By playing on the controls with the
skill of an organist, the pilot could shift direction with dazzling
speed.
Snapper-boats used by the Federation operated on the same principle, but
they were of American design, and they showed the Americans' love of
clean lines. Federation fighter craft were slim and streamlined, even
though the streamlining was of no use whatever in space. With blast holes
at each end, they looked like double-ended needles. The pilot's canopy in
the center controlled guns that fired through the front only. Rear guns
were handled by a gunner, who sat with back to the pilot.
Where Connie snapper-boats carried five men, the Federation boats carried
two. The Connies could fire in any direction. The Federation pilots aimed
by pointing the snapper-boat itself, as fighter pilots of conventional
aircraft had once aimed their guns.
Rip watched the boats approach. He was ready to duck inside if they
decided to look the asteroid over before landing. He hoped they wouldn't
catch sight of his two scouts. He also hoped his nervousness would vanish
when the fight started. He knew what to do, at least in theory. He had
gone through combat problems on the moon during training. But this was
different.
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