Age of Legends - Tales from the TL from TheMann

OOC: I'm writing the tales, because I have a good idea of what the world will look like, but I haven't been able to fully write it out yet.

Century 21 in the City of Energy

March 23, 2010
Cape Town, South Africa


The streets of Cape Town were their usual bounciness. This is nothing unusual, as the young populace of Cape Town, complete with its massive herd of tourists and many young servicemen from the Commonwealth-American military base on False Bay, flooded the bars and clubs that lined the Atlantic Coast almost the entire distance from Ysterplaat to Clifton, usually after watching the sun set over the Atlantic. The docklands, as usual, has so many yachts one could hardly believe these was any water beneath them.

For Sergeant Shane Bakerson, USAF, this was his first trip down into the city. Having just arrived in South Africa two weeks before and spending much of his time learning engouh Afrikaans to get by (forgetting that English and French worked here too), he'd finally ventured out to the city, riding one of the many thousands of minibuses that made up a dominant form on Cape Town streets. Dreams, Spirit anhd Future Two were already full, as expected - they always filled up early - so he settled for a club called Century 21. Not a bad name, he thought. South Africans had their own brand of English, he knew, but so far he hadn't had an issue, as he got off the bus and headed into the club.

The inside of Century 21 was like most clubs, rows upon rows of LED lights, multiple decks of dancers, several bars and music loud enough to cause a headache. Good thing I'm used to flying jets, Shane thought. He walked up to the bar and ordered a drink....

....This caught the eye of Kilani Sibonakaliso, a 24-year-old advertising deskwoman. Dark-skinned, Kilani had the body of Athena, but had suffered from issues with many guys - she'd had so many dates go bad, she couldn't begin to count them. But she had never tried a service man before. She'd heard many stories about the men who served on the False Bay base, and how many of them found views and girlfriends in South Africa. Maybe it's my turn, she thought ot herself.

Interested, she headed towards the bar herself....

....Shane saw her coming, and was intrigued. Damn, has she got a body, he thought to himself. Is she coming for me? That got his heart racing at a mile a minute. What the heck am I gonna say to her? That thought had barely enough time to form itself before she made it to the bar, just as the bartender brought his Long Island.

"Good evening, stranger. Seems you are looking for something, huh?"

A jaw-dropping body and a seductive voice. Shit, how did this happen? He tried to push confidence forward. "Just having a drink at a club. Not looking for anything in particular, ya know?"

She knew right off he was nervous. Maybe these men are better than the local morons. "You seem a bit nervous around me. I thought you service guys had the dicks of iron and heads of mud."

Shane laughed loudly. "I guess I'm not one of those guys then." Let it ride, Shane.....

Kilani was liking this guy already. "Kilani Sibonakaliso."
"Shane Bakerson."
"Bakerson. Sounds American. Marines? Peace Corps?"
"Air Force. A pilot."

A pilot without a bravado problem. This IS a rare one. "I wish I could say I did something exciting like that."

Shane laughed at that. He didn't drive fighters, and he didn't know how exciting flying a helicopter was.

"I just drive helicopters. The fighter boys make fun of me for it."
"Why is that?"
"They get to say they go fast, and I get to fly slow and drop things." He smiled for effect. "What is it you do?"

"I just sell advertising. Boring as it gets."
Time to throw the pass. "A woman as beautiful as you? I'd have picked you out for model or actress."
Either this guy is trying too hard, or he's just too polite for his own good. "I'm flatted, Mr. Bakerson. There are many beautiful women in Cape Town. It seems all people here have to be attractive."
Shane looked into her deep, dark eyes. "Beauty is all in the eye of the beholder, isn't it? You certainly have my eyes caught." Damn, she's still talking to me. I must be doing something right.
"You are not exactly ugly yourself, Mr. Bakerson."
"Shane, please."
"Not a wish to be referred to by your rank?"
"Nah, that's for guys who want to show off. I'm not that arrogant."
I found him. I finally found him. I finally found my guy. "When one has skills like yours, I figure some would like to show them off."
"No, I just fly helicopters. No skill in that."
Kalini laughed out loud. "You are too modest for your own good, Shane."
"Well, perhaps I can keep my gentleman status by buying you a drink."
"I rode my motorcycle here. I will take a cooldrink though."
"Coming right up."

Shane was amazed at himself. First time in a club and he'd met this gorgeous woman, who seemed to really like him. He'd had his reservations at being sent to South Africa, but those reservations were sliding. He had seen plenty of beautiful women in America, and at his stations in Poland, Brazil, Japan and Australia. But they have nothing on this woman, in either beauty or brains.

And so began the date, and a relationship between a white American helicopter pilot, and a black South African advertising seller. It was a symbol of the 21st Century world, a place shaped by an extraordinary breed of men, which had created truly awesome sights, and some less awesome but perhaps more satisfying, such as this beautiful night in southern Africa.....

~~~~~~~~

Thoughts?
 

Sachyriel

Banned
Are you holding out on us? No first date-kisses for these Futuristic Inter-Racial Trans-service Love-Birds?

I still think it's actually possible though.
 
This is all based on own TL, Age of Legends. I haven't posted it in its entirety because I'm still figuring out parts of it. It's very heavily influenced (and admittedly, I jacked a few ideas form it) by For All Eternity, David bar Elias' masterpiece.

Long and short, from the Depression on on pretty everything that could go right for most places on the planet goes right. It starts with the Jews of Europe fleeing to places that they could get into - Israel is one, but Germany's idea of having Jews in Japan and Korea also takes hold. more land in Australia, Canada, South Africa and Argentina - to the point that the final solution is more directed at Slavs than it is at Jews, because the Jews are almost entirely gone. The Nazi barbarism ends any chances of the Croats and others allying with them, which helps forge more of a collective good mentality in the Balkans. This means that Yugoslavia never breaks apart, either.

WWII lasts longer in Europe as Germany and the USSR get bogged down, neither can drive the other away (for a while) and they as a result beat the hell out of each other. This however also means that France stays occupied longer and hurts for an identity post-war. I too loved the idea of a France-Great Britain Commonwealth, and this leads to dramatic political changes worldwide in the 1950s and 1960s.

The USA goes a totally different path as a result of less red fear, and a much different civil rights movement. The much more world-connected Europe means the EU in this TL (which is called the European Community) is heavily dominated by blocs. Germany allies with Scandinavia and Spain, largely just to counterweight the influence of the France-Britain Commonwealth, which is VERY heavily integrated. The USSR's suffering in WWII means they have a lot of work to do to rebuild, and communism simply isn't up to the job and crumbles by the 1970s.

China is won by the Communists, but stays isolated longer. Hong Kong is never transferred back, because the Commonwealth gives a pile of money to China to keep it and the PRC decides not fighting with the Commonwealth is a good idea.

Japan, beaten into sludge in WWII, takes its defeat hard, but decides that to find out how to become as good as the Commonwealth and America, a more open approach is needed. It is a rough patch immediately post war, but by the 1950s it's starting to pay off. By 2010, over a fifth of Japan's population is not ethnic Japanese in background, and the Japanese don't give a crap about racism by that point. It also leads to a major growth in national pride again by that point - they are a military heavyweight, an economic superpower and a sports and culture focal centre.

The Korean war never has a Chinese intervention - Mao is still busy fighting the Nationalists - and a struggling USSR means that Kim Il Sung has little support, and he gets absolutely mauled in a seven-month war.

From WWII to the mid-1970s, the British and French colonies slowly become Commonwealth nations, and in almost all cases its a peaceful transition, and the overwhelming majority join the Commonwealth parliament, which is made up of all the various country governments, as well as a few big-time allies that join up (Portugal, Angola and Mozambique are Commonwealth).

After the USSR starts its rebuilding from communism in the 1970s, Yugoslavia-style giving and taking of power keeps many of the ethnic rivalries in check. It's a long process, but eventually the USSR - which loses the Balkans, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia in the 70s - grows back into a world power again.

The 1980s see Japan's real entry into the world arena be accompanied by real attempts to bring its neighbors into prosperity (which is partly motivated by Japanese desire for resources to fuel industries) and Japan's attempts soon spur the USA, Commonwealth, EC and USSR into playing the same game. Average economic growth on the planet from the late 1970s until 2010 averages close to 13%, which powers almost all of Latin America into the 1st world, parts of Africa (Kenya, South Africa, Namibia, Tanzania, Egypt, Liberia and Zimbabwe) into the 1st world and much of the rest into 2nd and much of Asia grows dramatically as well.

2010 is a cosmopolitan world, dominated by three military power blocs (USA, USSR, Commonwealth) and several other Economic powers (Japan and Germany leading these). China and India are entering onto the world stage with strength, which concerns some but is opportunity to others.

Economic and civilian technology is substantially ahead of OTL - most diseases are cured, though AIDS in particular is still a tricky pain in the neck, while technology in cars, aircraft, watercraft, consumer electronics, space, clothing and material technology is far ahead of OTL. Supersonic airliners have been a regular reality since the late 1980s, high-speed trains exist on every continent, MP3 and digital music players first arrive in the early 1990s, et cetera. Military technology is a bit behind - stealth aircraft are at this point still a theory, but most other aspects of aircraft and ship performance are as good as OTL and in some cases better, for example - but not much. Nuclear weapons and missile guidance technology are way behind.
 
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A Vision at 200 mph

"Ya know, back when I was a boy, train rides were a lot more fun, because you got to see a lot more."

Yeah, yeah, Grandpa. These didn't exist in your day. For Ryan Hamilton, a 18-year-old high school senior at Henry M. Jackson high school in Bellevue, Washington, technology such as this was as much a part of life as breathing was.

Ryan and his family were riding the Pacific HSR, a system of high-speed trains stretching from Alaska to Mexico. The family was headed to Anchorage to catch a cruise, the family's vacation for the year. He had spent more of his life in Los Angeles than anywhere else, and he had to admit while Los Angeles had the nicer weather, Washington had the nicer terrain. A life-long aircraft nut, moving to the home base of Boeing was like moving to paradise. He had spent much time watching aircraft take off from the Boeing plant. His parents wanted him to go to the University of Washington, but he was torn on what to do from here on.

Tired of his grandfather's constant talking about how things used to be, he made his way back to the club car as the train roared along the British Columbia coastline. He sat down and ordered himself a coke from the lady attending the drinks counter. He did however overhear something.

"Yeah, the F-4NI really is a machine to fly...."

Ryan looked over to see an older man, maybe 40 years old, talking to a younger woman while sitting on a couch. He was wearing civilian clothes, but he sounded like a military man. A USAF pilot? Could I be that lucky? He decided to move over and see.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything, but I did notice your were talking about aircraft. I'm a bit of a plane buff."

For Captain James Cargill, USN, this young man had the focused look and piqued interest of a man who really was an aircraft buff. He decided to see just what this kid had.

"Yes, I used to fly for the Navy. Time goes on though."
"What is it you flew?" Ryan asked him.
"F-4 Phantoms. Back when I still could, and when those were the kings of the air."
"Got downchecked?" You still look like you could fly just fine, Ryan thought to himself. "You don't look too old to dance with an F-4."

This kid is pretty bright, Captain Cargill thought. Perhaps this guy will be one of my pilots. What the hell, I'm starting to like this kid. "Yeah, it seems that when you hit your late 40s they start to think that a teenager could do the job better."
Older than I thought he was, Ryan thought. He obviously wasn't the only one - the woman next to him was surprised too.
"You retired from the Navy?"
"Nope." Captain Cargill smiled. "Older pilots never retire, son. They fly trash haulers, push paper or stand on the deck. I'm lucky enough to be the deck watcher."
"You command a unit?"
"No. Better. I get to command a carrier." Captain Cargill, smiled a grin from ear to ear that showed he didn't mind not flying if this was his reward.

Holy shit, Ryan thought. Carrier commanders are always either Captains, Commodores or Admirals. This guy has some rank under his belt. It made him more nervous talking to him. Cargill immediately noticed this.

"Kid, I'm a Captain, but Captains don't bite."
"I always figured that those of higher rank have higher standards."
"We do, but we're also humans. We are proud of our tasks and our men. We have to be, we are in the world's most demanding profession."
"Which carrier do you command?"
"USS America."
USS America, CV-66, a Kitty Hawk-class supercarrier. Carries about 80 aircraft, a crew of 5500. One of the biggest and most powerful warships ever made, by anybody. Ryan was getting more impressed by the second. How often does one meet a Captain of an aircraft carrier? He decided to ask more.

"How hard is it to become a carrier pilot?"
The kid is real interested, isn't he? Cargill thought.
"It's not easy, but for those that do become pilots they can't imagine themselves doing anything else. Have you ever flown before?"
"Just in a Beechcraft Starsport."
"That's what the USN uses to train guys, ya know."
"Really?"
"Yep. It's a nice plane to fly."
"I didn't know any of that."

Cargill put the hook all the way in. "You definitely have the enthusiasm and the mind for it, I think. When you get back, head on over to the local Navy office and sign up. The worst that could happen is you don't make it, but you will always get to say you served, which always looks good on one's resume. The military always needs enthusiastic people. It's not for everybody, but as I said, for those who do it, most can't imagine doing anything else."

Ryan had gotten on the train in Seattle for a vacation. He now already had his mind racing about what his future could hold. Damn, and to think, I coulda just stayed and listened to Grandpa......
 
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Nights in Tokyo

May 18, 2010
Tokyo, Japan


Tokyo is one of the world's great cities, a vast sprawling empire covering 1100 square miles and more 15 million people, jammed into one skyscraper after another. A vast net of high-rises, businesses, clubs, office towers, mass transit and masses upon more masses of people.

For Takuma Ryouta, Tokyo represented everything he wanted in life. Coming from a rural village on the island of Kyushu, Tokyo was another world from the stuffy, hierarchal life he had grown up in. From the time he bcame an adult, he had left Kyushu behind for Tokyo. A stay at the Tokyo Institute of Technology had led him to his current job, an electronics engineer for heavyweight Mitsubishi Electric. His salary allowed him to indulge somewhat, even if the work schedule and his social life meant he had to sacrifice sleep quite often. Life's sacrifices, he told himself consatntly when fighting of fatigue. But he didn't have that problem today.

He had his heart set on one particular woman, but that had a problem - she was in a relationship with another guy. He worked all out to get her, anbd it had culminated earlier that day, when his years of saving had finally paid off when he finally bought his dream car.

It was a Lincoln Blackwood, a sporty luxury sedan built in America. He drove from his townhouse in Chiba towards the city, enjoying the new car smell and loving the smooth ride provided by the car's four wheel drive, six-speed semiautomatic transmission and powerful twin-turbocharged V6 engine. His father had only ever driven Japanese cars. Wait until I take him around the village in this, Takuma thought to himself. To him, he was living the dream he wanted, except for the woman. I'll fix that problem, he told himself. But everything he had dreamt about with regards to women was about to change.....

~~~~~~

Tokyo was also dreamland for Soulbee Mei, a Chinese-born woman whose family now called Tokyo home. The long history of animosity between the two nations meant nothing to Mei, especially since after all of the problems in China had led her father to make the courageous decision to put his family on a plane to Japan.

Mei was now a student at Waseda University, studying Law. Few women held positions of real power in Japan even today, but she was among hundreds of thousands of female students out to change that. Waseda was one of the universities which fully embraced this idea.

At night, she loved to run into Tokyo's nightlife. She owned a Kawasaki motorcycle, which was her transportation on these nights - she didn't like taking transit when heading to a club, thinking of the porno store guys who inhabited the transit system so often on such nights. Tonight, she too was gonna get her surprise....

~~~~~~

The Bayshore Route was agreeably lightly trafficked as usual, as Takuma savored every bit of his new luxury sedan. He tracked along in the right hand lane at speed, noticing with interest at the various people looking at his new American sedan. He was proud of himself. But coming up on him was a Kawasaki motorcycle riden by Soulbee Mei.

Nice car, Soulbee thought. Imported cars were usually the trademarks of people that tried too hard or wanted to show off their money, though a great many foreigners in Tokyo had such vehicles. The foreigners, particularly Americans, Canadians and Australians, were always fawned over by Japanese girls, generally because some men were still idiots who didn't treat women very well. Was this guy one of those? Soulbee had as much ambition about finding a nice guy as any other girl her age did. She pulled alongside the Lincoln and looked into the tinted glass of the black sedan.

It took one look for Takuma to notice Soulbee. Wow, he thought. Who is this beauty? He rolled down the power window to get a better look.

Handsome guy, Soulbee immediately noticed. This guy is trying to get a girl, she thought to herself. Some girl in particular, or is he just out looking? She didn't know, and found herself amazed that she was admiring a man through the window of a car at 120 kilometres an hour. She decided to see if this guy was interested. She gave the bike a bit of throttle, and accelerated for the Tatsumi Junction.

Takuma thought about his dream girl, Ami, for about a second. That was all it took for him to forget about her. This girl is going to be my conquest tonight, Takuma thought. He instinctively dropped the Lincoln down a gear and took off after the princess on the motorcycle.

Soulbee noticed the guy in the Lincoln chase her onto the Fukagawa route with more than a little satisfaction. Play hard to get? Her cheeky side promptly picked up that idea, and she gunned the bike.

Is this beauty playing hard to get, or is it just me? Takuma thought about that for a couple seconds before deciding he could play her game. His foot mashed the Blackwood's accelerator pedal to the floor, and the American sedan emited a strong howl and the engine kicked into action, firing the sedan up the highway.

Neither raced as fast as they could. The Lincoln pulled alongside as the two reached Tokyo. Soulbee looked over at the man in the sedan and laughed out loud. Both vehicles pulled off the highway at Edobashi, and headed into the clubs of Ginza.

Both vehicles stopped in front of a nightclub in Ginza. Soulbee took off her helmet and set it on top of the bike, her long hair dropping down in front right in front of Takuma, who was becoming more mesmerized by the second. The two walked into the club, Soulbee knew she had him. Takuma knew it too, and didn't give a damn.

He had hardly stepped into the club, when his friend, David Katsuro-Ethian, appeared in front of him. His old dream girl, Ami Kenta, had his arm. The heart set on Ami briefly flared up again. Soulbee noticed this, too.

David, the fourth-generation descendant of the Jews who first immigrated to Japan in the 1930s, had light skin but other than that was pure Japanese. His speaking was so good that even native Japanese wondered what prefecture he had come from. Ami was also native Japanese. Most on the street would admit they were an attractive couple. David knew full well that Takuma had his heart set on taking Ami from him, but also noticed the stunner who he'd come in with. Maybe I don't have to worry about him and Ami now. Ami and him had suffered a few rough patches, a point which irritated the hell out of him. Having Takuma after his girl didn't help, though he knew that Takuma was too good of a friend to steal his girl from in front of him.

Well, that and I will kick his ass if he tries to steal her from me.

So, this must be the woman that this guy is trying to impress,
Soulbee thought. She could see the attraction. Ami Kenta was a good looker, just like so many in modern Tokyo. Does this guy think I am better than her? She figured there was only one way to find out for sure. She headed off towards the club's dance floor.

David noted Soulbee's departure. "You gonna get your eyes off my girl now, ya big b*stard?"

Takuma had wanted Ami Kenta since adolescence, but now he didn't care so much about her as the Chinese beauty headed to the dance floor. He smiled and made up his mind. "You can have her, my friend." A smile later, and Takuma headed into the dance floor.

It didn't take the two long to get lost in each other.

"And now that we've gone all the way to the clubs, can I ask who you are?" Soulbee asked Takuma.
"I am just a guy with a luxury sedan who is entranced by a truly beautiful woman" Takuma answered.
Nice start, Soulbee thought. "I knew about the car and the style, but I meant that man underneath."
She's actually interested, Takuma realized. She really is interested. Holy crap. "I am Takuma Ryouta."
"Soulbee Mei."
Even the name is beautiful, Takuma thought. Mei means beautiful in Mandarin, Takuma remembered. She bloody sure has my soul, alright.
"You have the look of a salaryman who wants more from life than just a job and a woman chase, underneath all of the style and flashiness."
"Yes, I do have greater wishes than that. At least, I usually do."
"Usually?" Soulbee asked.
"Right now, all I care about is the goddess who has her arms on my shoulders."
This is sincere. I don't believe it. Soulbee had looked for years for guys who wanted more from life. She was a month from graduating from Waseda, and most of her classmates wanted to find their soulmates. Most of them wanted to find a guy like this. And she had found him cruising on the Bayshore Route. Talk about luck, Soulbee thought to herself. Eat your heart out ladies, this one's MINE.

The two danced on the dance floor for a while yet, before Soulbee went to sit down. She got about a yard from a mesmerized Takuma before she turned around and kissed him....

....Takuma didn't waste an opportunity. He literally swept her off her feet and carried her to a table.

And so began another night in Tokyo, two lovebirds who had not even known each other earlier that night, separated by years, cultures and times. But such meetings, even in this most contradictory of societies, had become something of a regular occurrence.....
 
World's Biggest Automakers

1. General Motors (USA) - Bedford, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Daewoo, Daihatsu, GMC, Holden, Isuzu, Lotus, Oldsmobile, Opel, Pontiac, TVR, Vauxhall
2. Ford Motor Company (USA) - Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Saleen, 40% stake in Reynard, 20% stake in Panoz
3. Toyota Motor Corporation (Japan) - Toyota, Lexus, Scion, Hino, TSCL, Century
4. VAP Automobile Group (Germany) - Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, Skoda, SEAT, NSU, Scania
5. Chrysler Corporation (USA) - Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth, Imperial, Talbot, Sunbeam, Chrysler Australia
6. British Leyland (UK) - Aston Martin, Austin, Rover, Triumph, MG, Land Rover, Jaguar, Daimler
7. Renault American Motors (Canada) - Renault, AMC, Packard, AM General, Venturi, Jeep, Alpine
8. Tata Motors (India) - Tata, Hindustan, Panther, Samocor
9. Honda Motor Company (Japan) - Honda, Acura, McLaren
10. Nissan Automobile Company (Japan) - Nissan, Infiniti, Tesla
11. PSA Peugeot Citroen (France) - Peugeot, Citroen, Matra
12. Fiat S.p.A. (Italy) - Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Abarth, Ferrari, Detomaso, Maserat
13. Hyundai Automotive (Korea) - Hyundai, Kia
14. Mazda Motor Corporation (Japan) - Mazda, Karmann, 40% stake in Reynard (20% owned by Adrian Reynard, other 40% owned by Ford)
15. Mitsubishi Corporation - Mitsubishi
 
World's Aircraft Manufacturers

USA

Boeing, Northrop Grumman, McDonnell-Douglas, Lockheed, Sikorsky, Bell Textron, Cessna-Beechcraft, Ford Aviation
UK
British Aerospace Systems, Hawker-De Havilland, Westland Aerospace, Rolls-Royce Aerospace
France
Airbus Corporation (with Germany, Spain, Italy, Yugoslavia and Argentina) Dassault Aviation, Sud Systemes (40% owned by BAS), Aerospatiale, Matra Aerospace
Other Europe
Panavia Military Technologies, Fokker Aerospace, Saab Aerospace, Dornier, MBB, Alenia, Skoda, Matra
South America
Embraer, Aviotica Argentina, Airbus Corporation, Avro South America
Canada
Avro Canadian Aerospace, Bombardier
Russia
Yakolev, Mikoyan-Gurevich, Sukhoi-Ilyushin
Japan
Pacific Aeronatics (with Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Indonesia and Malaysia) Mitsubishi Aerospace, Nissan Aeronautics
China
AIDC, Shanghai Aerospace

World's Airliners:

Boeing
707 (1956-1966)
717 (1964-1970)
747 (1972-1987 passenger, 1973-present freight)
767 (1982-present)
777 (1995-present)
2707 (1973-1980)
2747 (1980-1988)
2777 (1987-2005)
2807 (2007-present)

Airbus
A300 (1977-1996)
A325 (1982-1992)
A340 (1995-1999)
A390 (2000-present)
A400SS (2007-present)

British Aerospace Systems
BJ.01 Starflier (1955-1962)
BJ.02 Starbolt (1960-1977)
BJ.03 Vulcan (1962-1974)
BJ.05 Meteor (1975-1998)
BSS.01 Concorde (1972-1985)
BSS.03 Avenger (1985-2002)
BSS.06 Stealth (2004-present)
 
Giants At Play

May 21, 2010
150 nautical miles southwest of Hawaii

Some people hate their jobs
, Admiral James Coombs thought. Sucks to be you guys. Amongst the military, Coombs has more than a bit of a record. Instrumental in the intervention in New Guinea in 2003 by daringly sailing his frigate right into a storm and saving over 100 lives from an capsized sailing vessel and a damaged Australian patrol boat, Coombs and his command, USS Jarrett, had gone into history and fame. Coombs had gone on to be one of the first black men to command an American capital ship. And what a ship it is!

The ship is one of the flagships of America's "Eternal Fleet" authorized by Presidents Kennedy and Jackson, USS New Jersey. An Iowa class battleship built in WWII, It was reactivated in 1966 as a PR measure, and put to good use in Yemen, Iran and Angola, New Jersey along with sisters Iowa, Wisconsin and Kentucky were refit in 1977, and sent for rebuilding in 1988.

The rebuild and subsequent upgrades had given it weaponry that the 1945 version's commanders would have killed for - SM-2 and Sea Sparrow SAMs, ASROC anti-sub torpedoes, a bunch of 25mm chain guns, Harpoon and Tomahawk land-attack missiles and new, fast-firing 5-inch guns. The four ships were the badasses of the US Navy, and formed some of the 40 ships, mostly cruisers, that formed the Eternal Fleet.

Today, this giant was playing with Sea Control Ship Chaser, Battlecruiser Alaska, two Burke-class destroyers and four Perry-class frigates. Their goal was to find and kill four submarines that were out there looking for them. Not an easy task. The Hawaii-class submarines were the best subs made by anybody with the possible exception of the Soviet Akula-class and German Type 220 SSKs.

New Jersey's goal here was to simulate a capital ship that the subs wanted to destroy. The four S-3 Vikings on Chaser, as well as everyone's helicopters and sonar systems, were out to blast the subs. Coombs didn't like playing sitting duck, but his SH-4 Waterstorm ASW chopper was out looking as well.
 
World's Largest Companies (listed by revenue)

1 - General Motors (USA) - automobiles, heavy trucks, railroad rolling stock, small engines, aerospace and marine engines, shipbuilding
2 - Royal Dutch Shell (Netherlands/UK) - oil and gas
3 - British Petroleum (UK) - oil and gas
4 - General Electric (USA) - electrical engineering and generation, marine and aircraft engines, industrial automation, consumer appliances and electronics, medical equipment, nuclear technology
5 - Toyota Corporation (Japan) - automobiles, heavy trucks, marine engines, steelmaking and metals refining, small engines (stake in Pacific Aeronautics)
6 - Samsung Group (Korea) - consumer and industrial electronics, shipbuilding, construction, heavy trucks, steemaking and metals refining, electrical equipment
7 - ING Group (Netherlands) - banking and financial services
8 - Ford Corporation (USA) - automobiles, aerospace and defense technology, small engines, heavy trucks, marine engines, synthetic materials
9 - Total S.A. (France) - oil and gas
10 - Chevron Energy (USA) - oil and gas, ocean transport, electricial generation and distribution, nuclear technology
11 - VAP Automotive Group (Germany) - automobiles, heavy trucks, marine engines, aircraft engines
12 - Daimler Industrial (Germany) - heavy trucks, automobiles, steelmaking and metals finishing, agricultural equipment, railroad rolling stock, electrical equipment
13 - Mobil Corporation (USA) - oil and gas
14 - Bank of America (USA) - banking and financial services
15 - Hewlett-Packard (USA) - information technology, consumer electronics, defense electronics
 
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