Customer Reviews

Able One

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3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

The North Korean army launches a nuclear missile into space. When they ignite the missile the subsequent explosion causes electromagnetic shockwaves. Several key communication satellites are destroyed and global communication is devastated around the world.

Intelligence is lacking and fearing an even further crippling of command and control communication, the American military prepare to launch ABL-1that can take out a missile though this laser system is untested. At the same time, POTUS tries to react to the crisis without starting World War III.

This is an interesting tale based on scientific electromagnetic pulse bomb theory as deployed by a military unit that goes ironically rogue inside of the most probably rogue country in the world. The story line is loaded with action; too much as seemingly important threads are left dangling. Still in spite of the over abundance of subplots, Ben Bova provides his audience with a fascinating geo-political technological thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Able-One (2010) is a standalone technothriller novel. The ABL-1 is an airborne laser prototype aircraft. It is a Boeing 747-400F airplane loaded with the tanks, pipes and other parts of a chemical laser. It can fire through a nose ball to bring down ballistic missiles during the boost phase at the range of a hundred miles.

In this novel, Harry Hartunian is an engineer with a wife and two daughters. He and his wife are currently separated. He is the team chief for the ABL-1 project.

Karen Christopher is an USAF lieutenant colonel. She is a former B-2 pilot, bur now flies the ABL-1.

Obadiah Kaufman is an USAF Major. He is the copilot of the ABL-1.

Franklin P. Higgins is a four-star USAF general. He is currently assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency.

Zuri Coggins is a member of National Security Advisor's staff.

Michael Jamil is a civilian analyst from the National Intelligence Council.

Brad Scheib is a USAF Major General from the Missile Defense Agency.

In this story, the North Koreans launch a missile into geosynchronous orbit with a nuclear warhead. The electromagnetic pulse from the exploding warhead takes down all satellites that lack protection for onboard electronics. All civilian satellite services are lost when the hardware fails.

Communication outages are the first indication of these losses. Most crosscountry cables have been taken out of service with the use of the communications satellites, so many interstate and international phone services are no longer available. Television programs can no longer be transmitted crosscountry to the local stations. GPS and weather service outages are also soon noticed.

While military orbitals are hardened, their throughput is insufficient for normal military communications. So some military traffic had been diverted to civilian channels. With loss of these alternative channels, military traffic is backing up and causing long delays.

The military respond to the threat by forming an emergency action team under General Higgins. Coggins, Jamil and Scheib are present, but the others are unavailable due to the loss of communications. The National Reconnaissance Office has already located the North Korean launch site and the team has an image.

The view shows three launchers, with one empty. The North Koreans are obviously prepared to launch the other two missiles, but nothing is moving in the image except some frozen vapor from the fuel tanks. They don't seem quite ready to launch the last two missiles.

Jamil has a theory. From the performance of the first flight into high orbit, he suggests that these missiles have greater range and precision than was previously estimated. He calculates that they can hit San Francisco.

Scheib disagrees with Jamil's calculations. He points out the official estimates of the missiles range and precision. He refuses to consider the possibility of upgrades to the missiles.

The President of the United States is flying to San Francisco to give a speech. He is warned that there may be a chance that the North Koreans are planning on taking him out with two nukes. He refuses to turn back for fear of being called a coward.

Meanwhile, The ABL-1 crew are taking off from Elmendorf Air Base for a test run. They are notified inflight that the ABL-1 has a live target. Harry and his team are not happy, but agree to try to take out the remaining missiles.

Kaufman is also unhappy, but mostly with flying as copilot after USAF headquarters has forced a senior pilot into the crew. Christopher is just happy to get another combat mission. The other two crew members look upon the mission as just another task.

This tale takes the ABL-1 toward the North Korean coastline. The DPRK insists that their sovereign waters extend two hundred miles, but the range of the laser is estimated at a hundred miles. It is a prototype, so who knows what the true range is?

This story is based on a USAF project. A real airborne laser has shown that it can hit targets. But can it bring down a live missile at a decent range?

Other anti-missile defenses are mentioned within this story. They too exist, but have not yet been used against live missiles. All these defense systems would be very useful if anybody decides to fire a missile at the USA.

The President of the United States is not named in this story. Still, he is a Democrat and has a woman as the Secretary of State. Maybe there are other similarities to the current administration.

This novel is a cautionary tale about two real threats to the free world. The first is the threat of wiping out the civilian satellites by means of an electromagnetic pulse. Most nonmilitary satellites are not protected from EMP.

The second risk is the launch of a nuclear warhead at the USA and its allies. A few rogue nations -- including North Korea -- are currently developing longrange missiles and nuclear weapon capabilities. Also, terrorist groups might soon have access to such weapons.

Moreover, despite -- or due to -- current moves toward local democracy, some nations would like to eliminate American influence. Some nations also have hardline factions that believe they could survive a nuclear war within reinforced bunkers deep underground. The masses would suffer great losses, but these leaders might survive.

The author is showing his age in one regard. The US Army no longer has a rank of Tech Sergeant. In 1948, the title of Technical Sergeant was replaced in the Army with the designation of Sergeant First Class. The Air Force does still have such a title.

Recommended for Bova fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales based on real systems and hardware. Read and enjoy!

-Bill Jordin

I've been reading Mr. Bova for close to 4 decades.
Mostly enjoyed all his offerings.
This offering is just terrible, characters are not just paper mache, but 2 dimensional cardboard cut outs.
Plot line is totally unbelievable &, since he finished in 7/09, would he have us believe the One would react as his President does?
The whole story would end w/2 HE Tomahawk missiles, submarine launched or an F-22 dropping a paveway on the launch site! Hardly a WWIII precurser!
Too bad Amazon won't give me $$ back for a crappy book!

"Able One" is a formulaic near-future, near-disaster novel by a good author who slacked-off. The novel read like the script for a cheesy disaster movie such as "The Towering Inferno" or "The Poseidon Adventure." We learn a little about the upcoming disaster. We learn a bit about a female Air Force pilot, a laser engineer, the owner of a defense contract firm, the Secretary of State, a weather man, a Lebanese-American National Intelligence Committee analyst, an electric line repairman in the northern midwest, a family on a driving vacation, an Air Force general, the President, his Chief of Staff, etc. The weather man, the line repairman, and the family on vacation were completely peripheral to the plot and apparently were added to provide a touch of "little person" drama. The book's dialogs could have come from a mediocre comic book. The North Korean enemies always were referred to as "gooks" by people who were too young to have fought in Korea or Vietnam.

The President was concerned more about his image than handling multiple crises: every communication, weather, and navigation satellite had just been destroyed by the North Koreans; major storms are knocking-out power throughout the upper midwest; banks, the stock exchange, and credit card companies cannot transact business; and the North Koreans have two more nuclear missiles ready to launch with Honolulu or San Francisco as probable targets. The President is relying on an untested laser weapon to destroy the missles, and instead of handling the crises from the White House he flies to San Francisco to give a speech to the nation (that only the local attendees can hear because the TV satellite feeds are down). He refuses to give fighter protection to the 747 with the laser weapon, because he's worried that the fighter jocks might precipitate a war with the North Koreans (who already destroyed billions of dollars worth of satellites and are launching two more nuclear missiles).

Unlike most of Bova's other novels, there were no strong protagonists. The female Air Force pilot had been banished to Alaska for sleeping with the Air Force General. The laser engineer was a wuss who destroyed his family life and buried himself in his work. The Lebanese-American NIC guy was the only one who saw the big picture, but he was young and too far down the totem pole to be effective. The Secretary of State was a foolish female political appointee who was duped by the brother-in-law of the Chinese premier. The defense contractor was more concerned about money than about the safety of his engineers and techs. Etcetera.

The plot was predictable (except for the incredible stupidity of the President), and the tension was low. (I was rooting for a missle to nuke San Francisco and the President.) The reviewers who said the book was "exciting" or "thrilling" must be the types of people who actually get frightened during haunted house rides at amusement parks.

If you're interested in better fiction from Ben Bova, go back to his books from the 1990s such as "Empire Builders," "Moonrise," and "Moonwar."

Departing somewhat from his usual outer space sci-fi themes, award-winning author Ben Bova has kept the adventures closer to earth in his newest release.

Rogue elements of the North Korean army have gained control of two nuclear missiles. After launching a separate warhead into space which managed to destroy most of the satellites orbiting the earth, this faction has targeted the United States and is making preparations for launch. Threatened with the onset of World War III, the Americans turn to their last hope: ABL-1.

ABL-1 is a modified 747 jumbo jet that packs a laser capable of destroying missiles before they reach cruising altitude and begin their descent. In command of ABL-1 is Col. Karen Christopher. Having been demoted from her B-2 stealth bomber squadron after having an affair with an air force general, its become her job to position ABL-1 close enough to shoot down the remaining missiles before they can be launched at the United States. Also on board is engineer Harry Hartunian. He's been with the ABL-1 project since its inception and has witnessed the ups and downs of the program, including sabotage and the death of a close friend. Estranged from his wife and family, it's Harry's duty to make sure the laser works correctly.

Col. Christopher manages to pilot ABL-1 into range to shoot down the North Korean missiles. But, the North Koreans have identified the plane and have launched intercept fighters to coax it to land. To make matters even worse, Harry has discovered that someone in the crew has deliberately tried to sabotage the laser. Will ABL-1 be able to shoot down the missiles, or will the North Korean terrorists succeed in striking the United States?

I've been a fan of Ben Bova's for several years and have read many of his previous novels. All have been well-written, and he always adds a technical chapter to discuss the technological aspects of his books. I've found these chapters to be very helpful in understanding the technical language Bova uses in his books. As for this book, I would rate this as one of his best. The story is well-conceived and plausible, considering today's climate in certain parts of the world. The character development is good and, in typical Bova fashion, the story line keeps building throughout until the climactic conclusion is reached.

I give this fine book my highest recommendation. Bova fans will not be disappointed.

Back in 1990, HBO released a movie called By Dawn's Early Light, with a similar plot, except that this movie is about a nuclear bomber trying to attack the Soviet Union during a nuclear exchange between superpowers. In Able One, we find ourselves inside a powerful 747 with a mounted laser that should be able to destroy any missile in flight. It is easy to see that By Dawn's Early Light develops the plot a lot better, since the Soviet Union is a powerful enemy, and a North Korea in turmoil is not. The dialogue in Able One seems to be 30% racial slurs, and the rest is about destroying missiles in North Korea before things get worse, which is something Stealth bombers could have helped Able One with, after all, unlike Dawn's Early Light, nuclear missiles did not crippled the US Air Forces at all. Able One tries to act more tension by putting a saboteur inside the aircraft, but even this subplot falls short in the end.

This is not really one of Bova's best; although he continues to turn out great science fiction books on a regular basis.

Able One is a modified Boing 747 that has had a super powerful laser installed. Although it has never been tested it is put into play when North Korea shoots a missile towards the USA that is taken out but satellite pictures reveal that there are two more missles sitting ready.

With no other deterrant available Able One is put into play to take down the two missiles.

As noted at the top this is a fast and easy read as there is minimal character development and the focus is on the action of Able One.

I'd still recommend it particularly if you can get it for a discount price

I have been a huge Ben Bova fan since I read his novel, Millennium. I thought that was a fantastic book and went on to read his Voyagers series, Mars, Titan and others. Bova has remained primarily a science fiction author but "Able One" is I suppose a departure in that this is a techo-thriller, much in the way of a Tom Clancy novel. If Ben Bova is planning to author more novels in this genre, I would have to say that Tom Clancy should watch out as Bova's Able One was far more detailed and far more interesting. The theme also reminds me of some of Dale Brown's military fiction; however Bova's background in real science and physics shines through for the reader. The plot is quite plausible as evidenced by recent tests conducted by Iran that indicate the development of an EMP weapon. Certainly the idea that an attack such as this against our communications satellites could cripple the infrastructure of any Western nation as we have become so dependent upon what amounts to a very fragile and vulnerable technology. The idea of a self absorbed president more interested in his reelection than in the growing crisis seems right on the mark and the characters in the novel are interesting and well developed. Certainly the air born laser, which has proved its ability in tests is a credible piece of engineering and is certainly not science fiction. This novel was a quick read for me as the action never stopped. It was hard to put the book down. I give Able One, a full five stars and two thumbs up.

Able One is a near-future techno-adventure (wouldn't really call it science fiction), mainly surrounding the lives of a diverse set of individuals involved in an advanced/experimental LASER-based anti-ballistic missile system, mounted inside a 747 aircraft, whose mainly scientific/experimental crew suddenly find themselves thrust into the front lines of what could be World War III.

I found the "AIRPORTish" set of intertwining stories to be exciting, and the characters to be believable for the most part... this is a fun and quick read.

Global Warming Alarmists will be dissapointed in Mr. Bova, however, as he only mentions the over-worked theme once in the book, and it is mentioned only negatively by a man freezing his tail off in a blizzard... good show for Mr. Bova to be one of the first to jump OFF this silly band-wagon, and join the growing ranks of SciFi writers that see this absurd obsession for what it always was - a SCAM.

I wanted to give this 3 stars because it was relatively fun to read. It's fast-paced, action filled and an easy read, but the science and other research in it was so ludicrous I just couldn't. This guy's a Hugo Award winner? Amazing! He gets his knowledge of orbital mechanics from Jack Bauer. The EMP device exploded in geosynchronous orbit knocks out every GPS satellite? Good trick since half of them are shielded by the earth at any given moment and the others are almost all tens of thousands of miles away, well outside the range of an EMP device at that altitude. The secret contact in the Chinese government has a Vietnamese name, not Pinyin, and the Lebanese analyst is later found to be "Christian, not Arab." Earth to Bova, you can be both, and many in Lebanon are. The characters are hackneyed and the whole storyline is predictable from about page 10, but it kept me occupied while waiting in the emergency room.