Chapter 9 - Phantom SignalI leapt out of my seat and pushed open the cockpit door. Marcus was fighting the control yoke, his knuckles white, while the glass cockpits displayed a cascade of amber warning screens.
“What’s happening, Marcus?” I demanded.
“I’ve lost flight control computer authority!” Marcus yelled, his voice rising in panic. “The elevator trim is running away down! We’re pitching down into a steep dive!”
The Gulfstream’s nose plummeted toward the ocean. The altimeter spun backward at terrifying speed: 41,000... 38,000... 35,000 feet.
“Disconnect the autothrottle!” Daniel shouted from behind me, barging into the narrow cockpit. “Check the avionics bus!”
“I tried!” Marcus shouted back, pulling back on the yoke with both hands. “The fly-by-wire system isn't responding to manual overrides! The software is overriding my control inputs!”
It was happening again. The exact same digital attack that had taken down Ethan’s F-22 and crippled Flight 229 over Missouri. Someone had tracked our flight path and transmitted the corrupt software payload directly to our aircraft’s receiver.
“Daniel! The emergency circuit breakers behind the main junction box!” I yelled, taking over the co-pilot’s seat and slamming my hands onto the control column to help Marcus pull. “Pull the main flight computer breakers! We need to force the aircraft into direct mechanical control!”
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“If I pull those breakers, we lose primary attitude indicators and auto-stabilization!” Daniel warned.
“We pull them or we hit the Pacific at Mach 0.9!” I roared. “Do it now!”
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