Free Launch by Richard Perth

was a test pilot. Paul was a
flight surgeon when he was in the Air Force.
    “On my right is Cougar Flight: Air Force
Captain Claire Archer and Major David Archer. Claire was a flight surgeon, and
David was a fighter pilot.”
    Jim continued with basic information and a
course outline for most of the first hour, and then the class was given a
break. Coffee was in a corner of the room.
    During the break, Leah asked Claire, “Didn’t
you rescue a cougar cub in the Grand Canyon about two years ago?”
    “Yes,” Claire said.
    Paul was surprised. “That was you!”
    Claire nodded. “I thought everybody would have
forgotten that by now.”
    “What did your commanding officer have to say?”
Susan asked.
    Claire shook her head. “I was in medical school
at the time. The only comment from anybody in authority was from one of my
instructors. He said he was no pussycat, and I believed him.”
    The team laughed.
    ▼
    When the class resumed, Jim introduced Perry
Wright, PhD, administrator of NASA. He said, “Good morning ladies and
gentlemen. You’ll have a very demanding schedule for the next 30 months. So I
won’t take much of your time, but I do want to welcome you to NASA and Team
Thunder.
    “The potential value of your mission is beyond
measure. You will demonstrate fusion power: a clean, safe, economical, and
abundant source of energy that can stimulate the world economy. You will gather
new data about our universe, and you may also discover a planet where people
can live. That could save the human race from extinction when the Sun makes our
planet Earth too hot for life.”
    After Dr. Wright left, Jim continued with a
detailed technical briefing. Just before lunch, he said, “The primary crew will
not be able to fly Origin before May of 2050. Therefore, each of you
will be assigned a plane to maintain your real-world flying skills. Much of
your flying awareness will transfer to flying the starship, and we want you to
stay sharp.
    “You have all flown Winddancers, and you will
begin refresher training starting next Monday. NASA wants you to fly as much as
you can when you’re not busy with your other training duties. That means most
of your flying will be done on weekends. You will be authorized to use the
planes for your personal transportation and to carry passengers.”
    Eyebrows around the room went up. Jim smiled
and said, “I know, I know. That’s not the way things are usually done. But the
question was: if we can’t trust you to use good judgment with planes and
passengers, how can we trust you with a multibillion dollar starship? And vice
versa: If we can trust you with Origin , shouldn’t we be able to trust
you with planes and passengers? Giving you free rein to use the good judgment
we know you have should result in more flight time. And that will be to the
advantage of the mission.
    “One of the three separate control panels on
the starship is called a shirtsleeve control panel. It’s the largest and most
elaborate of the panels and it’s designed to be operated in a comfortable cabin
environment. Four shirtsleeve control simulators are in the classroom next
door: one for me and one for each flight. Most of your training time will be
spent there learning everything about the ship except how to fly it. You will
get breaks for survival and other training from time to time to keep you , and me , from
becoming blithering simulator idiots.
    “A special dining area has been assigned in the
cafeteria where you will be served meals from the ship’s planned menu. These
meals will also be available in your individual crew quarters, which are
replicas of Origin ’s cabin. Since these meals are part of the
development costs, you will not be charged for them. You are not required to
eat them exclusively. But when you are two hundred and fifty light years from
Earth, there may not be many restaurants or supermarkets. So try to perfect
your menu before you leave. If you have any recipes, suggestions,