It's been a solid thirty minutes since Blackhawk's been hit. AWACS confirmed that Steele and Jackson made it and are on their way to evac, but we haven't heard from Haythem since.
My brow furrows as I clench the yoke.
"Baker, reporting Winchester, proceeding to home plate on vector 170."
"Baker, Blackwater, proceed to home plate on vector 170, caution multiple threats within vicinity of the steerpoint."
First thing's first: I have to get this bird home. The navigation page comes up once more on the monochrome MFD, and I set course for Merwalk. It's been nothing short of a miracle for us to have gone this far through the mission virtually unscathed. Unfortunately however, fate had other designs in store for us as the EW Officer cries over the radio not long after reaching the water:
"Squat Eye active, 7 o'clock! SA-3 inbound!"
"Baker, defending SA-3! Hold tight!"
The airframe moans in agony as I tip the Stratofortress down into a relatively steep diving turn. An angel wing flare pattern forms behind the bomber as a flurry of countermeasures are released in a drastic attempt to fool the radar. Unfazed by the paltry distraction, the missile flies straight and true before finally exploding behind the tail, severing the elevators and vertical stabilizer. We're not going to recover.
The entire crew ejects. I watch from above as the B-52 spirals into the ocean and explodes.
