean assigned, and they could be anywhere inside their operating area, hunting down their adversaries. The performance of the fast attacks was critical, ensuring the four aircraft carriers were safe from submarine attack, as well as clearing a path to shore for the two Marine Expeditionary Forces.

The twenty-seven fast attacks were divided into three sets of nine. The first nine submarines were positioned in front of the carrier strike groups, pushing forward in narrow operating lanes as they searched for Chinese submarines. The other two formations of nine submarines were located on the flanks, angling toward the north and south entrances of the Taiwan Strait. Their mission was to break through the Chinese submarine blockade, clearing a path for the four carrier strike groups to sweep inside the Strait, cutting off the flow of supplies to the Chinese troops on Taiwan.

Brackman's attention returned to the DF-21 missiles speeding toward the carriers. Blue symbols began appearing next to each carrier strike group, angling toward the incoming DF-21 missiles. Their Aegis class destroyers and cruisers were launching a matching barrage of eighty SM-3 missiles. There was a collective sigh of relief in the Situation Room—their Aegis Warfare Systems were still functional.

Brackman zoomed in until the individual SM-3 missiles from the
Nimitz
Carrier Strike Group and the incoming DF-21 missiles were shown on the monitor. One by one, the SM-3 missiles intercepted their counterparts, performing admirably. Of the twenty DF-21s targeting
Nimitz
, only three made it through. Seconds later, another round of SM-3 missiles streaked toward the remaining DF-21s, and the last three missiles were destroyed.

Shifting the display to the other three carrier strike groups, Brackman observed similar results. The aircraft carriers had survived the initial attack. Brackman then examined the anti-air missiles racing toward the carrier air wings. Leaving the display on the unit level, he selected the first cycle of aircraft as they approached Taiwan.

The eighty jets were arranged in a linear formation, with each group of twenty aircraft escorted by four EA-18 Growlers, one at each end and the other two above and below the center of the formation. The Growler jamming worked well, as the majority of the missiles streaked past the aircraft. But a substantial number found their mark, indicated by the blinking—then disappearing—blue symbols. It was surreal, watching men and women die, their deaths represented by icons vanishing from the screen. As the red symbols streaked by and faded into oblivion, Brackman tallied up the losses: fifteen of the eighty aircraft had been shot down. But even though it was difficult to accept the loss of life, the men and women in the Situation Room realized they had weathered the storm of Chinese missiles.

Now it was time to strike back.

Satellites in orbit had been repositioned to identify the location of the
Hongqi
surface-to-air and
Dong Feng
DF-21 missile batteries, and while the president and his entourage had been watching the battle unfold in the Situation Room, men and women in Tomahawk Mission Planning Centers had been working furiously, sending targeting coordinates to
Michigan
's and
Ohio
's Tomahawks loitering in the Taiwan Strait, circling just above the ocean waves. Brackman figured half of them had already received their targeting information and were now heading toward the Chinese coast. But Tomahawks weren't the only weapons headed China's way. Additional ordnance was plummeting from high above.

As the Tomahawk missiles streaked along the ocean's surface toward the
Hongqi
missile batteries, one hundred B-1B bombers were releasing two-thousand-pound bombs with GPS-guided JDAM kits at their targets—the DF-21 ballistic missile launchers. Whether China had additional DF-21 missiles would quickly become a moot question. They would soon lack the batteries to launch them.