Tom Swift and His Flying Lab by Victor Appleton II

note of his firm grip. He liked him immediately. "Pleased to meet you, Ripcord."
    "Aw, just Rip—please," he responded with an easy grin. "I’ve grown to hate that nickname. My unit buddies gave it to me. Guess they thought it was funny."
    The Swifts had agreed to engage a professional pilot to serve as Tom’s second in command, able to take charge of the Flying Lab while Tom was occupied with an experiment or doing work elsewhere. In addition to serving with distinction in the Central European and Middle-Eastern conflicts, Hulse was an experienced jetliner pilot and came with a full security clearance. He had just completed a course that computer-simulated the finer points of flying the Sky Queen, but had never yet set foot within the craft.
    "We’re in the final checkout phase right now," Tom explained. "I’d like to introduce you to our key engineers and hangar mechanics before we lift off."
    "That’d be great," he replied with enthusiasm.
    Tom, Bud, Rip, and Mr. Swift ridewalked over to the great underground hangar, where Rip was introduced around. Though Tom maintained a stream of small-talk, his stomach was in knots and every muscle was charged. This was it!—the first crucial test of the Sky Queen in its natural environment, the sky!
    Drawing Rip away from the others, Tom and his father told him some of the details of their secret mission to outwit the rebels.
    Mr. Swift mentioned that though the leaders apparently had both sufficient money and scientific training to carry out their plans, it was suspected that they were holding certain top-notch Hemispak scientists from whom they had forced vital information under threats against their families.
    "A bad situation," Rip agreed. "Maybe my background as a worker-bee in combat for Uncle Sam will come in handy."
    "It may well," Mr. Swift replied. "And now for your preview of the Sky Queen."
    About a half-hour later when they reached the second level of the mammoth ship, Tom unlocked the door to the laboratory and rolled back the fireproof panel. Rip stared in astonishment. Then, as they went from one laboratory section to another, he exclaimed: "Oh man, this is fabulous! I’ve never seen anything like it!"
    "You shore haven’t," said a voice behind him, and Chow ambled in. Tom introduced him. "This ole lab," the cook went on, "has got more bottles than the biggest drugstore in the world. An’ look at them tools!" He pointed to one wall of the laboratory. "If there’s one missin’ from that there collection—well, brand my cactus, I’ll eat me a pound o’ Texas sand!"
    Another section of the laboratory was given over to numerous machines ranging from tiny scales to an ore crusher. Many of them were unknown to Rip, who shook his head in wonder at the neat arrangement of the manually and electronically operated devices.
    "Tom, kin I show Rip the lights?" begged Chow boyishly.
    "Sure. Go ahead."
    Chow went from one battery of lights to another. The Swifts were amazed that he had picked up so much information from listening to the engineers when the various switches had been installed.
    "Now this here little feller"—the cook pointed to a midget green bulb—"that one don’t connect to nothin’, jest needs impulses out o’ the air to make it light up. An’ this giant here—it’s fearful powerful."
    Tom explained that this was really the newest development of the Swift giant searchlight, a laser-like super illuminator, and that no one would use it unless he were wearing special lenses to protect his eyes. It was attached to a boom that could be extended into a small dome on the underside of the hull.
    "Well, all I can say is, the millennium is really here!" Rip grasped Tom’s hand as the group exited into the hangar. "I’d call this a scientist’s dream come true."
    Tension and excitement ran high at Swift Enterprises as news spread beyond the engineers and hangar crew that the giant craft was about to make its debut. After a last-minute checkup in the