Chosun Two, twenty kilometers north of Uqba ben Nafi

Lieutenant Choi flew as close to the sea as he dared, though he knew Senior Lieutenant Kim would be lower. Lieutenant Choi was very scared as he forced himself to go through the arming sequence for the AS-7 missile hanging beneath his aircraft. He checked the target acquisition radar and saw the big blip he had selected as his target fade and grow strong again as the radar signal was periodically interrupted by wave tops. Range to the target was down to thirty kilometers when the wailing tone of the radar-incoming alarm told Choi he had been acquired by an enemy fire-control radar.

Choi twisted in his seat, frantically looking above and behind himself for the enemy. He knew he couldn’t attempt evasive action so close to the sea; a tight turn would put a wing tip into the water and drag the Mirage down instantly. If only I could get rid of this heavy missile, he thought desperately. He checked the range to the target again - twenty-four kilometers. The maximum range of the AS-7 was ten kilometers. Lieutenant Choi thought fleetingly of dropping the missile into the sea and turning back for Libya, but he put the thought out of his mind. Choi was scared, but he was no coward.

The wailing of the alarm rose abruptly in pitch and became steady. The enemy’s fire-control radar had locked onto the Mirage.