Chimera

He was under clear cut orders from Chen to be aggressive now. However, the problem wasn’t his aggressiveness, but that of his men. Aggressiveness without discipline can lead to mistakes. And mistakes can lead to war. He was worried about his pilots. They had been taught to listen and obey, not to think: a result of the doctrinal inertia of the old PLAAF from the cold war days that had only recently begun to change to allow more flexible operations. The thing about flexible operations was that it required the Chinese commanders and political officers to release greater control on their airmen during combat. Something the communist party was very loath to do when it concerned their country’s guard dogs. Men such as Feng were from a new breed, having risen under the tutelage of visionary commanders such as Generals Chen and Wencang. The problem was that despite the small cadre of senior officers like themselves, the vast majority of the PLAAF was still very much stuck in a different mindset. And that mindset had never been tested in war. Add to that the political interference of installing Generals such as Jinping to the highest offices of the Air-Force only helped keep the lid on the radical changes that men such as Wencang could usher in. But Wencang could not rise above the position he currently occupied for the same reason that Jinping could: political affiliations. The latter had a lot of them and was considered utterly loyal to the Chinese communist party in Beijing. He was also a close relative of the former Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) in Beijing, the supreme Chinese military HQ and decision making body.

In the meantime, we must do what we can at the lower levels… Feng thought as he looked over the shoulder of the Major commanding the radar operations on board the KJ-2000.

For all that, Feng was relatively satisfied with his preparations tonight. He smiled inwardly as his hand reached the zipped chest pocket of his flight-suit for his cigarette and then put the thought away. He had developed a bad habit for it when he was on the ground, commanding operations far behind the potential frontlines. But that was on the ground where he could simply walk out of the center and into his personal office for a smoke. But not inside this aircraft and in the air.

Of course not. What am I thinking… he thought bemusedly. It felt nice to be inside a flight-suit. It had been far too long since his last joyride on a Su-27. But as he ran his hand over his balding white hair, he realized it was a young man’s job and he had gotten old.

And supposedly wise? Well, these men and their lives depend on me, so let’s hope so… he replied to his inner voice.

We shall see, won’t we?

It was because of the delicate nature of operations against the Indians that he had personally chosen the pilots of the Su-27s. These men were known to be quick thinkers and experienced to the core. And while their independence of thought caused them to be viewed suspiciously by the country they served, they were actually well liked by the core of the PLAAF who saw them as the future. With such men Feng was sure that he could be aggressive and yet prevent mistakes. And tonight would be a real test of their skill…

The PLA had gotten itself into a mess around the village of Shiquanhe for the past day and were having a rough time. As a result, Feng’s carefully choreographed plan had been trashed when the first bomb laden J-10 took off from Kashgar airbase without his permission. In fact, he had been notified about the strike only after it had actually taken off the ground. Something that he had discovered after an angry outburst from Chen caused the operations staff at the Chengdu region command to open up about their ongoing operations in that sector. It was, in all honesty, an administrative and operational screw-up. So Feng had been forced to launch his operation to provide airborne cover haphazardly. He had boarded the KJ-2000 at Korla minutes before it had departed for a flight over the Taklimakan desert on its way south. The Su-27 detachment from the 16TH Air Regiment of the 6TH Fighter Division had scrambled shortly thereafter behind the lumbering airborne-radar aircraft…

“We are detecting Indian fighters over Ladakh,” the Major reported calmly to Feng after lowering his comms mouthpiece with one hand.

“Looks like they are posturing,” Feng said as he looked over the radar data on a geographical overlay on one of the computer screens.

Beijing wanted aggressive, so let’s give them aggressive…

“Order the SU-27s to activate their radars.” Feng ordered.

AIRSPACE OVER LADAKH

INDIA

MAY 15, 2040 HRS