Free Their Lordships Request: A Harry Heron Adventure by Patrick G. Cox Page A

espionage?
     
                  Commander Mary Allison was not amused. She and her small team were trying to get one of the ship ' s primary propulsion units to give the rated output. Over two full days each test they ' d run failed to achieve more than seventy percent of the rated power. Now she was poring over the specifications and the component manufacturer ' s handbooks. Her team were busy inside the unit, tracing and identifying each and every component and checking it against the specification.
     
                  " It has to be down to something underperforming, " she told her second in command. " According to the specification everything in there should be rated for a hundred and twenty percent of requirement to allow a margin – but at present performance it hasn ' t anything like the power we need. "
     
                  " Sir. " One of the Technician Ratings emerged from the housing he was inspecting. " I ' ve got sixty-three components in here not in accordance with the spec or the drawings. The Spec says this one, " he held up a power unit he ' d uncoupled, " should be sixty terawatt, and it is supposed to be a BR-Five-five-Eight-Sixty-six-W, but this is a BR-Five-five-five-eighty-four-F and there ' s a whole slew more like this. "
     
                  " What the hell? " Mary Allison exclaimed. " Have you marked these up on the drawing or the spec? "
     
                  " Yes, Commander. " The TecRate nodded. " Got them all here. "
     
                  " Anyone else finding this sort of thing? " she demanded of the rest of the team.
     
                  " Yes, sir, " the chorus came from several points.
     
                  " I want them all identified and marked up. Make sure you get them all. " To her lieutenant commander she fumed, " Bloody typical, the whole damned thing is fitted with under rated components. The five-eight-four-F is only half the output of the five-six-six-W unit and I bet the rest are just as under requirement. I ' m going ashore – someone better have a bloody good explanation for this! "
     
                  Lieutenant-Commander Mansfield grinned. " I ' ll make sure we get them all identified and send it to you on your tablet shall I? Don ' t kill anyone, Boss, the paperwork with these civil types is a real pain. "
     
                  " Don ' t worry, Pete, " she growled. " They ' re not worth it. Send me the full list as soon as possible. I ' m going to see the Captain first, then the Yard Admiral if I can get a slot. After that, we ' ll see. "
     
    ***
     
                  Mister Artur Ribble considered himself a reasonable man, but this small woman was trying his patience. " My dear, Commander, " he began, yet again. " Savings had to be made. I consulted several specialists and decided that these units were quite capable of doing what was required. At less than half the cost of those specified and the sheer number involved, we managed to find a considerable reduction in overall cost. Certainly the power output may be a little less than you seem to think is necessary, but I was assured that for most operations the output that can be achieved with the modifications I authorised was quite sufficient. "
     
                  " I see. " Mary ' s voice was dangerously quiet. " And your qualification in propulsion engineering is? "
     
                  " I haven ' t one, " he snapped. " As I have repeatedly told you, I took advice from a number of experts before I consented to the change. "
     
                  " So you will not be aware these units are required to operate at maximum output during the initiation phase of transit and again for forty percent of the initial breaking phase of drop out? " She glared across the desk. " Perhaps you will also not be aware, as we can get only seventy percent at peak power as modified, this is