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hoped to God they had someone at Site X capable of repairing the autopilot. He didn't fancy facing a return to Montreal horsing this heavy motherfucker all the way. |
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"Alpha Bravo, this is Site X approach control. You are slightly below glide path, on course, eight miles from touchdown. Do not acknowledge any further transmissions from approach control." |
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"Hold the bitch, Flight." Ahlgren released the control yoke and flexed his arms and shoulders for a moment, then clutched the yoke firmly. "Okay, I have her. Gear down." |
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The plane buffeted as the wheels extended, destroying aerodynamic integrity. Ahlgren said sharply, "Make sure all the sheep are belted in back there. It's getting rougher." |
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Pilot Officer Winthrop flashed the seat belt warning light in the passenger bay. |
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"Alpha Bravo, Site X approach control. You are below the glide path, repeat, below, five miles from touchdown. Be advised we are showing wind sheers on radar." |
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Ahlgren advanced the throttle quadrant to forty percent power. He turned on the landing lights, hoping for a sight of the ground. The altimeter showed 800 feet. The Starlifter was still in heavy cloud and rain. |
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"Lights ahead," Macpherson said. "Looks like a ship. It's the Trudeau. We're low, skipper." |
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The lighted ship, indistinct in the mist, disappeared under the nose. Ahlgren advanced the throttles to fifty percent, but the descent continued. Son of a bitch, Ahlgren thought. Ice. Lots of it. |
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"Alpha Bravo, approach control. You are too low. Do you read? Power up and go around again." The tone changed to one of sudden alarm. "Alpha Bravo, go around. I say again, go around!" |
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Ahlgren, a veteran pilot with ten thousand hours in the air, muttered a curse and swept the throttles forward to the stops. The aircraft surged forward and upward, until it struck the wind sheer. The right wing dropped steeply. The pilots reacted |
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