Summoning Japan: Flights of the Fancy

Chapter 8 - Common Sense and Uncommon Sense

The 100-meter sprinter was in the midst of running a 24-hour marathon.

"Topaz Squadron, this is Gohan. Currently transmitting coordinates..."

In the backseat of the F-2B, Staff Sergeant Hasebe was reading out the coordinates he measured. "Topaz" is the callsign assigned to the 8th Air Wing/6th Tactical Fighter Squadron for this operation, and "Gohan" is Hasebe's TAC name. Since conveying the measured coordinates became Hasebe's responsibility (much to Misora's reluctance), she was given a TAC name.

Initially, Hasebe was hesitant to use a TAC name, considering it to be too presumptuous. However, when Misora said, "If you're an announcer, it's like a weather forecaster's job," or "This opportunity won't come again," she quickly became enthusiastic. The TAC name "Gohan" was her own choice, and since no one opposed it, it was accepted as is. Misora also thought, "Do women read Dragon Ball?" to that extent.

"Topaz" is not used individually. When referring to the entire squadron, it's "Topaz Squadron," and when specifying a particular aircraft, it's named with the aircraft number, such as "Topaz 1."

Note that callsigns change with each operation.

In the old world's rules, aviation radio uses English as the official language. The callsigns being English words follow that convention. Although mysterious translation works in the new world, various reasons keep the use of the official language continuing. Initially, Gohan tried to communicate in English, but because her pronunciation was too poor, she was ordered to speak in Japanese. Even the pilots handle internal conversations in Japanese and TAC names. Using English and callsigns is reserved for external communications.

Responses from friendly aircraft came in one after another. Almost all of them reported the normal status of the INS, with most being from "Topaz," but there was one exception.

"This is Echo 1, no issues with INS."

"Echo 1" is the callsign of an E-767 Kai AWAQS (Airborne Warning And headQuarters System) which was flying behind the F-2 squadron.

. . .

The decision to entrust the command of the overseas deployment force of the JASDF to an independent command led by a Theater Air Control Officer was relatively smooth. Organizational issues were resolved, but a significant problem arose regarding the equipment. Since it is an independent organization, the necessary equipment had to be procured independently.

First, the issue of where to establish the command headquarters came up. For maintaining a permanent base as the headquarters, it could be leased in a domestic base or garrison. However, when it comes to a command headquarters for field operations, it needs to be established on-site. The challenge is that the destination for deployment is not decided until the deployment is confirmed. Constructing bases in all regions where conflicts are anticipated beforehand would be impractical.

In such a situation, the only option was to build it when the deployment is decided or likely to be decided. However, the JASDF lacked the capability to do so, and facilities units of the JGSDF had to be commissioned, as was done with Ejei's runway. Yet, coordinating with other organizations involves time and effort. Moreover, the JGSDF, often mocked as "arteriosclerosis" due to its slow decision-making (although once decided, they act quickly), made the coordination more challenging. The Air Staff officers explored alternatives.

They set their eyes on the E-767 AWACS. The E-767 is part of the equipment of the JASDF, and coordination with other organizations is not necessary. Furthermore, the AWACS is a flying radar site that gathers information from the theater. It also has rich communication capabilities to transmit this information to other units. Most of the facilities required for the command headquarters were already available.