Disclaimer: I don't own Independence Day and never will. All I own is a copy of the film on video.
It's a magnificent sight, Lieutenant Kieran Ritter of the RAF thought to himself as he look around him at the huge number of aircraft flying around him. As well as ADV Tornados, there were Hawk trainers, Sepecat Jaguars, Royal Navy Harriers and even a few American F-15 Eagles that were based over at RAF Sculthorpe.
As the clouds cleared, they saw their target for the first time, sitting over the remains of London. The day was surprisingly clear and the ship was visible for miles.
"My God. You think anyone survived down there?" his weapons system officer Gordon Breemer asked as they surveyed the damage below.
"Don't see how," Kieran replied grimly. He turned his head towards the alien ship. "But we can make those b#&ardspay."
"Amen to that," Gordon finished as he switched his attention to his radar screen once more. Gordon's sister had lived in London. Kieran was just glad that his parents lived in the countryside.
"Missile lock!" Gordon's voice shouted, cutting through his reverie and Kieran immediately switched his attention to the task at hand, flicking the firing switch to his Skyflash missiles.
"Green One, Fox one!" he called out over the radio as he pressed the firing button. The aircraft gave a slight shudder and flew towards its target, one of many that was flying towards the alien ship. The missiles exploded in a line of green as they hit the spaceships shields.
"Goddamnit!" he heard someone curse over the radio. Kieran couldn't agree more. It was frustrating just seeing the alien vessel there without a scratch.
"This is Commander Redman of RAF Air Command. We have just received word of the American attack on the hostile vessels. Abort mission, I say again, abort mission!"
"You're kidding!" someone exclaimed. Kieran checked, the codes were definitely from RAF command. Opening the throttle, his twin RB.199 Mk104 engines roared into life and pulled his aircraft away. It was probably that which saved his life and the life of his weapons system officer as what seemed like thousands of smaller alien craft started flying out of the larger alien vessel. One of the smaller craft latched onto his aircraft.
There were two explosions as Kieran's two fellow Tornados were destroyed and Kieran narrowly avoided a similar fate by pitching his nose forward and the aircraft narrowly avoided the two flecks of light that would have destroyed it in an instant.
"F$% me, that was too close!" Gordon shouted from behind him and Kieran winced. As the alien craft aligned itself up behind the Tornado again, Kieran pulled the nose of the aircraft up and another pair of shots flew past. For what felt like an eternity, Kieran dodged shots in exactly the same way. Eventually, somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, the alien craft pulled up and turned away.
"That, has got to be, the BEST flying I have ever seen you do," Gordon commented from behind him.
"Yeah, but now we're going to need somewhere to land," Kieran pointed out grimly. Turning hard, he turned the fighter back towards land. By the time the coast came into sight, red lights were flashing in the cockpit screaming that their fuel was dangerously low. Fortunately and empty motorway proved suitable for them to land on and with almost no fuel left, they landed. Within a couple of hours, they were back with the Royal Air Force, hidden in a secret base.
Of his entire squadron, his aircraft was the only one to survive. Which, he mused, was not surprising, given the fact that the Tornado was not really designed for dogfighting. And as a result of his forced landing on the motorway, on July the fourth, his aircraft was one of the planes in the more successful second attack.