Chapter 10

The next few weeks were spent in turning Jane into a competent fighter pilot. Karen stayed home during that time and concentrated on learning all she could about how Miami was organized and what was currently available. She was never able to find out where the original inhabitants had disappeared to. They had simply walked away from the city and were never seen again. Karen had AI search the memory banks, but he could find nothing there that shed any light on the question. Well, maybe we would never know what had happened.

At the end of the two weeks, Jane was flying her own plane, Mustang 2, or M2. Her plane was painted yellow with black trim so that it, too, would be easy to spot in the air. We were now flying M1 and M2 in formation and going after pterodactyls. The guns were changed to act on the basis of an IFF (Identify Friend or Foe) system. A gun would fire on command if it did not receive a signal from the target that it was a friend.

That was what we should have done to begin with, but even AI had to learn as we went along. The IFF system was backed up with triple redundancy. We figured that was enough to keep the system safe.

I don’t know what prompted the thought, but I had a very strong hunch, so I asked AI to have another plane constructed to carry 10 passengers. It was equipped with two engines so that it could handle all of that weight. It also had all of the bells and whistles, including the guns, that the other planes had. Karen agreed to return to the air to pilot that plane. I think that the psychology of naming it Passenger 1 or P1 was what got her to agree. P1 took a month to build, mostly by scaling up AF1.

P1 was obviously too big to act as a fighter, but it could haul passengers or cargo. We laughingly called it an amphibian, though it was never intended to land and take off from water—we were too afraid of crocodiles to take a chance on that. P1 was equipped with wheels for hard surface landings and takeoffs, but it also had a huge ski that could be used for landing and takeoff on the grass where it was not safe to use wheels. At the moment, we only planned to use P1 for rescues if one of the Mustangs went down, but it obviously had other potential uses. Now this was a plane that Karen was happy to fly, and she took once per week jaunts in it to keep in practice with the landings and takeoffs on grass. To keep her happy, Jane and I always flew cover for her.

It was about two months after P1 was built and Karen was comfortable flying it that we got a major surprise. AI broke in on one of our routine flights to hunt pterodactyls with the statement that we had visitors!

AI had intercepted radio traffic in AM (Amplitude Modulation), not in the FM (Frequency Modulation) that we normally use. Below is a transcript of the recorded radio traffic that AI heard.

“Mayday, mayday, does anybody hear us? This is BF105, a Douglas DC-2, out of Nassau, headed for Bermuda. We have just flown through a crazy kind of storm with six waterspouts. None of our navigation instruments work, except for the compass. We are now flying over land. Where did the ocean go? Mayday, mayday, somebody please answer.”

“I hear you. This is AI. You should be able to see a long runway below you. Land there, but do not get out of your airplane. Help is on the way, but it may take an hour to reach you. How many people, total, are aboard your flight?”

“There are eight of us, three crew and five passengers. Thank God that you heard me. Where are we?”

“We have dispatched an aircraft to pick you up after you land. The aircraft is smaller than your DC-2, but can carry nine passengers, so there will be plenty of room. Food and water will be included for your use. This is very important! Do not exit your plane until told to do so. There is wildlife near where you will land, and those animals will be delighted to kill and eat you. Just stay in your plane and you will be safe. Do not panic at what you might see. All will be explained when you are picked up.”

“Okay, I see the runway. I’m ready to land. I’ll have to warn the passengers ... Ladies and gentlemen, we are about to make an unscheduled landing. We will be changing planes. Don’t worry about your luggage, that will be taken care of. Please remain in your seats until the exit door is open. A ramp will have to be brought up for you to use, so the exit door will not be opened until that is in place. Please remain calm, and everything will be explained...

“I’m about to land. Wow, this is a long runway. How far should I roll out before stopping?”

“Stop whenever you feel like doing so. There is no terminal building. A stop in one place is as good as another. We will come to you wherever you are.”

“That’s what I call service! Okay, I’m ready to stop.”

“Stay on the radio until your relief plane arrives. That should be in about 20 minutes. It is already airborne and headed toward you. Just relax and try to wait patiently.”

That’s all of the record that I am going to repeat here. Anybody who wants more can have AI tap into memory to play the rest for you, but there isn’t much.

Karen landed P1 smoothly and taxied up very close to the DC-2. Close enough, in fact, to worry the pilot. AI reassured him, and he relaxed. Karen lowered the ramp from P1 and went to install the hastily constructed ramp at the DC-2. By the way, she was wearing her GF uniform, so she would look official. Meanwhile, Jane and I were orbiting around the two planes to make sure that no predators got too close.

All of the people from the DC-2 entered P1 and sat down. The pilot of the DC-2 was invited to join Karen, and he sat in the copilot’s seat. Once everybody was properly seated, Karen took off, and the new pilot was shocked that there was no need to run the engines up to full speed with locked brakes to test them before they moved.

He was also impressed at how quiet the engines were, and he was shocked again when Karen told him that the engines ran off of batteries instead of gasoline. She reported later that he had a definitely apprehensive look as she released the breaks and they immediately began to accelerate.

Once they reached about 3,000 feet altitude, the new man was further confused because she had not used the radio to talk to any traffic controllers. “Don’t worry about it. We are the only planes flying except for my two friends in the fighters.” She pointed them out to the other pilot, and he was surprised at how sleek the two planes were. He was also surprised that there were no markings on the planes except for the M1 and M2. “Don’t worry about that either. It will all be explained when we land in about 20 minutes.”

They were about half-way to Miami when Karen spotted a herd of long necks. She used the plane’s PA (Public Address) to say, “Ladies and gentlemen, if you will look out the left side of the airplane, you will see something that has only been seen before by humans in the movies or on TV.” There were immediate squeals of delight from the two children and groans of dismay from the adults.

Karen slowed down and dropped lower after telling Jane and me what she had in mind. She circled the herd three times before heading toward Miami. This time, the people could see some carnivores following the long necks. That gave some scale to the animals, and Karen commented through the PA, “Those huge animals are truly dinosaurs, and the largest is about 75 feet, 23 meters, long. But it is the ones behind those giant herbivores who are the meat eaters and the ones you have to avoid at any cost.”

At this point, the newly installed beacon was flashing its welcome to Miami. Karen landed, and the passengers were somewhat surprised when they saw no buildings. Karen taxied off the pavement and down the ramp to the hanger. “Okay, folks, this is the end of the line. Please stay in your seats until the other two planes taxi in and shut down.”

Jane and I deplaned and walked over to P1. Karen opened the exit door, and I helped her get the departure ramp in place. She said, “Okay, folks, you can leave your seats now. Please exit the plane and follow the directions of the man and woman who are waiting for you. They can direct you to restrooms if you need that relief.”