COMM IDCommander Thomas Logan (Acting Captain) :Secondary Fleet TARGET ID:Secondary Fleet Command, All Liberty Navy Mobile Assets SUBJECT:Patrol Report ENCRYPTION:Medium PRIORTY:Medium
Sirs,
We'd just finished refitting Black River from our near-miss the other day, and were bringing her out for a operations check, when we received a report from Battleship Petersburg of a unknown, non Naval vessel jumping into Virginia from the Texas jumphole. At 0230 SMT, we received a transmission from the LNS Minneapolis, confirming the unknown contact as an outcast gunship. We made course towards the Texas hole, and picked up a faint sensor contact. I sent a localised transmission for the vessel to halt, but it was not heeded. As we approached the jumphole, we lost the contact and adjusted course, based on my conclusion that the contact was heading for the California jumphole. We'd just picked it up again when the contact jumped, and we headed in after him.
Upon arriving in the California system, we had a much better range to the contact, which operations identified as a "Tridente" Class gunship of Outcast manufacture, Outcast IFF, transponder designation "Zrrf" however, he had a head start on us, had engaged his cruise engines, and we were unable to close enough to run a through scan of the craft. I ordered firing of cruise disruptors, but we must have been just out of effective range.
The contact ran a hard burn into the Whitney Ice Field, and the scanner lock began to become intermittent. We lost the contact in the vicinity of Grid coordinates F-5 in the Whitney Field, and the contact escaped.We spent some time combing the field, but had no luck in finding him again. The vessels known characteristics have been added to the Black Rivers' tactical database, for future reference. We'll get him.
Moved into Texas system for a patrol sweep. During the sweep, we encountered a total of 12 mixed class Rogue fighters, 1 Rogue light transport,"Mule" class, and nine Outcast "Dagger" light fighters; all of whom attacked us on sight, a grave error on their part. We were able to save sixteen of the pilots.
Near the conclusion of our first sweep, we lost the primary control relays for the missle turret guidance system, apparently an aftereffect of the recent damage to the ship. I gave orders to return to San Jacinto, to have the problem addressed.
Upon reaching Virginia, I transferred the captured hostile pilots to LNS Castle Wilson, along with related data logs to assist in their prosecution.
Now docked at San Jacinto, see if we can shake out those equipment bugs.