The five-person consortium who made up the “Underwater Habitats for Humanity” had a problem. The biggest problem, of course, was that the group was not the altruistic organization that it pretended to be. They had carefully chosen the name in the hopes that the news media would assume that it’s mission was humanitarian, and it had worked beautifully, along with some carefully planted news stories that hinted at the group’s concern for the sanctity of life in the oceans. In truth, the five members of the group wanted to build an undersea resort that would cater to the rich and famous, and they had decided that the Caribbean was the right location. Now they faced a new problem- one of their planted articles had worked a little too well. They had paid a well-known marine biologist to write an article about the UHFH’s interest in the effects of hurricanes on sea life. The article had been well-received; too well-received, because the marine biology community was calling on the group to send researchers into the area.
“We should simply ride this thing out,” said one man. “No, we need to address it,” replied the only woman in the group. “We have a submarine and can easily re-fit it to carry some researchers.” “I don’t like it,” said the titular head of the group. “Paying someone to write an article was easy. Setting up an elaborate marine mission will be much more difficult and much more difficult.” He leaned forward and addressed his female colleague. “You sound as if you have already given this some thought. What do you propose we do?”
The woman replied, “This does not have to be difficult. We have the sub and crew; it should be a simple matter to set up a couple of laboratories and convert our staterooms into bunks. We should extend an invitation to the marine biology department of an obscure college- they will be honored to be chosen- and then graciously allow them to tell us what facilities they need to conduct studies on the sea life and ocean bottom.” She looked at each member of the group as she spoke, and they were all nodding with approval by the end of her reply. The group broke up for their evening meal, and then spent the rest of the evening making plans for the sub’s alterations. The head of the group was chosen to break the news to the submarine’s crew, who were all former military men and not accustomed to a boat full of students. The captain and executive officer were the only crew members who knew the true purpose of the group, and they were paid quite handsomely to keep this knowledge a secret.
Blaine Barrow, formerly of the United States Navy and current captain of the UHFH submarine, called a meeting of the crew. He looked at the men that he had assembled after being approached by the consortium. All had been submariners in the Navy and were the best men available for their positions. Capt. Barrow maintained strict military discipline and his very loyal men believed that they were working for a humanitarian organization. The 30-meter sub was smaller than the tactical subs that most of the men had served on and no weapons specialists were required, but the sub still needed technicians to run and maintain the systems. They had made two voyages so far and had encountered very few problems. The second mission, which carried the five members of the consortium, had thankfully been as perfect as could be. The next mission was to have been a scouting mission to find a location for the construction of the habitat and Capt. Barrow was quite displeased that this had been postponed. He and his executive officer had been hired with the understanding that they would have a part in the future resort, and he hated delays.
He rose and began to walk around the room. “Gentlemen, I had hoped to be briefing you on a scouting mission; however, there has been a change of plans.” He looked for reactions and was pleased to see that his crew remained alert and focused. “Our employers have decided to earn some goodwill in the environmental community by inviting a group of marine biology students to spend a week on board. They will be studying an area in the Caribbean that was hit by two hurricanes last year, looking for signs of recovery in the aquatic life and ocean floor. Some minor alterations are being made to the sub to accommodate the students and labs, but our mission will remain unchanged. We should be able to do some scouting of our own while assisting the students with samples of the water and marine life.” He returned to the front of the briefing room and went through the details of the mission. When he finished he asked, “Are there any questions or concerns?”
The chief of the boat, Henrik Engman, raised his hand and waited to be recognized. When he got the nod from the captain, he rose and asked, “Captain, will we be returning to that area of turbulence that we skirted on our shake-down mission? We had talked about checking on it but could not do so on the last trip.” A couple of the men who worked on the bridge, especially the navigators, were nodding. They all remembered the narrow escape they had had from an area that had been calm one moment and then became extremely unsettled in the next. Captain Barrow had made some discreet inquiries among his navy acquaintances, but no one had reported a similar phenomenon. “I’m not certain that it would be wise to do that with a boat full of landlubbers, Chief,” replied the captain, and the crew chuckled. The chief seemed disappointed but sat down and listened as a few more questions were asked and answered.
The briefing wrapped up with the captain saying, “I expect that we will maintain our usual level of discipline during this mission. These students will need to be watched- they cannot wander around the boat, especially the engine room and bridge. A detailed report will be issued to all of you next week and we will start work on the sub remodel by the end of the month. We will be sailing at the end of May.” Mark Parris, the executive officer, or XO, as his position was commonly known, announced, “Captain is leaving the bridge” and saluted smartly. The crew rose and saluted as well, and Captain Barrow strode out to continue with the task of planning the remodel and the academic mission.
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