“The weapons pylons are making our radar crosssection as big as a friggin’ barn,” Franken said. “Looks like we’re going to pop some Scorpions after all.” The AIM- 120C Scorpion air-to-air missile was the Megafortress’s main defensive weapon—a radar-guided supersonic missile capable of hitting enemy fighters as far as thirty miles away. The EB-52 carried four on each wing, mounted on launch rails attached to the sides of the weapon pylons.

“Let’s step it down to COLA,” Lindsey suggested. “Maybe he won’t want to come down that low.”

“Roger. He we go. Hold on to your lunch.”

“My lunch is long gone,” Lindsey shot back. Franken shoved the throttles to full military power and ordered the computer to COLA mode. COLA, or computer-generated lowest altitude, used both the terrain and cultural data in the terrain-following computer and combined it with occasional bursts from the laser radar and air data information to compute the absolute lowest altitude the EB-52 bomber could fly, depending on airspeed, terrain, obstructions, and flight performance. The faster the bomber flew, the more aggressively the autopilot would hug the ground—literally flying at treetop level if it could. Over water, the computer could take the bomber right down to fifty feet above the surface of the water—only a very tall sailboat mast could stop them.

“Threat report,” Lindsey asked.

“MiG-25 tracking four o'clock, twenty miles, altitude ten thousand feet” the computer reported.

“They’re trying to get on our tail,” Franken said. “Let’s do it, Linds. Ready?”

Reeves froze for a few long moments, then looked over at Franken. “Let’s do it,” she repeated. She pressed the voice command button. “Attack MiG-25,” she spoke.

“Attack MiG-25, stop attack the computer responded, offering her the command that would stop the attack. When she did not respond within three seconds, the computer said, “Launch commit Scorpion right pylon” There was a slight rumble from the right wing and then a streak of light from Lindsey’s windscreen. The AIM-120 Scorpion missile flew an “over-the-shoulder” launch profile, arcing over the EB-52, then back toward the Libyan MiGs. The laser radar array automatically activated for two seconds, updating the Scorpion’s autopilot with the fighters’ flight path. The missile climbed above the MiGs, then descended rapidly toward the spot where the missile predicted the MiGs would be at impact. Ten seconds before impact, the LADAR flashed on again, updating the missile’s autopilot for the last time. Five seconds before impact, the Scorpion’s own radar activated and locked onto the lead MiG-25 fighter.

That was the first indication—an immediate “MISSILE LOCK” warning—the Libyan pilots got that they were under attack.