Chapter 121 – Decision in the Dark
Captain Osipovich's voice crackled through the radio once again, his tone more confident this time.
"467, visual confirmation complete. Aircraft model consistent with Boeing 747 series. Unable to confirm onboard personnel or intentions. Request further instructions."
On the ground, inside the hardened bunker of the Far East Air Defense Command, voices overlapped as tension mounted. The air was heavy, not just with urgency, but with something far more dangerous—uncertainty.
General Belyakov, the duty commander, stood stiffly in front of the central command map. His eyes, sharp but weary from a long night, were locked onto a red marker now moving deeper over Soviet territory. Beside him, the phone lines crackled to life again, connecting him with Vladivostok headquarters and Moscow simultaneously.
"What's its heading now?" came the clipped voice of Lieutenant General Konstantin from Vladivostok.
"Still bearing toward the southern quadrant of Sakhalin. Constant speed. Constant altitude. Still unresponsive to radio calls," replied Belyakov.
"Flight plan?" asked another officer, flipping through a folder.
"There is no flight plan through this corridor. Civilian aviation routes avoid this zone completely."
"And the lights?" Konstantin's voice was lower now. "Still on?"
"Confirmed."
For a moment, silence fell. Everyone in the room knew the implications: a Boeing airliner flying directly over a Soviet strategic launch site with no clearance, no communication, and seemingly no deviation. The question now wasn't what it was—but what to do about it.
---
In the sky above Sakhalin, Osipovich's Su-15 maintained its position off the Boeing's port side. Through the glass of his canopy, he could still see the faint outlines of windows, softly glowing in the dark. Curtains drawn. No silhouette in the cockpit. No identification lights on the tail.
It was bizarre.
And that was exactly what made it dangerous.
"467 to base. No radio response from target. Recommend escalation. Awaiting orders."
Another pause. Then, the voice came in with chilling finality.
"467, this is command. Target is declared hostile. You are authorized to engage. Repeat: You are authorized to engage."
Osipovich's hand tightened on the stick. For a split second, he hesitated—not out of fear, but from the weight of the moment. Rules of engagement had always included identifying targets, minimizing civilian casualties, avoiding mistakes. But this wasn't a mistake.
This was a calculated maneuver—had to be.
"468, copy," he said to his wingman. "I'll fire. You cover."
The Su-15's targeting system, already warmed, confirmed lock.
He selected the R-98 missile—radar-guided, ideal for large, slow-moving targets. A tone chirped in his headset. Steady. Strong.
"Fox one," he muttered.
The missile dropped from its pylon and ignited in a flash of orange, disappearing into the night sky.
Seconds passed.
Then the sky lit up with a distant glow—silent, brief, and final.
The radar contact vanished.
---
Back at Kamenei Ruchii Base, the operations center erupted in stunned silence as confirmation reports trickled in.
Target destroyed.
General Belyakov sat back in his chair, the headset sliding slowly from his hand.
And far away, in Tokyo air traffic control, confusion was quickly turning into panic as a civilian airliner, Korean Air Lines Flight 007, failed to respond.