CHAPTER 14 – THE ROAD TO THE STARS
09:52 (Washington Time)
Friday, July 29, 1955 ‘C’
‘The tank’ (NMCC secure conference room)
The Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
“Well, now that we have expedited our routine business, let’s get to new business, gentlemen.” Said jovially Admiral Radford, savoring in advance the bomb he was about to drop on his unsuspecting service chiefs. He then punched a button on his intercom and spoke in it. “Lieutenant General Dows, you may come in now.”
“LIEUTENANT GENERAL?!” Exclaimed the Chief of Staff of the Army, General Maxwell Taylor, looking both surprised and upset. “How did she get her third star so soon?”
The Commandant of the Marine Corps, General Randolph McCall Pate, a fatherly-looking gentleman wearing glasses who had served in Guadalcanal in 1942 with Ingrid Dows, threw Taylor an unsympathetic look.
“I personally went up from colonel to four star general in less than seven years, Taylor. Why would you object about that woman getting up by one rank in a bit less than seven years? General Dows fought in the last four wars the United States was involved in and earned her ranks in combat. She also saved the bacon of many of my marines in Korea, plus that of many army troopers as a matter of fact, on top of giving a hell of a beating to both the Communist Chinese and the Soviets.”
“But she is too young to be a lieutenant general.” Objected Taylor, not noticing in his excitement that Ingrid was now entering the room. “Hell, she can barely get herself inside a bar without being turned away by a bouncer.”
“I have no problem whatsoever getting into a bar, General Taylor: I am 31 years old.” Said calmly Ingrid while going to her seat. “Besides, all the bouncers in town know me well by now.”
The other generals present looked on in silence as Taylor and Ingrid exchanged hard stares for a moment, expecting some fireworks. Admiral Radford however cleared his throat then, attracting the attention back on him.
“Well, gentlemen, the reason I called in Lieutenant General Dows was twofold: first, I wanted to advise you that, following an executive request from the President, the Senate Armed Services Committee has decided in an emergency closed session yesterday to confirm the promotion of General Dows to the rank of lieutenant general, retroactive to the First of July. Second, I wish to announce to you that President Dewey has created yesterday by executive order a new joint command: the United States Military Space Command. The USMSC will be commanded by Lieutenant General Dows and will be directly under myself and the President. It will control and coordinate all the military departments and agencies involved in research, development and operations involving space, and will direct the military use of space by the United States. As well, General Dows was named by the President as National Director of Aerospace Programs and will have the status of special presidential advisor. General Dows is here to brief us on her preliminary findings and decisions.”
“Space Command?” Said Maxwell Taylor in a derisive tone. “But we have nothing that can go into space yet. What kind of command will that be?”
“It is true that after years of efforts we have nothing yet in space,” said Ingrid, straight-faced, “so the President decided to put a woman in charge for a change.”
While General Pate had a hard time not bursting out in laughter, General Twining of the Air Force covered his face with both hands and shook his head. On his part, Taylor pointed an accusing index at Ingrid.
“I don’t know how you managed that, but you are not touching my ballistic missile agency at the Redstone Arsenal.”
Ingrid’s answer was to smile in a devilish way, despite being dead tired from a night spent preparing her presentation.
“I won’t touch anything that can’t go in space or has a range that doesn’t exceed 200 miles, General. The rest is mine for the picking, though.”
Ingrid’s smile then faded and she looked around the table at the other generals and admirals, who all looked like they could be her grandfather.
“Believe me gentlemen when I say that I am not on some kind of power trip. I had absolutely no clue that this job would be given to me when I arrived from Germany four weeks ago. I was however put in charge of this new command by the President and I intend to do my best in the national interest. One of the reasons why we still don’t have anything in space or even have a decent ballistic missile yet is that too many departments and services are splitting the pie and trying all at once to draw the blanket to themselves while working in a completely uncoordinated fashion. This has to stop if we ever want to accomplish anything useful before the Soviets make us look stupid. As of next Monday, I will fire away a number of messages and directives to the military agencies and departments involved in space-related projects, in order to patch up my new command. For the sake of our nation, I hope that nobody will then try to block or delay those directives simply because of inter-service rivalry. If that happens, then those responsible will have to explain themselves to Admiral Radford and the President. This said, here is the tentative organizational chart of the new USMSC.”
On a signal from Ingrid, a lieutenant lit up an overhead projector, making a chart appear on a wall screen. Ingrid then started commenting the chart in a strong voice.
“As you can see on this chart, the USMSC will combine facilities and personnel from the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy, plus a number of civilian high technology firms under contract on an ad hoc basis. Space Command headquarters will eventually be located in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at Patrick Air Force Base. Patrick AFB and its surrounding space-related installations will in turn become the Eastern Test Range Complex, or ETRC in short, of the United States Military Space Command. The ETRC will be used to develop and test-launch rocket booster systems. It will also launch rocket boosters and their payloads that need to be launched eastward close to the Equator. On the West Coast will be the Western Test Range Complex, or WTRC, yet to be established at the old Army Camp Cook, northwest of Los Angeles. That base is quite isolated and is well situated to fire test shots westward across the Pacific and to launch rockets and their payloads into polar orbit.”
“What the hell is a polar orbit, General Dows?” Asked Admiral Arleigh Burke, the Chief of Naval Operations. Ingrid answered him politely, understanding that few people would know much about what she was talking about.
“A polar orbit is a trajectory over the Earth that is roughly aligned on a North-South axis, Admiral. Such an orbit, combined with the rotation of the Earth, will permit artificial satellites to overfly periodically any point on Earth, something that would be most useful to, say, a reconnaissance satellite equipped with high definition cameras.”
“Oh, I see!” Said Burke, understanding at once the strategic interest of such a concept. “Do you have other uses planned for that Western complex?”
“Yes, Admiral, I do. It will also be home to the testing and operational use of our future space plane system. I am in fact placing a lot of hopes on that project. If it turns out to be successful, it will then give us a military system able to deliver in orbit a wide variety of payloads, both more cheaply and at a faster rate than rocket booster systems could. Such a space plane could also conduct flights from orbit over enemy territory, be it for reconnaissance or strike purpose. In order to be able to quickly develop and test that concept without having to wait for Camp Cook to be rehabilitated and enlarged, I intend to use one or more hangars at nearby Muroc AFB, our Air Force Flight Test Center, which has the added benefit of having the use of the wide landing surface provided by the Muroc dried lake. As well, Camp Cook will house launch silos for our first nuclear-tipped intercontinental missiles, once they are developed and become operational.”
The generals around the table, save for Admiral Radford, looked at Ingrid as if she was crazy when she said the words ‘space plane’. Maxwell Taylor was again the one to give his two bit of criticism.
“A space plane? You have read too much science-fiction novels, General Dows.”
“What I read were files from the future, General Taylor, and they told me that the concept is not only feasible, it is also a highly desirable one. If we stick to the basics and don’t go overboard on the final product, such a space plane could be operational in a matter of a few years at the most. To put some icing on that cake, the heavy plane that will be used as the first stage of the system will also be able to be modified to become a super heavy lift cargo aircraft, something that both our Air Force and Army certainly could use.”
“What kind of lifting capacity are we talking about here?” Asked General Twining, of the Air Force. Ingrid answered him without hesitation.
“Close to 200 tons, General. That transport plane won’t be the fastest of all but it will be optimized in order to fly as high as possible, a critical point for our projected space plane. To finish reviewing the list of bases for the USMSC, secondary test and launch centers will be kept at Wallops Island in Virginia, at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico and at the Point Mugu Naval Air Facility in California. White Sands will actually become our prime static test site for rocket motors, due to its isolation. As well, part of the resources and personnel of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency at the Redstone Arsenal in Alabama will be used as a rocket research and development branch of the USMSC. Next, here are the achievements expected from the USMSC by the President, along with their stated deadlines.”
The next overhead slide to show on the wall left the generals silent for a long moment as they digested the information. General Twining then gave a questioning look to Ingrid.
“Send a manned spacecraft in orbit by no later than 1960? Isn’t that quite optimistic?”
“Not if my space plane project is successful, sir. Along with producing an operational, nuclear-tipped ballistic missile with intercontinental range, that space plane will be my biggest priority.”
“And who will design and produce that space plane?” Asked General Pate, making Ingrid smile with malice.
“I believe that I already have someone in mind about that, sir.”
14:07 (Los Angeles Time)
Tuesday, August 2, 1955 ‘C’
Lockheed ‘Skunk Works’ plant
Palmdale area, California
Ingrid, having just shut down the jet engines of her F-83A fighter-bomber, slid open her canopy and waived happily at two men she had just recognized and who were waiting for her on the parking apron. The two men waived back and approached her personal aircraft as Lockheed technicians deployed for Ingrid the integrated ladder of the F-83A. Ingrid took little time to climb down, clutching in one hand a secure briefcase. She then hugged first the older of the two men.
“Kelly, it’s a true pleasure to see you again.”
“And it is always a pleasure to see you, Ingrid.” Replied the chief design engineer of the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. Clarence ‘Kelly’ Johnson then eyed the three silver stars pinned to the collar or her flight suit.
“A lieutenant general? My god, Ingrid, you are going up at the speed of a rocket.”
“Hey, could you give me a chance to hug that lieutenant general, Kelly?” Interrupted the other man, a tall and jovial-looking one wearing designer sunglasses. Tony LeVier, head test pilot at Lockheed, then warmly hugged Ingrid, who returned the favor before smiling up to him.
“Hello, Tony! How is life treating you and your family?”
“Quite fairly indeed, Ingrid. You also seems to be getting the best out of life, it seems.”
“Bof, I got lucky again.”
“Ingrid,” chided Kelly Johnson, “you don’t rely on luck: you make your own luck. So, what was so important that I had to miss a meeting of the board of directors of Lockheed?”
“The possibility of a juicy, under-the-table government contract for Lockheed and a chance for you to design the most extraordinary plane ever.” Replied a smiling Ingrid while patting her secure briefcase. Kelly’s eyes opened wide at once.
“Fuck the contract! Tell me about the kind of plane you want me to design.”
“A space plane.”
Ingrid giggled at the faces Johnson and LeVier did then.
“No, I’m not joking, Kelly. You are looking at the commander of the new United States Military Space Command and the President has big expectations for me to fill. Since you are the most visionary of our aircraft designers, I came to you to propose something I saw in files about the future.”
“Hell, Ingrid, you just convinced me on the spot. Let’s go to my design office to discuss this in a more discreet setting.”
Leading Ingrid and Tony to his car, Johnson then drove them to an office building that was an annex to what looked like a huge aircraft hangar. Ingrid however knew already that the hangar-like building was in fact an aircraft manufacturing plant kept under strict guard day and night. The ‘Skunk Works’ was where Lockheed conceived and built the classified aircraft projects contracted from the government. The prototypes of her F-83 fighter-bomber had in fact been built here. Ingrid could not think of a better place where her space plane project could be realized. It had all the specialized tooling needed to built the most advanced aircraft possible, had highly talented engineers and, most important for her, worked outside of what was considered normal conventions and ways of doing things.
Once Kelly had locked the door of his office behind Ingrid and Tony, he invited them to sit down on a sofa in one corner of his design office, then sat opposite them, a clipboard holding a paper pad in his hands.
“So, Ingrid, what exactly do you have in mind?”
“A reusable space plane system that could bring to low Earth orbit and launch a variety of satellites or, if need be, retrieve them from orbit for repair or overhaul. When I said low Earth orbit, I meant a steady orbit achieved at a minimum altitude of 150 miles, with a final velocity of over 4.87 miles per second. Our space plane will have a crew of two and a payload of up to five tons. It should also have a belly compartment for a fixed battery of reconnaissance cameras. Its main roles will be satellite launch and retrieval and strategic reconnaissance.”
Johnson stopped writing notes for a moment and gave a cautious look at Ingrid.
“Those are very exacting requirements, Ingrid. Can you give me any clues on how I could meet them? After all, I know next to nothing about rocket systems.”
Seeing a large drawing pad sitting on an easel in a corner of the office, Ingrid pointed at it.
“May I?”
“Go right ahead!”
Followed by Kelly and Tony, Ingrid went to the easel and, grabbing a large felt marker pen, started drawing a number of simplified sketches.
“One of the reasons why we still have nothing in orbit is because everybody is trying hard with rocket boosters that have insufficient efficiency to put a meaningful payload into orbit. The big problem is that most if not all of the rocket’s power is used to climb above the densest parts of Earth’s atmosphere. Once that is done, the rocket has to tilt to one side to start taking speed relative to the Earth’s surface, with the minimum speed needed to achieve a stable orbit being roughly 4.87 miles per second. Anything less than that and the rocket will fall back to Earth in a ballistic trajectory. Once over that speed, however, the rocket stays in orbit until friction with the very much rarefied air in low orbit slows it down below orbital speed. Then, the rocket falls back to Earth. Tilting the rocket right after takeoff will not help solve that problem, as the drag from the dense air of the lower atmosphere would eat up so much of the thrust from the rocket’s engine that it would run out of fuel before leaving the atmosphere. The only solution when using a classic rocket booster is to have the most efficient design possible and to have enough raw power to carry what will be in essence a proportionally very small payload into orbit. All that costs a lot in terms of fuel, not counting the fact that the whole rocket is basically thrown away at each launch.”
“Sounds like a nearly no-win situation.” Said Tony LeVier, making Ingrid nod her head.
“It is! From what Nancy told me, space exploration in her time was a complicated, risky and extremely expensive proposition. After decades of trying it the hard way, the engineers in Nancy’s time finally were ready to throw the conventional rules book out and try something different, namely the space plane concept. However, even by 2012, that concept was still only a theory, except for a sub-orbital civilian space plane system that could not stay in orbit. Despite of that, I firmly believe that the concept is sound and feasible. In essence, we need to take the space plane itself aloft under the belly of a heavy aircraft that will then carry it to high altitude and subsonic speed and release it there. The space plane’s engines would then be able to work up its speed instead of fighting the atmosphere density. In turn, it would save all the fuel previously used to climb out of the lower atmosphere. If the space plane is also designed to fly to hypersonic speed on air-breathing engines, you further save on the weight of oxidizer fuel you would normally have to carry when using pure rocket engines. You can also more than double the efficiency of your rocket engines within the atmosphere if you place them inside air channeling tubes, in order to use the ram air effect to augment thrust. Add to that the aerodynamic lift provided by the wings and fuselage and you save more fuel while gaining altitude.”
“That is indeed a fascinating concept, Ingrid.” Said softly Johnson while eyeing the sketches on the pad. “However, getting air-breathing engines that can work up to hypersonic speed would be tricky, unless…of course! Ramjet engines! They are at their best past Mach two and can work well past mach five. Since the space plane is launched at subsonic speed, that eliminates the main shortcoming of ramjets, mainly that they cannot work at zero speed.”
“Exactly, Kelly.” Said Ingrid, happy to see that Johnson had thought by himself about that without having to be helped. “I actually want to combine both a ramjet and a rocket engine together into an integral package, in order to improve the performances of both engines and use as much as possible the oxygen contained in our atmosphere, thus improving the specific impulse of our engines. Now, that will bring our space plane up to maybe a bit over one mile per second of speed. Once the ramjet part of our integral space engine reaches its limit around an altitude of 100,000 feet and a speed of Mach 5.5, the rocket engine part will then continue alone and push the space plane into orbit…hopefully.”
“Do we have yet even one working rocket engine that would be suitable for the job, Ingrid?”
“We do have a couple of options. What I am going to say is classified, so be discreet about it. Our Army Ballistic Missile Agency had a rocket engine developed by Rocketdyne, the S-3, able to produce thrusts of up to 150,000 pounds. It uses liquid oxygen and kerosene as bipropellants. The Marquardt company, which specializes in ramjet engines, is going to pair up with Rocketdyne on a contract I will provide them to design and develop our main integral ramjet/rocket engines. This is however only the first of a series of technological challenges we have to face. I have to get designed the most efficient first stage heavy transporter I can, so that our space plane has the best chance possible to attain orbit. Then, we have to deal with the intense heat of the reentry into the atmosphere, find a way to be able to pilot our space plane in the vacuum of space and add systems that would be essential to operate the space plane without making it too heavy. Thankfully, I have a few possible solutions from the future that I can tell you about. I brought with me copies of documents selected from our ATHENA files, which describe a number of space systems from Nancy’s time, so you can start thinking about the design of our space plane. So, you think that Lockheed will be up to this job, Kelly?”
Johnson smiled to Ingrid, his eyes sparkling.
“Are you kidding, Ingrid? Where is that contract of yours?”
14:27 (Florida Time)
Monday, August 8, 1955 ‘C’
Military aircraft hangar lines
Patrick Air Force Base
“There she comes, sir!”
Major General David Aldridge, commander of the newly renamed Eastern Test Range Complex, previously known as the Air Force Missile Test Center, and of Patrick Air Force Base, squinted his eyes to see in the direction pointed at by his aide. Standing along the northern edge of the main military tarmac with the other senior officers waiting for the arrival of their new commander, Aldridge saw through his glasses a tiny dot in the sky that was approaching the far end of the base’s main runway. Watched by the group of seven senior officers and one civilian scientist, a F-83A fighter-bomber soon touched down smoothly and rolled down the runway, turning on a taxiway leading to the main military tarmac after a minute or so. By now, all could distinctly see the paint scheme of the combat aircraft, including the name painted in black and pink on its nose section. The civilian scientist made a face when he read that name.
“Lady Hawk? A strange name for a military aircraft.”
Aldridge smiled and threw an amused look at the civilian, a man in his mid-forties dressed in a tired suit.
“I have seen much stranger names given to military aircraft during my career in the Air Force, Doctor Von Braun. In the case of Lieutenant General Dows, her combat record in the air amply justified her nickname. She is said to have the most acute vision ever seen in a pilot, apart from having by far the highest number of air combat victories by any American fighter pilot in history. In fact, I understand that, when still a teenage auxiliary in the Luftwaffe in France in 1940, she learned much about air tactics while dating such top Luftwaffe air aces as Adolph Galland and Werner Moelders.”
While the rocket scientist raised an eyebrow at that, Brigadier General John Medaris, commander of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency in Huntsville, Alabama, hid his face in his hands for a moment, speaking in a disgruntled voice.
“She learned her trade in bed? God help us all!”
Major General Bernard Schriever, commander of the future Western Test Range Complex of the new Military Space Command, gave Medaris a warning look.
“Don’t misjudge her because of that, John. She learned her trade in the air, in combat and during five wars. Don’t forget also that she humbled in succession the Soviets, the Communist Chinese and the British.”
“Don’t worry, Bernie, I was just joking.” Replied Medaris, becoming serious again. His eyes then caught a marking painted in black on the fuselage of the approaching F-83A. “United States Military Space Command. I have to say that it sounds quite nice.”
“It sure does.” Said Aldridge. “I just hope that this is the last time that this place changes names. If it continues like this, I will put up a revolving sign at the base main gate.”
Colonel John Merrick, commander of the 6550th Air Base Group, rolled his eyes then.
“Amen to that!”
Werner Von Braun looked around him and, seeing only the small convoy of staff cars that had brought the group to the tarmac, touched Aldridge’s left arm.
“General, how come that there is no guard of honor or even a military band present to greet Lieutenant General Dows?”
“That was on General Dows’ own request, Doctor. I understand that she tends to be quite modest as a person, even after all her military successes. Quite refreshing when coming from a fighter pilot.”
That last remark made Navy Commander Steven Ross, commander of the Naval Ordnance Test Unit, based at Port Canaveral, strangle a laugh.
“Sorry about that, sir. I have to say that Navy fighter pilots are quite insufferable too.”
The group of waiting dignitaries kept watching mostly in silence as the F-83A, its canopy slid open, rolled to a gentle stop a mere thirty meters in front of them. They could now see clearly the pilot, its colorful flying helmet painted the colors of the American flag and sporting a gold-plated visor. As soon as the two turbofan engines of the fighter-bomber had stopped, four Air Force ground technicians rushed to the plane in an aircraft tractor. They took only seconds to attach the front wheel of the plane to the tractor’s towing bar and to put up an access ladder on one side of the cockpit to let the pilot climb down. Von Braun and the senior officers then watched with interest a young woman climb down after replacing her helmet with an Air force blue beret and removing her flying gear. Major General Aldridge called the group to attention as the pilot walked towards them at a calm pace, dressed in a standard flight suit and carrying a secure briefcase. He then saluted the young woman when she stopped at attention in front of him.
“Major General David Aldridge, Commander of the Eastern Test Range Complex and of Patrick Air Force Base. Welcome to Florida, General Dows.”
“Thank you, General Aldridge.” Replied Ingrid while returning the salute. She then shook hands with Aldridge and the rest of the group, speaking in German when Von Braun’s turn came up.
“Nice to see you as part of this team, Doctor Von Braun. Be assured that I have big things lined up for you and your scientists and engineers.”
“Thank you, General.” Replied with difficulty Von Braun, mesmerized by her youthful beauty. With her soft features, sexy lips and big blue eyes, Von Braun would give Ingrid only eighteen years of age in appearance, yet he knew that she was quite older than that, something that was to be put on a much celebrated miracle of rejuvenation in Israel over two years ago. Ingrid smiled slightly then before turning towards General Aldridge.
“I suppose that you must all be impatient to hear what I came to tell you, General.”
“Indeed! We will go to the base headquarters right away.”
Aldridge then had his aide make the four waiting staff cars approach them while ground technicians brought three pieces of luggage taken from the storage compartment of the F-83A. They soon piled up in the cars, which then drove away towards the headquarters building, situated 800 meters to the north of the hangar lines.
Aldridge couldn’t help discreetly admire Ingrid’s profile as their car drove past a series of hangars and buildings. She was actually even more beautiful than her reputation said but was also impossibly young in appearance for her rank. Aldridge, along with most of the senior officers following in the other cars, could easily have been her father. No one could however deny her genius at joint tactics and her qualities as a combat pilot and as a military leader. Aldridge just hoped that her new powers and rank would not go to her young head. He was honest enough with himself to acknowledge the fact that many male generals he knew were of questionable competence when compared to Dows or had a rather lackluster combat record, with some generals at the Pentagon and elsewhere having in fact never been themselves in combat. On her part, Ingrid didn’t say much during the car trip, busy eyeing with interest the base she was eventually going to work and live in. It was obvious from the numerous construction sites visible to her and from the still rather sparse facilities of the base that Patrick AFB was still growing in leaps and bounds, along with the other military and space-related installations around Cape Canaveral. That state of affairs was probably going to continue for quite a few more years still.
The staff car eventually slowed down and stopped in front of a three-story concrete building, letting Ingrid and Aldridge get out. They were soon joined by the others and by an airman carrying Ingrid’s luggage. The group then entered the building, saluted by the two military policemen guarding the entrance, and proceeded to a medium-size conference room. While the officers sat around the table, Aldridge had the airman drop Ingrid’s luggage in one corner of the room, then closed the door behind him and went to take a seat facing Ingrid. Ingrid was already taking out a number of files and papers from her secure briefcase, putting them in front of her on the table. All the men around the table were listening intently when she finally spoke in her clear, agreeable voice.
“Thanks you all for being here on such short notice, gentlemen. Things have however been moving fast since the President decided to create this new command. They may in fact be moving even faster in the next few weeks and months. I will start by distributing around copies of the command’s organizational diagram and of the list of required achievements and deadlines given to me by the President two weeks ago.”
While the men around the table read the documents she passed around, she used the opportunity to study the reactions of her new subordinates to the list and diagram. As she had expected, the list of desired achievements drew the most reactions, with Von Braun showing clearly discomfort with it. Ingrid was not surprised by that, as the German rocket scientist was the one in the group most likely to fully realize the extent of the technological breakthroughs needed to satisfy the list