Blackmail

20 USS MICHIGAN

Captain Murray Wilson climbed the metal ladder through the Bridge trunk, pulling himself through the hatch into the darkness at the top of the submarine’s sail. Stepping into the Bridge Cockpit, faintly illuminated by a full moon hovering in a cloudless sky, he stood between the Officer of the Deck and the Lookout, the latter with binoculars to his eyes, scouring the barely discernible horizon for contacts. Wilson breathed in the fresh air, and after verifying there were no contacts nearby, he shifted his gaze to the navigation repeater, examining the submarine’s position. Hours earlier, Michigan had reached the northern end of the Red Sea, surfacing before entering the shallow Gulf of Suez. Behind Wilson and atop the submarine’s sail, the American flag fluttered in the brisk wind as Michigan headed northwest at ahead standard, and it wouldn’t be long before they began their journey through the Suez Canal.

The 120-mile-long Suez Canal, enabling travel from the Pacific into the Mediterranean Sea without transiting around Africa, would cut Michigan’s transit from weeks to mere days, but the transit wasn’t without risk. Less than a year ago, during America’s war with China, mercenaries sank three oil tankers with shoulder-fired missiles, temporarily blocking the canal, forcing America’s Atlantic Fleet to take the long route around Africa into the Pacific. During the Arab-Israeli Six-Day War in 1967, both ends of the canal were blocked by scuttled ships, trapping fifteen merchants in the canal for eight years.

With the risk of direct and indirect attack weighing on Wilson’s thoughts, he focused on the pending transit. The canal was a single-lane waterway with passing locations in the Ballah Bypass and the Great Bitter Lake. As a result, ships transited the canal in convoys, with a northbound convoy departing from Suez at 4 a.m., synchronized with a southbound convoy from Port Said. Michigan would be the first ship in the northern convoy this morning. Wilson checked the time on the navigation repeater. It was 3 a.m.: time to station the Maneuvering Watch. He gave the order, and the Officer of the Deck passed the word over the shipwide 1-MC announcing circuit.

An hour later, Michigan approached the southern entrance to the Suez Canal, passing several dozen merchants at anchor awaiting their designated transit time. Loitering near the entrance was Michigan’s security detail, two patrol boats armed with .50-caliber machine guns. The real danger was ashore, however, and the patrol crafts’ machine guns would be of little use against shoulder-fired rockets or missiles.

A shoulder-fired rocket would likely hit the submarine’s sail, and it wouldn’t take much to put the submarine out of commission. Destroy the submarine’s periscopes and antennas, and Michigan would be on the way home for repairs. Not to mention the loss of life; most, if not all, of the personnel atop the sail would be killed.

Assuming Michigan’s transit through the Suez Canal was uneventful, things could get interesting once the guided missile submarine entered the Mediterranean Sea. According to the last intelligence update, the Russian Northern Fleet had also entered the Mediterranean, steaming east. The best estimate was that the Northern Fleet was headed to Latakia, Syria. Satellite reconnaissance had detected the buildup of replenishment stores along the wharves at the Syrian seaport. If things went as planned, Michigan would intercept the Russian fleet not far from Latakia.

As they approached the entrance to the Suez Canal, Wilson requested a handheld radio, which the Officer of the Deck passed to him. After selecting the proper channel, he brought it to his mouth.

“Canal Operations, this is inbound United States warship. Request permission to enter the canal at time zero-four-hundred.”

After a short squawk, the radio emitted the expected response. “United States warship, this is Canal Operations. You have permission to enter the canal at time zero-four-hundred.”

Wilson checked the navigation repeater. His Officer of the Deck, plus his Navigator stationed in the Control Room below, had done a superb job, timing Michigan’s approach perfectly. The submarine’s security detail took their positions, one boat in front and one behind the submarine, with each machine gun manned and ready. Rather than stand during the 120-mile journey, Wilson pulled himself to a sitting position atop the sail, with his feet dangling in the Bridge Cockpit, settling in for the tense fifteen-hour transit.