Ecker lets out a long breath.
ECKER
I think I understand. What about my
men? If it comes up hot and heavy, and
we don't have anyone to protect us...
I'm going to be writing letters to
parents. I hate writing letters to
parents.
INT. KENNY'S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS
Kenny nods to himself, feeling. He's done it himself.
KENNY
If the President protects you,
Commander, he may have to do it with the
Bomb.
INT. DUTY OFFICE - CONTINUOUS
Ecker doesn't want to be avenged with atomic weapons. No
sane person would.
KENNY (V.O.)
I've known the man for fifteen years.
The problem is, he will protect you. So
I'm asking: don't make him protect you.
Don't get shot at.
Ecker down, deeply affected. Suddenly, A BELL RINGS. A
TELETYPE goes off. Ecker knows it's for him. His orders.
ECKER
Okay, Mr. O'Donnell. We'll do what we
can.
END INTERCUT.
As Ecker hangs up, the Duty Officer rips off the ORDERS,
hands them to Ecker, who takes one look, then gazes out the
window at the runway --
EXT. RUNWAY - KEY WEST NAVAL AIR STATION - DAY
A CART speeds down the flight line past the waiting F8U-1P
Corsairs. One by one, the four pilots accompanying Ecker and
Wilhemy jump off to mount their planes. The cart still
moving.
ECKER
Get that fuel assayed?
WILHEMY
Yeah. It sucks. Ain't for high
performance babies like ours. Shoulda
brought some from home, but what can you
do? Last-second deployments...
Wilhemy jumps off, then they're at Ecker's plane, and he
jumps off. Too late to worry about bad fuel now. He hoists
himself up and into the cockpit of the sleek navy jet.
INT. ECKER'S CRUSADER - DAY
As the canopy closes, Ecker powers up the engines, talks to
his flight over the Guard channel.
ECKER
Okay, time to play Spin the Bottle with
our bearded buddy. Nobody gets out
ahead. Remember, just sitting here
we're only ten minutes from target.
EXT. RUNWAY - DAY
The Crusaders swing around in pairs at one end of the runway,
and then the first two throttle-up, flaps down, and drop
their brakes. The machines LUNGE forward like duelling drag
racers. The FILL THE SCREEN, blow past.
EXT. AERIAL - OVER KEY WEST - DAY
The six Crusaders, in pairs, streak over the buildings and
streets of Key West. And in a heartbeat, cross the beach and
are out to sea.
And already on the horizon, the low clouds and dark line of
land. Cuba. Ninety miles away.
INT. ECKER'S CRUSADER - DAY
The ocean shrieks past so close you can see the white foam.
Ecker checks the altimeter: 150 FEET.
A small fishing boat looms ahead, its net booms reaching up
like tree limbs. The Crusader rockets over it.
Ecker checks his instruments. OUT THE WINDOW, the other
Crusaders thunder over the water, past sailboats, cabin
cruisers, the small-craft traffic outside Key West. The
speed sucks the breath away.
ECKER
Go to military throttle on my mark.
Three...two...one... mark.
His airspeed indicator spins up to 400 knots. And then his
radio suddenly crackles:
PILOT #1 (O.S.)
Flameout flameout!
PILOT #2 (O.S.)
Shit! Me too!
ECKER
Get some altitude!
Two of the Crusaders pull up, away from the water.
PILOT #1 (O.S.)
Oh, God damn. Got it restarted.
PILOT #2 (O.S.)
Yeah. Yeah. Me too. Goddamn fuel.
PILOT #1 (O.S.)
Sir, I don't think she's gonna hold up
for the run.
ECKER
Affirmative. You two get out of here.
EXT. AERIAL - CRUSADERS - DAY
The two planes with bad fuel pull wingovers to their left,
head for the airfield in the distance. The four remaining
planes streak over the ocean. There are no more small craft
this far out in the strait.
INT. ECKER'S CRUSADER - DAY
Cuba, green and hazy, looms in the window. Ecker throws a
series of switches.
ECKER
Start your camera checks.
A mechanical WHINE accompanies the switch-throwing. Ecker
pulls the trigger on his joystick and a THUMP THUMP THUMP
hammers away. There are green lights across his boards.
One of the other pilots cuts in on the radio:
PILOT #3 (O.S.)
Failure. All cameras. Sonofabitch.
Film must not have fed.
PILOT #4 (O.S.)
Jesus! Shit! Oh shit! I just shot it
all, boss. Activator jammed open, its
exposing everything now.
WILHEMY (O.S.)
That's alright, Lenny, it happens to
most men at some time --
Ecker grimaces, but his voice stays cool.
ECKER
-- Scrub, you two. Get out of here.
Still with me, Bruce?
WILHEMY (O.S.)
That's affirm.
The two Crusaders who've failed their camera checks break
off. And now Cuba's hills, the Havana sky line are right in
front of them.
EXT. CUBAN BEACH - CONTINUOUS
The last two Crusaders streak over the surf, a white wake of
spray in their jetwash, and cross the beach with a boom.
EXT. AERIAL - CRUSADERS - CONTINUOUS
The planes dip and rise with the green tropical contours,
taking us on a sickening roller-coaster ride over Cuban
countryside at treetop level.
Palm forest, roads, can fields, more palm forest race by.
And then, ahead, a large clearing.
ECKER (O.S.)
Warm 'em up. We're here.
EXT. ANTI-AIRCRAFT BATTERY - CONTINUOUS
Cuban ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNNERS shout as they traverse their 40mm
guns in their sandbagged emplacement. The low rippling
thunder of the incoming jets becomes an earsplitting ROAR...
and the Crusaders blast out over the clearing. The anti
aircraft guns open up.
INT. WILHEMY'S CRUSADER - CONTINUOUS
Wilhemy jinks left to avoid a streaking of TRACER FIRE.