LTE-1004-Caliburn-Velveteen
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Threat Entity Database Entry

Threat ID:

LTE-1004-Caliburn-Velveteen "Ghost Squadron"

Authorized Response Level:

5 Immediate Response N/A (Confirmed Destroyed, File Archived)

Description:

A squadron of eight General Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcon fighter aircraft (hereafter referred to as LTE-1004-Alpha thru LTE-1004-Hotel) that spontaneously appeared within GOC-controlled airspace in France on 7/4/2020. The Threat Entity visually bore no national identification, but otherwise superficially resembled ordinary F-16Cs. LTE-1004 also emitted trace amounts of Elan Vital Energy, making long range tracking via VERITAS possible, but difficult.

The Threat Entity possessed numerous ectomorphic1 properties, the most notable of which being a semi-translucent appearance,2 which made visual targeting with the untrained eye nearly impossible. LTE-1004 also exhibited low-level antimemetic properties which further impeded visual targeting, effectively blocking its detection from those unaware of its existence, and making it functionally invisible to those not tracking it via VERITAS.

ghostfighter.png
LTE-1004-Alpha over Area Maiden-4, captured by Agent "Hendrix" (20947361/711) (Hover to Enlarge)

Each LTE-1004 instance possessed numerous unique thaumatological capabilities which allowed it to accomplish feats deemed otherwise impossible for ordinary vehicles of its performance. These abilities were apparently achieved through the use of runes painted across each aircraft's fuselage and wings. The runes were believed to have granted LTE-1004 the following capabilities:

  • The ability to fly at sustained speeds exceeding Mach 5.
  • The ability to fly for indefinite ranges without the need for refuel.
  • Anomalous radar spoofing and jamming capabilities.
  • Thrust vectoring capabilities along the vertical, lateral, and longitudinal axes of flight, effectively allowing for vertical, horizontal, and lateral movement mid-flight through anomalous means.
  • Spontaneous generation of thaumaturgic ordnance for onboard paraweaponry (autocannon rounds, missiles, bombs, etc.) and countermeasures.

At least one instance of LTE-1004, LTE-1004-Alpha, was confirmed to be armed with an eigenweapon3, carrying a thaumatologically modified AGM-195X SALT4 Cruise Missile (+1Gen/AltGen-ALCM).

First Contact:

LTE-1004 was first discovered on 7/4/2020 at 2231 hours by Coalition early warning systems after receiving a distress signal from 483GOC, a Coalition logistical aircraft, which reported it was under attack by enemy aircraft over France. The Coalition aircraft was later shot down near ████, France, with all lives onboard lost.

Initially assuming the attack to be non-anomalous in nature, standard Coalition air assets from Area Maiden-4 in France were scrambled to intercept the entity. They would later fail to liquidate the LTE-1004 instances, which in turn then shot them down. (See Scramble Mission AAR)

PSYCHE Report

First Contact (cont.)

A debrief of the initial scramble mission to destroy LTE-1004 during first contact is attached:

Scramble Mission After Action Report

Involved Unit:

14th Tactical Fighter Squadron "Slingshot"

Filing Operative:

"Marlowe" 83744311/890

Mission (Location/Objective):

OPFOR appeared in Area Maiden-4 airspace and downed a friendly cargo aircraft. We were mobilized as soon after it was discovered in our airspace and were sent to intercept and neutralize it.

Enemy Description:

According to 483GOC, we were dealing with at least two to three F-16C's, which we thought were non-anomalous at first. We scrambled a flight of six F-35As, myself included, with standard air-to-air engagement loadouts.

Encounter Report:

It took us thirty minutes to get to where 483GOC had gone down, and I confirmed that the aircraft had been shot down. The cargo was a few klicks south of the crash site, unharmed. The TE didn't show up on our radar until much later as only two contacts, but they seemed very glitchy to me, often going in and out of focus on my instruments, and I even forgot what I was looking for a couple times. I religiously kept tabs on them as best as I could and even had my helmet's OCULUS switched on, but my other pilots all reported they were forgetting where it was on radar and in-person.

When the enemy flight was about 50 kilometers away, they then quadrupled in number on radar, outnumbering us by two aircraft. We were able to easily acquire locks on the enemy squadron BVR5 at that point and started shooting our long-range missiles at them. Despite clear hits on all targets, the enemy squadron just kept moving, as if the missiles didn't do a thing.

Once we got within 30 klicks of the squadron, I figured these weren't normal fighters, so I asked Tower for bogey dope.6 They couldn't tell me a thing, so I told everyone to keep shooting with their Sidewinder missiles. Again, all misses. It was after this point that the enemy squadron commenced their engagement on us. All eight of them quickly converged on us in a tight formation and immediately shot down one of my flight members, so I knew we were dealing with trained pilots.

While dogfighting, I saw that they could move in directions that we couldn't, even while we were trailing them. They could move up, down, and side to side in impossibly agile maneuvers, getting tricky angles on us and dancing past our shots. I could barely see them half the time, too. All I could see around me were rainbow explosions and tracers from cannons, jets blowing up, and the occasional enemy flying past me on my VERITAS.

I noticed the enemy was shooting far more missiles than what would otherwise be normally possible for a F-16. Even as we expended all we could on them to stall, they continued shooting us. As a former F-16 pilot myself, I knew they had fired far more than the standard combat payload of 6 missiles. I dodged about twelve, from one of them alone.

I was lucky to bail out before one of the missiles hit me and destroyed my plane in a rainbow-colored explosion. As for the others of my flight, they weren't as lucky.

Results:

The mission was a failure. All wings shot down, and the last thing I saw before I hit the ground running was an explosion near Area Maiden-4 and an alert that the base was under attack.

Personnel Condition:

6 casualties. 5 KIA (everyone else), 1 WIA (me).

Conclusions/Recommendations:

It's ironic. I've been training for years to shoot down dragons and angels, then all of a sudden my sense of air superiority is immediately neutralized by an actual fighter squadron. Whatever you guys come up with, make sure it's able to actually hurt these guys, because they flew through everything we gave them.

Immediately following the aerial engagement, Area Maiden-4 would come under heavy assault by LTE-1004, which proceeded to bombard the facility with air to ground missiles and bombs. At least 60 ground personnel at Area Maiden-4 would be killed in action during this raid.

Due to the sense of urgency and highly dangerous environment around Area Maiden-4 (which would constitute a breach of the Second Mission (Concealment) if not dealt with quickly), and given that they were the only team present onsite, PHYSICS Division operatives of Assessment Team 711 "Problem Solverz" present at Area Maiden-4 assessed the situation and began forming a preliminary plan of action to liquidate the parathreat. Assessment Team 711 then began analyzing data from Area Maiden-4 surveillance and automated defense systems, and documented their findings.

Parathreat Investigation

Special Observer:

"Hendrix" 20947361/711

Overview:

Eight anomalous F-16C fighter aircraft exhibiting numerous thaumaturgic properties have appeared in Area Maiden-4 airspace. Within the last 24 hours, they have resulted in 60 Coalition casualties, the destruction of Area Maiden-4, and mass panic amongst the Coalition.

Parathreat Evidence & Investigation:

Concurrent to the air raid on Area Maiden-4, I activated my team to assess the situation and to determine the type and origin of the attacker aircraft, under the pretense that we could assist friendly forces in acquiring vital data on the threat entity. Because the area was still under attack, and due to the fact that the TE was apparently selective with targets caught in the open, we were unable to retrieve a vast majority of our equipment from the base.

Once geared up, we quickly vacated Area Maiden-4 and deployed all the equipment we could muster on an observation post outside of the base, most notably our long-range high-powered VERITAS scanning unit, which took much effort to bring out to the field. After watching the 14th TFS engaging seemingly nothing in the sky for about ten minutes, Agent Dawkins then suggested that we fit the counterconceptual filter module to the scanner in the event the entity we were dealing with was antimemetic. After doing so, the Threat Entity became visible to us. I've attached a photo I captured of one of the instances above.

The TE was seemingly spectral in nature and emitted trace amounts of EVE. While this made it possible to locate it on the long range VERITAS scanner, we needed to have the counterconceptual filter on at all times in order to to maintain a solid visual on the entity. Viewing the entity without the filter on was possible so long as you had your OCULUS on, but it was extremely difficult — Agent Dawkins reported he forgot what he was looking at using this method, at one point, but I observed that paying attention to the faint orbs of light allowed me to maintain focus on the TE. This leads me to believe that the antimemetic qualities function as a sort of "stealth system" for the TE, effectively making it invisible to those that are not paying attention to it.

We observed that the entity became intangible to the conventional weaponry deployed by the 14th TFS and Area Maiden-4's automated air defense network, passing through missile and cannon alike. We also observed the emission of EVE from the TE when it fired its own paraweaponry upon the 14th TFS and the base itself, which we noted was of the same frequency as the TE themselves. This, combined with the runes Dawkins noted on the fuselage and wings of these planes, leads me to believe that these paraweapons are thaumaturgic in nature. I am currently unsure if the entity's antimemetic camouflage system is related to the runes.

Finally, we observed the enemy flight was headed west at speeds exceeding Mach 1, and likely increasing. It is unknown where the TE is heading as of now.

Suggested Response/Requests:

We need to conduct cover-up operations for the engagement at Area Maiden-4 under the pretense of a French Air Force training operation, and report the 483GOC crash as a training accident in accordance with the Coalition's Second Mission Statement (Concealment). We should obviously secure its cargo ASAP, as the +2Gen and AltGen cargo 483GOC was carrying would constitute a Second Mission breach if found.

I am advising that we establish TFRs7 over western France, Spain, and the United Kingdom as a precaution to prevent additional civilian or military casualties from KTE-1004-Caliburn-Velveteen. It is a hostile and aggressive entity but seems to only target GOC/related aircraft for now.

We should prepare standard rules of engagement for the TE, most likely Level 5, as it is dangerous and highly efficient at aerial combat, and quite easily laid waste to Area Maiden-4. I'm recommending Immediate Liquidation for this one. This TE was immune to all conventional weaponry fired upon it and almost compulsively engages things as it sees fit, so we need to get with PTOLEMY and PHYSICS soon to conjure something up that's capable of hitting it.

Finally, we need to know where it's going. With the correct equipment at hand, one can easily perceive this TE, although the antimemetic nature makes it hard to track. Alas, it still exists, and it's going somewhere east, much faster than our EVEDARs8 can track. Maybe our pals at the ICUST can (quite literally) work their magic and help plot a course for the TE.

PTOLEMY Report

Area Maiden-4 Raid Review

A report of all ordinance fired from Area Maiden-4 at LTE-1004-Caliburn-Velveteen during its raid is attached.

AOD (Armaments Used in Destruction) report from the files of Brock Stone, Quartermaster Sergeant-Sector 04.

AOD-1004-01
Item Designation Title Qty
1 Gen0-SAM MIM-104 Patriot Missile 16
Notes: Despite clear hits on target, all launchers failed to affect KTE-1004 whatsoever. 8 units were destroyed by KTE-1004, 8 fully expended their ammunition.
2 Gen0-SPA Flakpanzer Gepard SPAAG 8
Notes: Despite apparent hits on target, all units failed to affect KTE-1004 whatsoever. All units survived.
3 +1Gen-SRG Stationary Railgun Turret (Automated) 3
Notes: All units failed to affect KTE-1004. Footage of the railgun projectiles apparently phasing through KTE-1004 has been attached. All units survived.

Following the attack on Maiden-4, a joint PTOLEMY and PSYCHE Division task force deduced that the only means of properly locating and liquidating LTE-1004 would be via thaumaturgic means.

Thus, Operation Icarus was planned, created, and executed, with the goal of liquidating LTE-1004 in a timely manner. Strike Team 1781 and Assessment Team 711—the newly-formed Task Force Icarus—would be tasked with ensuring the liquidation of the Threat Entity.

The objectives of TF Icarus, therefore, were threefold:

  1. Establish a means of properly locating LTE-1004 through thaumaturgic means.
  2. Establish an effective delivery system for a thaumaturgically-modified paraweapon capable of liquidating all LTE-1004 threat entities in a timely manner.
  3. Liquidate LTE-1004.
Department of Research and Development
Sender Link Rawles, PhD (OP Icarus R&D Lead) Recipient General Pratt (OP Icarus CO)
Subject Re: 1004 Update
Sir,

To answer your question succinctly, yes. We have located the TE, we have made ample progress in determining its nature in order to liquidate it in a timely manner, and we know where it is heading. Though, I am afraid I have some bad news with this report as well.

Firstly, we now know from the Problem Solverz that the TE is ectomorphic in nature. All conventional weaponry fired upon thus far has failed to affect it whatsoever. Its antimemetic qualities have additionally made tracking it via conventional means extremely difficult. Because of this, PHYSICS first elected to deploy thaumaturgically blessed surface-to-air missile systems to shoot the TE down. Unfortunately, we currently do not have any readily available systems capable of targeting aircraft flying at hypersonic speeds—aircraft that, lest we forget, are also capable of impossibly agile maneuvers.

Secondly, my latest proposal—which we have since signed off on, was to fight fire with fire so to speak. We plan on scrambling an identically-sized Strike Team flying thaumaturgically modified F-22 fighters, while also fielding standard anti-ectomorphic equipment and weaponry. I chose Strike Team 1781 due to their prior experience with liquidating airborne parathreats. Acting as support for the squadron will be an E-3 Sentry AWACS Plane fitted with a Scranton Reality Anchor and standard anti-ectomorphic equipment for combat support. All pilots involved need to have counterconceptual filter modules fitted with their OCULUS units, as Agent Hendrix has informed me that tracking the TE visually is virtually impossible due to its antimemetic nature.

Finally, our Type Blue assets from the ICUST, in conjunction with our SIGINT teams, were able to triangulate the location of KTE-1004 by conducting long-distance EVEDAR scans, ESP, and a thaumaturgic ritual in tandem. We now know the TE was last seen crossing the 30th Meridian West at speeds exceeding 6237 km/hr.

And now the bad news. We've identified one of the fighters as being armed with an eigenweapon, and it's carrying a SALT missile as its payload. As for its destination, all models plotted see the TE reaching one location: New York City.

PTOLEMY Report

ST-1781 Pre-Combat Checklist

Equipment requisition report from the files of Brock Stone, Quartermaster Sergeant-Sector 04.

1781-PCC-1004-01
Item Designation Title Qty
1 +1Gen/AltGen-5GF F-22T Modified Stealth Fighter 8
Notes: 8 thaumaturgically-modified F-22 stealth fighters (designated "T") were issued to ST-1781.
2 Gen0-AWACS E-3 Sentry AWACS 1
Notes: 1 E-3 Sentry aircraft was checked out to ST-1781 for primary combat support.
3 +2Gen-SRA Scranton Reality Anchor 1
Notes: One unit was checked out and fitted onboard AWACS Nostromo as auxiliary anti-ectomorphic support. All data pertaining to its effectiveness as an anti-ectomorphic support equipment was to be forwarded to TF Icarus R&D.
4 +2Gen-ALS AL-18 Tactical Airborne Laser System 8
Notes: Eight units in total were checked out. One was to be mounted on each F-22T in the event LTE-1004-Alpha fired its SALT missile.
5 +2Gen/AltGen-EMagD AN/X-43Q Anti-Ectomorphic Electromagnetic Device 4
Notes: Four units were checked out and fitted onboard AWACS Nostromo as primary anti-ectomorphic support.
6 +1Gen/AltGen-EVEDAR EVEDAR Location System 1
Notes: One unit was fitted onboard AWACS Nostromo for primary target acquisition and combat support.

Due to the astronomical costs associated with the acquirement and conversion of more F-22T aircraft and AL-18 airborne laser units, no further requisition requests for more F-22Ts or AL-18s are to be accepted at this time.

PHYSICS Report

Liquidation

At 0100 hours on 7/5/2020, LTE-1004 was detected by Task Force Icarus, crossing the Atlantic Ocean at speeds exceeding Mach 5. Its intended destination was plotted to be New York City. This, combined with the fact that LTE-1004-Alpha was identified to be armed with an eigenweapon, led the Coalition to believe that LTE-1004's mission was to execute a SALT missile strike on the city and/or the United Nations headquarters there. Thus, all major Coalition administrative and defense assets in the United States were placed on high alert.

At this time, ST-1781 "Free Birds" would be mobilized from Area Renegade-8 to intercept LTE-1004. The team would consist of eight thaumaturgically modified F-22 Raptor stealth fighters engraved with similar runes to the TE. This was theorized to give ST-1781 the capability to properly engage each LTE-1004 instance on equal or greater standing. Acting as combat support for ST-1781 would be one E-3 Sentry AWACs, fitted with a Scranton Reality Anchor and four AN/X-43Q Anti-Ectomorphic Electromagnetic Devices.

ST-1781 would intercept LTE-1004 on 7/5/2020, with an engagement commencing at 0637 hours. A dogfight would ensue, in which three aircraft of ST-1781 would be shot down, while all enemy combatants were confirmed to be liquidated.

st1781.jpg
st1781.jpg
Strike Team 1781 "Free Birds at Area Renegade-8" (Click & hold to enlarge)

Recorded Interview Log:

Date: 7/6/2020
Interviewer: General Pratt, PHYSICS Division Command, OP Icarus Commanding Officer (84930002/431)
Interviewed: "Skyking", Strike Team 1781 "Free Birds" Team Leader (87738421/1781)

Preamble: Interview was conducted following a psychological baseline evaluation of Skyking that returned no noteworthy results.


Pratt: Good afternoon. Let's begin. Please state your name and serial number for the record.

Skyking: Agent Skyking, Serial Number 87738421/1781.

Pratt: How are you feeling, Skyking?

Skyking: Vindicated, but a little empty, sir.

Pratt: Understandable. You've had a long and arduous 48 hours behind you, so let's get this underway. [Pause] You were first notified of the TE's existence by Central at around zero-one-hundred hours yesterday, correct?

Skyking: Yes, sir. Right in the middle of my beauty sleep. We were given a quick briefing on the situation and our new tasking as part of Task Force Icarus. We were told that we were dealing with an ectomorphic fighter squadron en route to New York City. We'd be flying our F-22s for the occasion, the ones we usually fly, but they had been extensively modded to take the ghosts down. Conventional weapons didn't work on them, apparently.

Pratt: Describe some of the modifications to me.

Skyking: Aside from our aircraft looking like zebras due to the runes, they'd put one of those fancy tactical laser systems on each of our aircraft. It kind of looked like one of those gun pods you'd see on a F-35, except it had a large mirror on the front of it instead of twin barrels.

Pratt: Describe the purpose of the laser.

Skyking: It was to be used to shoot down any eigenweapons in the event the ghost squadron shot any, since at least one of them was confirmed to be carrying a SALT missile. One thing I should mention was that our helmets had these counterconceptual filters on the OCULUS units, so everything was sharp and a weird yellow tinge at first when I put it on. That was 'cause apparently the ghost squadron had some sort of "antimemetic camouflage" or something, according to Agent Hendrix of seven-eleven.

Pratt: And your weapons?

Skyking: Our ASRAAMs and AMRAAMs were covered in the runes, too. Even the laser system was. Didn't bother checking the autocannon rounds myself 'cause they probably had little ones on 'em, too. Crazy how fast people work when they're under stress.

Pratt: When did you get airborne?

Skyking: At about zero-two-thirty. Ran through prelims and just booked it from Renegade-8, heading east. Our combat support, AWACS Nostromo, was already loitering near New York, so we just linked up with 'em before we went on our intercept course.

Pratt: Mhm. Now, one of the modifications listed on file was some sort of "Swiftness" rune? Describe this one to me.

Skyking: Whatever the nerds did to my plane messed with its engines, because an F-22 is not supposed to have a top speed of Mach 7. It felt like I was just flying regularly, though, but everything outside was fast, like a blur to me. They probably had added some other runes and paratech onboard to keep me from blacking out due to the g's we were pulling or to keep me from turning into paste from any tight turns I made. I was also briefed that we were able to strafe around mid-flight, but I never bothered figuring that out. Regardless, we were making a lot of distance in a very short amount of time.

Pratt: I'm being told the same was for the ghost squadron.

Skyking: Yeah, it was like both sides were set for war.


SEE: SELECTED COMMUNICATIONS 1

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