“Osan, Osan — I’ under fire! Unknown aircraft, missile launch! Request immediate scramble!”
Then he did something reckless. He dove straight down, nose toward the sea, radar blaring lock warnings. The SAM climbed to meet him. At 8,000 feet, he cut throttle, deployed air brakes, and pulled 9 Gs — black spots swimming in his vision.
“Osan Control, Black Eagle 4-1. I have two unknown bogeys, vector 290. Requesting identification.”
Throttle up. Vibration through the bones. The afterburners lit the tarmac. At 160 knots, the nose lifted. Then the world fell away. At 35,000 feet, Jin-seok’s radar flickered. A blip. Then two. No transponder signal. No flight plan. Moving fast — Mach 1.2 — heading northwest from the Yellow Sea.
He pulled the stick hard left. A streak of white vapor missed his right wing by ten meters. No warning. No declaration. Hostile.
