The technician's voice trembled with the shock of surviving a disaster.
The hearts of everyone in the control tower, which had been in their throats, eased slightly, but they were still shrouded in immense worry.
Mingzhao stared intently at the trajectory of the gray phantom representing "Shadow" rapidly descending on the situation map, as well as the slowly depleting coolant level indicator.
Her fingertips tapped unconsciously on the table, her brain rapidly calculating the coolant consumption rate, the remaining range, and whether she could survive until a safe return.
"Reporting to control tower! Cooling is effective! Vibration is under control! I...I can hold on!"
Old Zhao's voice came through, still panting, but with an indomitable fierceness.
"Maintain course and speed. Closely monitor coolant consumption and structural condition."
Mingzhao's voice regained its cold calm, "The situation with the Falcon formation?"
On the radar screen, the F-15 signal representing the vulture, guided by the crow's desperate efforts, finally managed to escape its out-of-control roll, but its posture was extremely disheveled, its speed was greatly reduced, and its altitude dropped by several thousand meters.
The SR-71 "Blackbird's" signal hovered higher in the sky, like a frightened bird. Its powerful radar continued to scan the airspace below in vain, and the screen remained a deathly "clean" expanse.
"Blackbird hovers! The F-15 lead aircraft managed to stabilize after losing control, with the wingman following closely behind! They...they seem completely stunned!"
The radar operator reported, his tone tinged with an unbelievable sense of triumph.
The rear command center of the United States.
On the huge integrated situation screen, the three dots representing the "Falcon" formation were in an abnormal state: SR-71 was hovering, the F-15 lead aircraft had a weak signal and a chaotic trajectory, and the wingman was flying alongside.
The communication channel was filled with the incoherent, terrified roars of vultures.
"Ghost! It's a Ghost fighter jet! It's right next to me! I can't see it on radar!"
The raven on the other side was furious and demanded a thorough investigation into the radar system's roar.
Inside the command center, there was a deathly silence. The officers were pale-faced, exchanging bewildered glances.
The technical supervisor stared at the screen filled with "system normal" test reports, his forehead dripping with cold sweat.
That assessment report, filled with arrogance and misjudgment, now felt like a resounding slap across everyone's face.
"Ghosts...they really exist..."
A senior staff officer muttered to himself, his voice hoarse.
"Raven! Raven! This is an eagle's nest!"
The highest-ranking commander in the command center grabbed the microphone, his voice distorted with fear.
"Abandon the mission! Repeat! Abandon Operation Falcon! Disengage immediately! Return to base! Return to base immediately!"
The command, carrying unprecedented panic, was transmitted through an encrypted channel to an altitude of 10,000 meters.
Under Lao Zhao's control, "Shadow" was like a wounded ghost, carrying the still-burning furnace inside and continuous turbulence, rapidly escaping towards the safe airspace in the southeast.
The coolant left a brief but noticeable white trail behind it, but it quickly dissipated into the thin upper atmosphere.
Inside the control tower, Mingzhao shifted his gaze from the trajectory of the "Shadow" as it descended and returned it to the main screen.
The signal light representing the SR-71 "Blackbird," upon receiving the return-to-base order, turned around abruptly like a startled rabbit, activated its afterburner, and fled at top speed from the airspace where the technological myth it had been so proud of had completely collapsed!
Two F-15s streaked through the clouds, with one of them following closely behind, looking quite disheveled.
"Target...target formation is disengaging at full speed! Abandon mission!" The radar operator's voice was filled with excitement.
A meticulously planned and determined "Falcon" operation ended in a hasty retreat of the US's most advanced fighter jet formation under the immense fear of the "Ghost's" silent, close-up gaze and the complete blinding of their own radar!
A long-suppressed, surviving growl erupted from the control tower!
Zhang Meng leaned heavily against the back of her chair and let out a long sigh of relief, as if a huge burden had been lifted off her shoulders.
Su Xuan excitedly waved his fist.
Looking at the three red dots on the screen that represented defeat, and then at the gray phantom that represented "Shadow" escaping danger, Wang Tiezhu's eyes were filled with complex, unprecedented shock and awe.
However, Mingzhao showed no joy of victory. Her gaze was fixed on the split screen monitoring the "Shadow" status.
The coolant level indicator bar is decreasing at a visible rate: 55%...50%...45%... Although the temperature curve in the engine compartment has stopped soaring, it stubbornly remains in the deep red danger zone.
The curve representing structural stress, under the forced suppression of the coolant, although its amplitude decreased, exhibited a strange and unsettling stability in its frequency, like a lurking demon, still pulsating regularly under the restraint of the coolant.
She picked up her pen and quickly wrote down her new observation in her notebook next to "Thermal stress crack?":
"Cooling and pressing, vibration frequency solidification? Accelerated internal material degradation?"
Next to the notebook were spectrum analysis diagrams of several key vibration sensors inside the "Shadow" machine, transmitted in real time.
In the image, a high-frequency spike that had not been previously a focus of attention not only did not disappear after the coolant was introduced, but became clearer and more stable.
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