CHAPTER 18 – AIR BIKES AND HIGH SCHOOL
09:51 (California Time)
Tuesday, June 02, 1992 ‘C’
Hiller Helicopter Corporation main plant
Firebaugh, California, U.S.A.
Stanley Hiller was anxiously waiting just outside the prototype hangar of his main aircraft assembly plant to hear what Ingrid Dows would say about her initial test flight of their new Hiller AIR BIKE, which Ingrid had designed for him. While her landing on return from her flight was smooth, he didn’t like the expression visible on Ingrid’s face when she stepped out of her air bike.
‘’Uh oh! It seems that something didn’t go the way she wanted.’’ said Stanley to his chief production engineer, who was standing by his side. Both men stayed silent afterwards as Ingrid walked at a quick pace towards them, her flying helmet under one arm. Stanley spoke only when Ingrid stopped one pace in front of him, still looking glum.
‘’Uh, I hope that things went okay, Ingrid.’’
‘’Things were not okay, Stanley…’’ replied coldly Ingrid, making Hiller’s heart sink. Her expression then completely changed, going from glum to enthusiastic as she shouted the rest of her answer in a joyous tone. ‘’…THIS FLIGHT WAS FANTASTIC! IT WAS THE MOST FUN I HAD IN DECADES OF FLYING!’’
Stanley felt nearly tipsy as emotions overwhelmed him and he had to use Ingrid’s shoulder as support to help his wobbly legs.
‘’Please don’t do this again, Ingrid: my poor heart nearly gave up. So, everything went fine?’’
‘’If things went fine? Stanley, just imagine that you were flying in a pocket-sized MUSTANG fighter which could take off and land vertically. That’s the kind of flying sensation our Hiller AIR BIKE gives to its pilot and passenger. You want to take the back seat for another test flight?’’
‘’Hell yes, Ingrid!’’
Stanley Hiller nearly ran to the air bike, which was about the length of a small sports car. Opening the left side door, which hinged upwards seagull wing-style, he took place in the rear bench seat, which was wide enough for two persons of normal size, and buckled his safety belt, then put on one of the two light headsets reserved for the passengers of the air bike. Ingrid sat in the pilot’s seat situated in front of the rear bench seat and closed the side door, then restarted her engine, an Avco-Lycoming flat-six rated at 260 horsepower. Because his seat sat on top of the engine compartment and stood higher than the pilot’s seat, Stanley was able to look ahead over Ingrid’s head.
‘’So, Ingrid, what kind of top speed were you able to attain in horizontal flight mode?’’
Ingrid smiled to him via her rear-view mirror while answering him.
‘’First, you must remember that our air bike has roughly the same power to weight ratio than a World War 2 fighter aircraft. It in fact equals in that aspect such planes as the Grumman HELLCAT and even surpasses the North American P51 D MUSTANG and the Vought F4U-A CORSAIR, so it ain’t a pussy for starters. Second, it is much smaller and more compact than those fighters, thus generates much smaller amounts of aerodynamic drag. To answer your question, I did a speed dash at 10,000 feet and was able to clock a maximum air speed of 450 miles per hour, or 720 kilometers per hour if you prefer the metric system. That is equal to the top speed at altitude of the Vought CORSAIR and the SPITFIRE MARK XIV, while it is faster than the P51 D MUSTANG and the Focke-Wulf FW 190 D-9 ‘Long Nose’, while the Grumman HELLCAT, the Messerschmitt Bf 109 F, the Lockheed P38 J LIGHTNING and the Curtiss P40C WARHAWK are all left behind in the dust of our air bike.’’
‘’But that’s positively fantastic!’’ replied Stanley, who had not hoped for this much. In truth, his lack of frequent access to a proper wind test tunnel had forced him and Ingrid to work designs based on their experience and instincts, rather than through extensive wind tunnel testing. They had expected their air bike to be a fast machine, but this was well beyond his wildest dreams.
‘’And how about its handling, Ingrid?’’
‘’It is about the most agile aircraft I have ever flown, thanks to its combination of forward and aft elevons surfaces and its vectoring flaps downstream of the four ducted propellers. The fact that you can pivot at different angles the ducted propellers in order to tighten a loop or dive and climb more steeply makes our air bike an ideal aircraft for an aerobatics pilot. That it can also take off and land at the vertical is just the icing on the cake. I predict that all the military fighter pilots and civilian aerobatics pilots who will see our air bike will want one. But enough talking: let’s demonstrate that to you.’’
Gunning her engine to maximum power and then setting the propellers’ blade pitch from ‘idle’ to ‘hover mode’, she made the air bike zoom upward with an acceleration which glued Stanley to his seat. Then, Ingrid transitioned to horizontal flight while taking both speed and altitude and turning towards a group of hills visible in the distance. She stayed low at first while continuing to accelerate, making the ground below them roll past at incredible speed.
‘’We are now approaching our maximum low-level speed, which is about 410 miles per hour at sea level. Once at those hills ahead of us, I will do some high-speed terrain following, so you better hang on to your padded handle bar, fixed to the back of my seat.’’
Already feeling an incredible sensation from their fast and low flying, Stanley obeyed her and firmly gripped the padded handle bar meant to steady the passengers in case of air turbulences.
What Stanley Hiller soon experienced made air turbulences appear like some minor shaking, with Ingrid basically flying the way she would while doing a military low-level, high speed penetration mission through enemy airspace, hugging the ground and jumping over hill crests and transforming their flight into the most extreme roller-coaster ride he had ever experienced. He was breathing hard and fast when Ingrid suddenly threw their air bike into a vertiginous zoom climb which forced Stanley’s back against his seat’s backrest, rising to an altitude of 3,000 feet in less than one minute. Once at 3,000 feet, she decreased her climb rate and went into level flight at 5,000 feet, where she gunned her engine to maximum and accelerated, finally announcing their speed.
‘’WE ARE NOW AT 453 MILES PER HOUR, STANLEY. SATISFIED?’’
‘’HELL YES! I THINK THAT WE CAN NOW GO BACK TO THE PLANT, INGRID. THIS FLIGHT WAS INCREDIBLE.’’
Returning to the Hiller plant at a more sedate pace, Ingrid made their air bike land smoothly on its two motorcycle wheels, with two small outrigger balancing wheels keeping the air bike standing upright. Stepping out of the machine first, Stanley then enthusiastically shook hands with Ingrid when she also stepped out.
‘’Ingrid, this was one hell of a fun ride. I concur with you that this will be a winner. Once in series production, it should sell like hot cakes.’’
‘’Which brings us to my payment for designing and developing our air bike. Getting the first series air bike will be plenty for me as payment.’’
‘’No!’’ replied at once Stanley Hiller, surprising Ingrid.
‘’No? What do you mean, no?’’
‘’Just that, Ingrid: I refuse to let this go for one air bike.’’
While his tone was friendly, Stanley’s serious expression told Ingrid that he meant what he said next.
‘’Ingrid, thanks to your air car design, I was able to revive the fortune of my company, which had been close to go out of business at the time, and got orders for hundreds of air cars, both from private customers and from various government agencies, from municipal, state and federal levels. I had to expand my plant like crazy and use sub-contractors to be able to fill all those orders and I still have a hard time keeping up with new orders. Then, you designed our air bus, a twenty-seater machine which we sold by the dozen, mostly to the military but also to companies doing work in isolated or rugged areas, like in Alaska. I am now a rich man with a prosperous company thanks to you and I refuse to exploit you further by simply paying you with a mere air bike. It is high time that I reward you with a decent salary commensurate with your achievements.’’
‘’Uh, okay!’’ said Ingrid, taken somewhat aback. ‘’What are you offering me, then?’’
‘’An honest cut from my company’s future profits, plus a complimentary air bike and a bonus of 30,000 dollars for successfully designing this air bike. You either take it, or I will fire you as designer…after giving you a cheque for 30,000 dollars and one air bike.’’
‘’Well, if you put it so nicely, how could I refuse such an offer, Stanley?’’
Stanley, grinning, then shook hands with Ingrid.
‘’I knew that you would see the light, Ingrid.’’
14:38 (Washington Time)
Friday, August 14, 1992 ‘C’
General Aviation parking apron, Washington National Airport
Western shore of the Potomac River, opposite Washington, D.C.
‘’A nice, smooth landing, Miss Dows. Congratulations: you just passed the solo flying test for your private pilot’s license on Hiller AIR CAR.’’
Nancy, sitting in the pilot’s seat of the Hiller AIR CAR belonging to the flying school based at the Washington National Airport, shouted out in triumph, then exchanged a strong handshake with her flight instructor.
‘’Thank you, Mister Redmond: you can’t know how happy this makes me.’’
‘’Well, I suppose that, with your mother being such a celebrated pilot herself, you must have felt some pressure to pass your own pilot’s license, Miss Dows.’’ said the instructor, smiling at her while secretly admiring her profile and deep cleavage.
‘’Oh, I would probably have blown my brains out rather than go tell my mother that I failed my flying test. Mind you, that would be strictly me acting out on that, not her: she has always been a reasonable and understanding mother to me. What’s next now?’’
‘’We go inside my company’s office, so that I could sign your pilot’s license and register it with the FAA{17}. Then, you will be free to fly as much as you wish.’’
Cutting the engine and the main switch of the air car, Nancy then stepped out and started walking with her instructor towards the flight school’s office, which was part of the general aviation terminal of the airport. Both of them however had to slow down and change direction to walk towards a most fantastic-looking compact machine painted a fiery orange-red. A small crowd of curious onlookers was in fact already assembled around the machine. Nancy sucked air in when she saw the painted name on the side of the machine, which said ‘LADY HAWK’.
‘’My God! It belongs to my mother, but I never saw it before: it must be brand new.’’
‘’A Hiller AIR BIKE?’’ said her instructor, reading the make and model logo. ‘’I never heard of it, but it certainly looks fantastic. It appears to be using many of the design features of the Hiller AIR CARE you just qualified on, Miss Dows. Ah, I think that your mother is coming towards us.’’
Turning her head, Nancy smiled on seeing that Nancy was effectively coming their way, apparently from the flight school’s offices. She wore the kind of shiny leather adjusted coveralls worn by racing cars and motorcycle drivers, with the one she wore being a flashy orange-red color and with ‘Lady Hawk’ embroidered on her chest. She also had her flying helmet under one arm.
‘’Wow! You really wanted to attract attention today, Mother.’’
‘’And what’s wrong with that, my sweet daughter? From your happy looks, I suppose that I can conclude that you passed your solo flying test with flying colors?’’
‘’She certainly did, Misses Dows.’’ Peter Redmond took on him to answer. ‘’I had nothing to say about her flying today. We were on the way to my company’s office, so that I could sign her new pilot’s license, when we saw your machine. It must be brand new, no?’’
‘’It effectively is, Mister Redmond. This is the first serial production copy of the new Hiller AIR BIKE, which will start to be officially offered for sale next week. Like for the AIR CAR, I designed it and I must say that I am extremely proud of it. Every aerobatics and military pilots will soon want one.’’
‘’It certainly looks like a hot machine, Misses Dows. What is its top speed, if I may ask?’’
‘’Oh, it is indeed a hot machine, Mister Redmond: I broke through 453 miles per hour during one test flight in California.’’
There was a collective gasp around her then, followed by a deluge of questions about her air bike. In response, she opened its left luggage compartment door and searched inside it for a moment before taking out a pile of what looked like sales pamphlets.
‘’Well, now that I am officially a board member of the Hiller Helicopter Corporation, let me hand around a few of those sales pamphlets on the Hiller AIR BIKE, which will answer most of your questions about it, including about its sales price.’’
Her pamphlets were gone in seconds, with Peter Redmond being one of the takers and with Nancy also taking a pamphlet, making Ingrid smile.
‘’You too would be interested in a Hiller AIR BIKE, Nancy?’’
‘’Who would not be, Mother? That machine looks truly hot!’’
‘’Well, you will be able to dream about it while I give you a ride back home in my new air bike. Now, go get your pilot’s license: I will wait for you here in the meantime.’’
Encouraged by that declaration, Nancy nearly ran towards the flight school’s offices. She came out some twelve minutes later, proudly holding her new license, which she showed to Ingrid once sitting in her air bike. Ingrid kissed her to congratulate her, then started her air bike, watched from a distance by a growing crowd of onlookers.
‘’This machine doesn’t have dual flight controls, but it is piloted exactly the same way as an air car. The only real differences are in its superior performances in nearly all aspects, save for its smaller carrying capacity. I will fly out at a moderate speed, so that I could explain how it is piloted as we go.’’
Nancy, bent forward and watching over Ingrid’s head, watched carefully what her mother did as she took off vertically, then flew to their house while staying in helicopter mode, so short was the distance between the airport and their district of Aurora Hills. They finally landed in the courtyard of their house, the front driveway and garage becoming quite crowded thanks to Ingrid’s air car and Firebird TRANS AM and to Leonardo’s new Porsche 911 Turbo. Parking the air bike under a lightweight plastic and aluminum shelter set in one corner of their courtyard, Ingrid then surprised Nancy by leading her to the rear door of their garage and entering it. Nancy had to stop at once when inside, her eyes popping wide open at the sight of the gold and silver Hiller AIR BIKE with the name ‘SUPERGIRL’ painted on its sides.
‘’MOTHER, YOU DIDN’T!’’
‘’Yes, I did! But if you don’t like it, I can always return it.’’
‘’Mother, if you do that, I will kill you!’’
‘’I thought so!’’ said Ingrid, grinning from ear to ear.
07:39 (Washington Time)
Tuesday, September 01, 1992 ‘C’
Parking lot area of the Northern Virginia International High School
9431 Silver King Court, Fairfax, Virginia
Lucy Wong was chatting with Kimi Park, Sarah Weissman and Karl Wienermeyer, all good friends and old classmates from their mutual years at the Congressional school, when Leonardo Dows-Bocelli rolled into the parking lot of their new, small private school, at the wheel of a shiny red Porsche 911 Turbo convertible sports car. Lucy and her friends, like many other students present around the parking lot area, moved at once to come admire the apparently brand new sports car as Leonardo stepped out of his Porsche after unfolding the top of his convertible. Leonardo beamed with joy when he saw Lucy, Kimi, Sarah and Karl approach him and, his school briefcase in one hand, went to meet them to give them warm hugs.
‘’Lucy, Kimi, Sarah, Karl! It is nice to see that we will again be together after our years at the Congressional School.’’
‘’And it is nice to see you again, Leo.’’ replied Kimi, adding a kiss to her own hug: over the years, she had become probably Leonardo’s best friend, having a mutual interest in sciences and technology. She also had a crush on the handsome Italian-American teenage boy, with whom she had started to develop a serious relationship during their mutual adventure in Panama. Ungluing herself from him, Kimi then admired his Porsche 911 Turbo.
‘’Nice car you have, Leo. When did you get it?’’
‘’Last month, after I got my driver’s permit. Since I had plenty of money left from my part of Sir Drake’s treasure, I decided that I wanted a really nice first personal car.’’
‘’It is certainly a beautiful car, Leo. Is Nancy also going to come and study here at this new private school?’’
‘’Yes, she is!’’ said Leonardo while smiling. ‘’She should arrive soon on her new bike.’’
That piece of news thrilled the rest of the group, who were all good friends with Nancy and positively revered her, especially after their adventure trip to Panama on the GOLDEN HINDE. Lucy Wong in particular was happy to learn that Nancy would be studying with her, for many reasons: she, like Nancy, loved music and playing instruments and Nancy had proved to be a kind, generous and open-minded girl. Nancy was also one of the rare few non-ethnic Chinese students she had known with whom Lucy could converse in Mandarin Chinese. However, one other reason why she was fond of Nancy was one she dared not reveal publicly: Lucy was a closet lesbian, something that would infuriate her parents if they ever learned about that and something that could even get her disowned by her own family. Her attraction to Nancy had only grown with the years, as Nancy’s body developed and became more and more feminine and sexy. Lucy’s shyness and fear of being outed had however stopped her from confessing her love to Nancy. Now that she knew that Nancy would attend this school with her, Lucy promised herself mentally that she would garner the courage to reveal her true feelings to Nancy during this school year.
The sudden noise and passage at low altitude over the school of a very fast propeller plane made many students duck, while the rest snapped their heads up to see what had just overflown them. What they saw then was a really small and compact plane with four ducted propellers like those of Ingrid Dows’ air car. The machine, painted gold and silver, then flew back towards the school, describing a wide half-turn, to next start slowing down while descending towards the parking lot area, followed by the eyes of the fascinated students and school staff present outside the school. Only Leonardo stayed unphased, speaking to his friends while also watching the air bike approach.
‘’That’s Nancy, arriving in her new Hiller AIR BIKE. Ingrid gifted her with it once she passed her private pilot’s license, two weeks ago.’’
‘’And how is your adoptive mother, by the way?’’ asked Karl Wienermeyer. ‘’Is she going to show up today in her air car to meet with our teachers?’’
‘’No! She is in California for the week, to work on a new project at Hiller. She also had some business to do at her old Space Corps base in Vandenberg.’’
Lucy’s ear rose on hearing that piece of news: so, Nancy would be alone with Leo at their house for the whole week. Maybe that would be a good time to speak in private with Nancy and be open with her.
Nancy landed her air bike on its two main wheels at some distance from the cars parked next to the school, in order to prevent small rocks or objects blown off the ground by the downwash from her four ducted propellers from damaging their car paint. She then rolled to a parking spot in motorbike mode, watched by the fascinated onlookers. The truth was that the Hiller AIR BIKE was still quite a novelty and was not widely known. However, this was probably going to change quickly in the coming weeks. Leonardo and his group were the first to assemble next to the air bike as Nancy stepped out of it and retrieved her school briefcase and box lunch from the luggage compartment behind the rear bench seat. Kimi Park was particularly taken by the air bike and went slowly around it while examining every detail of it.
‘’Nancy, this machine is positively fantastic! How fast can it go?’’
‘’Oh, just a measly 450 miles per hour at altitude, or 412 miles per hour at sea level. It can cruise at 400 miles per hour while on a 1,300-mile trip. Mind you, my air bike has the optional enlarged fuel tank. With a standard fuel tank, an air bike still can cover about 930 miles before you have to land at a gas station and refill it with Super grade gasoline.’’
‘’Wow! Could I bother you for a ride in it sometimes this week, Nancy?’’
‘’Could I have a ride too, Nancy?’’ pleaded Lucy, quickly followed by others, making Nancy grin.
‘’You will all have a turn at riding with it, but I have only place for two passengers in it, so you will have to be patient. Kimi, Lucy, you asked first, so you will get the first ride.’’
‘’YAY!’’ shouted both girls at once while jumping up and down. One male teacher who had approached the air bike to admire it then spoke up after looking at his watch.
‘’ALRIGHT, KIDS! IT IS NOW FIVE TO EIGHT: TIME TO HIT THE CLASSES!’’
The students assembled around the air bike broke up with some regret and walked into the school to join their classes. The Northern Virginia International High School was actually small for a high school, with a normal capacity of only 130 students from Grade-Six to Grade-Twelve. That small capacity was however intentional, as the two-year-old private, non-denominational school was intended to cater to gifted students and to foreign students, typically children of foreign diplomats serving in Washington, thus charged hefty tuition fees. While the school capacity was small, so was the average class size of ten students, something which helped promote high-quality, more personalized education.
Leonardo and Nancy actually ended up in two different classes, although both were dedicated to grade-nine students. Nancy’s class turned out to be that of the ninth-grade arts and music group, while that of Leonardo was the ninth-grade mathematics and sciences Group. There was also a third ninth-grade group, that of history and social/political science group, which regrouped the majority of the foreign students of ninth level. Nancy’s senior group teacher, an ethnic-Indian music teacher named Rajiv Modi, did the opening statement to her group, which included Lucy Wong, Sarah Weissman, Karl Wienermeyer and a beautiful Latino teenage girl named Carmen Estrada, the daughter of a Mexican diplomat.
‘’Good morning to all of you and welcome to the Northern Virginia International School. My name is Rajiv Modi and I am the senior teacher of the arts and music department. You were all selected to this class group because you expressed a special interest or talent for arts or music, or both. Contrary to primary school, you will not have all or most of your classes in this local, as you will move as needed to the various specialized classrooms. While you will have a number of classes dedicated to arts and music, that will not exempt you from having to attend basic matters’ classes, like mathematics, English, physics, chemistry and history. So, if you were hoping to escape mathematics, like me when I was young, forget it!’’
There was some short laughter before Modi, a 42-year-old man with brown skin and receding hairline, continued speaking.
‘’Your teachers in the arts and music department will be Misses Winifred Gleason, our singing teacher, Miss Jennifer Wainwright, our dance and ballet teacher, Miss Tanya Rutzinsky, our sculpting, drawing, painting and ceramics teacher, Miss Nora Campbell, our drama teacher and, finally, me, your instrumental music teacher. Now, I would like you to get up one at a time and present yourself while stating which type of art or musical instrument most interests you. Miss Wong, you may start first.’’
Lucy, doing her best to fight her timidity, got up and spoke up in her singing voice while looking at the other nine students of her group.
‘’Hello! My name is Lucy Wong and I am fifteen. My parents came from Hong-Kong some eighteen years ago and my father is in the import/export business. My interest is in music and my favorite instrument is the violin. I can also play the bass.’’
She then sat back as Modi nodded his head.
‘’Very good, Lucy! Miss Sarah Weissman, you’re next.’’
The Jewish teenager readjusted her glasses before getting up and facing her classmates.
‘’Good morning to all of you. I am Sarah Weissman and I am fifteen years-old. Music is my passion, particularly classical music, and my favorite instruments are the piano and the violin.’’
Modi nodded again, then pointed at the one student he was most interested into, thanks to her celebrated past exploits and public demonstrations of paranormal powers.
‘’Miss Dows, it’s your turn to present yourself.’’
Nancy got on her feet and did a short pause before starting to speak: she was still hoping to avoid becoming the center of attention at the school, something that her public fame and name recognition would make hard indeed.
‘’Good morning to all! My name is Nancy Dows and, while I appear to be fifteen, I am biologically nine-years-old. To those who are still wondering about that, yes, I do possess a number of paranormal and supernatural powers, but I wish to avoid talking about them while here in the school. I am simply here to learn, like all of you. I love singing, dancing and playing musical instruments. My favorite instruments are the qanun, a Persian variant of the zither, and the lute, but I can also play well the harp, the flute and the goblet drum.’’
Modi applauded her as she sat down, having appreciated the modesty of her presentation.
‘’Well said, Nancy. To all of you, I will urge you to respect Nancy’s intimacy and not hound her with questions about her powers. Instead, please treat her the way you would treat the other students of this school: with respect and kindness. Karl Wienermeyer, I believe that you are next…’’
09:49 (California Time) / 12:49 (Washington Time)
Main access gate, Naval Amphibious Base Coronado
San Diego, California
Ingrid, at the controls of her Hiller AIR BIKE, landed on the access road to the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, then continued rolling in ground bike mode, stopping just short of the steel barrier and guardhouse of the main access gate to the naval base. The four U.S. Marines guarding the gate stared at her air bike, fascinated, then at her, as she opened upward the left side door of her canopy and presented her reserve officer’s military identity card to the sergeant in charge of the gate.
‘’Good morning, Sergeant! I have a scheduled meeting with Rear Admiral Smith, at the Naval Special Warfare Command.’’
The Marine sergeant took her identity card and examined it carefully, stiffening a bit when he saw that she was listed on the card as a general-grade officer. Her name also came back to his memory and he gave her back her card before coming to attention and saluting her.
‘’You may proceed, General. Do you know how to get to the NSWC headquarters, ma’am?’’
‘’Uh, no, not exactly.’’
‘’Then, give me a second, General.’’ replied the Marine NCO before quickly walking into the guardhouse to go fetch one of the small base maps given on demand to legitimate visitors. As he was getting one map from a drawer of his duty desk, a young corporal asked him a question in a low voice while eyeing Ingrid through the window of the guardhouse.
‘’How could this chick be a general, Sarge? She’s only a teenager.’’
The NCO gave a dubious look at his subaltern and replied in a low but firm tone to him.
‘’That ‘chick’, as you just called her, is General Ingrid Dows and she was fighting wars for the United States while you were not even born yet. She even fought alongside the great Chesty Puller, so don’t ever show disrespect to her again. Understood?’’
Uh, yes, Sergeant!’’ said the young marine, thoroughly chastised. The sergeant then went back out with his map, giving it to Ingrid and explaining to her how to get to her destination before saluting her again. She returned his salute, then rolled through the opened gate, keeping her air bike in ground mode b