Thanks to Alimoo to give me an idea to add to the story about patrol boats.
Chapter 8
"Harpie!", Mike ordered.
"Sir?", he replied.
"Identify that plane. I don't want to shoot down one of us. Keep in mind that it could be British or also American. Can you do it?", Mike asked.
"Sure boss, I know them all", Harpie said and he adjusted his binoculars.
"It's a Mavis sir. A Japanese four-engine flyboat".
"Okay", Mike said and he pressed the alarm button.
"Take it down".
"Aye sir", Harpie replied and he walked to the Typhoon console where Spider was sitting.
"Aim for the second or third engine and don't waste ammo. Two shots per engine and wait for my signal".
"Okay Harp".
The admiral watched with interest at the preparations with the new weapon.
They waited until the flyboat was within firing range.
"Fire!", Harpie ordered simply.
Spider pressed the fire button and an instant later two shells exploded in the engine above the flyboat hull causing fierce fire. Spider adjusted the gun to the other engine and fired again. The engine exploded and was torn from the wing. The fuel caught fire and as the tension on the wing was too great, it broke. The plane lingered in the air and whirled like a seagull with a broken wing. It exploded into a fireball when it hit the sea.
"Secure gun", Harpie ordered Spider.
"Plane destroyed sir", he reported dryly to Mike.
"Good job guys!", Mike congratulated Harpie and Spider.
"Tell the lookouts to stay alert. Maybe the plane had a companion", Mike ordered Kate and Dutchy who hurried outside to brief the lookouts on the bridge wings.
"And tell them that they also have to look out for other ships and torpedoes!", he added. Kate looked at him over her shoulder and he could notice the disgust on her face.
"Amazing! You shot down that scrap heap with only four shots. Normally we need a quarter of a ton of ammo to get one of these bastards down. With such an armament, we could eliminate the entire Japanese Air Force from the sky", the impressed admiral said.
"It's only a small one. Our frigates are equipped with a 125 mm, 5 inch rapid-fire canon with a rate of fire from 10 to 60 rounds per minute. It has a range of 24 Km and they have anti-ship missiles with a range of 124 Km.
"Really? Man, I wish you had a bigger ship than this. So we could have given the Japs some huge blows!", said the admiral.
Meanwhile Kate and Dutchy joined them.
"Sir, where should we go? Normally, we would go to Cairns which is our base", Mike asked.
"Set course for HMAS Penguin Depot at Balmoral near Sydney. It's a base for special operations. I'm including your ship to that division. It's top secret and the less people know about you , the better! Do you know where it is? If it still exists in 2011, of course", he said.
"Yes sir, it still exists. It's now... uh in 2011 a base for specialised trainings", Mike said.
"Do you know where you are?", Crace asked.
"Yes sir, we do", Kate answered.
"Okay, X, calculate a course for Balmoral", Mike ordered.
"Yes sir".
"And don't forget the zig-zag it contains!"
Kate shot a look that said more than all the words.
Mike frowned.
What the fuck did we get into? Smack, bang, in the middle of the World War II. We can thank God if we all survive this! It's only been a few hours and we've already lost our first crew member, downed an enemy plane and pulled a few friends out of the drink. What's the next step?
He made a face and grabbed the microphone.
"To all staff. This is the captain speaking. Guess you already know, but for the good order, I'll give you an overview of the current situation.
The extreme storm of this morning caused an electrical circuit, a sort of time slot that seems abstract and completely crazy, but it was true. The storm brought us to the Second World War in 1942, the 15th of May to be precise. So enemies are Japan, Germany and Italy.
In the last two hours we've been attacked by an enemy plane that has caused us to lose Sailor Oliver Portman. We shot down an enemy plane and pulled Vice-Admiral Crace and his staff out of the sea. Actually, we're heading for our new base in Balmoral, Sydney.
So, we're actually at war and that means extra-watch staff. Look out for planes, ships and torpedoes!
Carry on", he said and ended the communication.
He looked at Kate hoping to read and expression on her face, but in vain. He only saw her hard, professional face.
I know you. Hard as granite on the outside, but inside 1001 questions are jostling.
"Commander, send a message to the commander of HMAS Penguin. A new unit will be added. Prepare accommodation for, how many men have you aboard commander?", said Crace.
"25 sir, that is 2 officers, 5 NCO's and 18 enlisted", Mike replied.
"Okay, accommodation for 25 men. And add our ETA. And put my name on it otherwise they won't believe it", the admiral said.
"Yes sir. But which frequency? We only have those of 2011".
"Yes, of course. Send it at 182".
"Okay sir."
"RO?", Mike ordered.
RO sent the message and Mike looked at the Admiral.
"Sir, your men sure have had something to eat and drink, but you've been here all the time. Do you want something?", Mike asked.
"Good idea commander. A pink gin will do", Crace said.
"Uhm, I can only offer you a beer. It's the only alcoholic beverage we have aboard and it's for special occasions", Mike replied.
"Oh, has the Navy ran dry in the future? Bizarre! Nope, a coffee will do the trick", he said.
Kate looked around, "Ah 2Dads, go get a mug of coffee from the galley!"
"Okay ma'am", he said, rushing for the staircase.
"And no jokes!", she added sternly.
"Okay, ma'am".
"Sir, we don't have spare officer cabins for you, but you can have mine, I'll find a place somewhere. Your men should be satisfied with the racks in austere space. It's the best we can do", Mike said.
Crace nodded, "Fine, it's always better than the stomach of a shark", he said dryly.
"Sir? May I take a photo of you?", Harpie asked suddenly.
The admiral wasn't expecting that kind of a question from a subordinate and he mumbled, "Yes, go ahead".
"It's the time of your life, I guess", Kate mumbled to Harpie.
"Low hanging fruit X. For sure!", he replied with a radiant smile.
Then Crace realized what had happened, "Commander , is it allowed to take photos in 2011?"
Mike shrugged, "Why should it be forbidden? You can take photos with the smartphone, it's on Internet, in fact there are tons of it".
Crace frowned, "What is…the Internet and a smart…phone?"
"When we are in friendly waters, we'll explain you where the world is going to from now", Mike said.
"Start with a tour of the ship. I want to see everything. Guess the others of the plane already know more than I do", Crace replied somewhat irritated.
"Hmm, sir, I can't leave the bridge now, but the XO will show you around", Mike answered.
"X, do you want to show the ship to the admiral?"
"Yes sir", Kate replied and looked at the admiral giving him the signal to go.
"Good!", he said looking at Kate, "What's your name lieutenant?"
"Kate McGregor, sir. We'll start with our cabins. If you want to follow me?", she suggested pointing to the staircase with her hand.
She stopped at Mike's cabin and opened the door, "This is CO's cabin, yours now sir", she said stepping aside.
Crace stepped in and looked around. "Jeez! So small? No, the Navy isn't going in the right direction", he said disappointed.
She took a few steps to her own cabin and showed it to him, "My cabin sir. Officers share a cabin. I used to have a companion, our navigator, also a woman. It's the same as yours, sir. That's is in case we have male officers."
"Is it as big as the captain's?", he remarked surprised.
"The frigate cabins are bigger, sir".
"Uh-hu. Next."
She opened Dutchy's cabin without knocking, knowing he was on the bridge.
He peered inside, "Officers?"
"No sir, NCO's", she said.
"Bizarre! And what about the sailors?", he asked.
"Cabins for four, sir", she said opening a sailor's cabin.
The admiral let out a low whistle. "There's hardly any difference anymore!".
"No sir, we all have the same facilities. It's about being almost equal, although ranks still have their privileges", she said.
They continued through the galley, the ward, the control room, the radio room and ended up in the engine room. On their way, they crossed the other enthusiastic plane crash survivors who had also taken a ride on the ship.
As they walked back, he asked, "Lieutenant, why are the WRANS on active service now?".
She glared at him, "Sir, Leading Seaman Brown and me are no WRANS but really Navy. In 1985, women served aboard ships for the first time. It's a normal evolution sir. The equality sign!", she said determined.
"Hmm, there's still some way to go", Crace mumbled.
In the meantime, they reached the bridge again and Kate padded to the sailor who was sitting behind the radar.
"Amazing ship commander. I wish our fleet had been like this", the admiral told Mike.
"Thank you sir", replied the latter.
"Commander, for what kind of activities is your type of ship used for?", he asked.
"We are watching over our coast, sir. We prevent illegal fishermen from fishing in our waters and we are preventing drugs and weapons smuggling as well as people trafficking,", Mike said.
"Hmm, interesting. We don't have that yet. Everyone can get in and out of our country or exchange dodgy things without questioning. I'll keep that in mind commander".
"Thank you, sir", Mike replied.
Kate was looking out to sea when a blimp appeared on the screen.
"Ship ma'am", the man reported.
Mike headed for it too and asked, "Which one?"
Kate turned to him, "Sir, we're 1942. The ship reconnaissance doesn't exist yet".
He slapped his forehead, "Damn! You're right X".
"We still have the drone, sir. Maybe the ideal situation for a test", she said.
"In any case, it's always better than the one of 2Dads", she then mumbled by scanning the bridge with her eyes.
"Right!, Harpie, 2Dads, launch the drone into the sky. I want to know which ship it is. I don't want to run into a Japanese destroyer", Mike ordered.
"A drone, commander, what is it?", asked the admiral.
"It 's a remote-controlled flying device with a camera. We can follow it from the bridge and we can see immediately what's there", Mike replied.
From the moment 2Dads announced that the drone was ready, Harpie started it up and they were able to see the Hammersley from above. Then he got Kate's coordinates to steer the device to the unknown ship.
After 5 minutes, he announced, "Sir, we have a visual!".
Mike, Kate, the admiral and Dutchy bent over the screen.
"She's one of us. A destroyer. The Japanese have a different silhouette", Crace said.
"She's an Aussie", Dutchy said, pointing to the flag.
"I just wonder why they can't see us. Are they sleeping?", Harpie asked.
"No, of course they see us, but they see our drone as a big seabird. Drones are not known in 1942", Mike remarked.
"Ok, harmless, bring the drone back", Mike ordered.
Admiral Crace looked at Mike, "Wonderful commander! I'll keep your ship under my direct command. You're too valuable to be wasted. I'll think how I can take the most advantage of your ship".
"Okay, sir, but may I have a word with you in private?", Mike asked.
"Sure. Where?"
"The control room".
"X, you have the ship", Mike said.
"XO has the ship", Kate repeated, giving Mike a questioning look.
You make me curious. What are you going to talk about?
Mike and Crace entered the control room and Mike closed the door. The admiral looked at him.
"Sir, there are a some logistical and human problems. Are you aware that the features of my ship are not endless? We have some spare parts, but in the event of a serious breakdown, there are no spare parts ashore, because they don't exist yet! The same problem is with ammo, I don't know if there are 25 mm grenades that fit our canon and ammo for the Steyr guns", he said.
Crace rubbed his chin, "Damn, you're right. You're a temporal luxury. That's the reason why I will keep you under my direct command".
"There are also huge human problems. No one of us are registered in the Navy or on the payroll. We don't even exist for Australia. Moreover, we have nothing, no savings, no home not even a dollar to have a drink, because the money we have is of no value at the moment. We can't expect the crew to go to their grandparents!", Mike said.
The admiral slowly nodded, "Indeed, it's a nasty problem. But it's a problem that we can solve. I'll release some money for your crew. I'll prepare a coded message so that it's available when we reach the base".
To be continued