Chapters 9 and 10 Summary

Chapter 9, "The Vindicators," goes back to earlier that morning, when Lt. Col. Grady, the Group 6 leader, admired his Vindicator bomber before takeoff, musing that this highly-automated machine, which could be operated aloft by three men, would be replaced before long by an unmanned aircraft. Within three hours, the group is at 60,000 feet over Alaska. Following SAC protocol, Grady has been teamed with two men he does not know. His bombardier's name is Captain Thomas and his weapons operator is Lieutenant Sullivan. The three fly mostly in silence, each wrapped in his own tasks, within a tight formation of six aircraft. Grady hears a tone and sees a red light flashing on his Fail-Safe box. He and Thomas both open red Fail-Safe envelopes, which show an identical code: CAP-811. The same code has appeared in white lettering on the Fail-Safe box. Thomas...