Below is a complete description of the events taking place in Strike Commander and its expansion, Tactical Operations.
Notes:
- This recap assumes 100% completion of all missions and objectives, with full bonus pay for each mission that offers it.
- At some points, the game offers several "side missions" that can be waived or played out of order; they are described here in full, in an order that is logical to the plot.
- This recap assumes that the Wildcats are constantly on the verge of bankruptcy, in order to achieve Gameplay and Story Integration. In-game, it is quite possible to make a metric fuckton of money and never be in such danger (until the finale, when weapon purchases are completely disabled no matter how much money one has accumulated).
- The player character remains completely unnamed both in-game and in all source materials. He is henceforth referred to as "The Commander" throughout this recap.
- Wildcat pilots are called by their first or last names — except when airborne, in which case they are referred to by their callsigns.
Strike Commander
The year is 2011, and the world is torn apart by war. A major oil crisis starting in the early 90s rapidly escalated, causing the world's major powers to scramble for any oil deposits they could find. The increased exploitation and authoritarianism has led to nationalist movements springing up in each of the superpower nations, eventually splitting each of them into pieces. The United Kingdom has dissolved; Russia has split in half; and more than a dozen states have so far seceded from the United States, forming their own blocs in order to protect themselves against predation by the Internal Revenue Service - the new de-facto U.S. government.
In this political climate with no super-powers to stabilize the world, wars have broken out on every continent simultaneously. Since no nation is large enough - nor wealthy enough - to keep a powerful standing army, mercenary companies have begun to spring up like mushrooms after the rain. For a price, they are willing to fight anyone's wars for them. These ad hoc military forces go wherever the money is, and do whatever dirty work they're offered. Turkey, smelling an opportunity in the air, has offered mercenary companies a "tax umbrella", protecting them financially and legally so long as they headquarter themselves within its borders and pay its government for the privilege. Most mercenary companies now call Istanbul their home base.
Despite most mercenary groups being ruthless and unscrupulous almost by definition, one retired United States Navy veteran named James "Hawk" Stern decides to set up his own mercenary company with the goal of rendering aid to the underdog nations of the world. Gathering only the best pilots he can muster, Stern sets up his company to specialize in flying F-16 fighter jets, and proclaims that his company would maintain a high moral standard in all their dealings. Though his pilots sometimes object to his idealism, their respect for the man exceeds their qualms. Stern names his Istanbul-based company "The Wildcats".
The fabled Wildcats are finishing an operation in South America. Two Wildcats are flying this final mission: Ace pilot Clayton "Tex" Travis; and a pilot known only as The Commander, Stern's own protege and lieutenant. On their way back to base the two pilots manage to locate an Su-27 pilot with a hefty bounty on his head. After a difficult chase, The Commander shoots the Su-27 down, but the mark parachutes safely to the ground. Tex wants to shoot the man with his cannon to obtain the bounty, but The Commander calls off the attack, stating that they are pilots - not murderers. Despite Tex's objections, the pair return to base.
The Wildcats conclude their mission in South America and return to their home base in Istanbul. The Commander meets up with Miguel "Zorro" Schraeder, the Wildcats' mechanic, who explains that another F-16 has suffered irreparable damage and needs to be scrapped. Wildcats accountant Virgil Beetlebaum interjects, demanding that the plane be repaired and put back into service. When Miguel accuses the desk-bound Virgil of failing to understand the dangers of piloting, Virgil retorts that keeping the Wildcats in business is more difficult than Miguel could possibly imagine. The Wildcats' leader, Cmdr. James "Hawk" Stern, breaks up the argument and orders the plane to be scrapped - arguing that the safety of the pilots is the only thing that matters. He informs the others that the Wildcats will be heading out to Mauritania very soon for another assignment.
The Commander runs into pilots Gwen "Phoenix" Forrester and Janet "Vixen" Page in the main hangar. He takes the opportunity to reprimand Gwen for an incident during the previous campaign, where she attempted to land the company's C-130 Hercules while it was fully loaded and had an engine out, instead of jettisoning the parachute-equipped cargo and landing the plane safely. Gwen argues that she had to complete the mission by any means necessary. Janet agrees with Gwen on principle, but argues that survival is more important than getting the job done. Janet takes The Commander aside and tells him that a recruiter from another squad was snooping around, trying to steal away some of the pilots. She hints that while she's got good reasons to stick around for now, she can't rule out leaving to work for another company if the money is right.
Stern sends The Commander to Virgil's office, in the hope that he would learn something about the financial side of running the Wildcats. Virgil explains that while missions earn the Wildcats several million dollars each, the overhead on maintaining the Wildcats, their planes and munitions, can easily reach 15 million dollars a month. He complains that low-paying campaigns like the upcoming job in Mauritania are going to bankrupt the company altogether.
The Wildcats relocate to Nouakchott, Mauritania to begin their next campaign. At the base, Stern explains the political situation to The Commander. He says that local rebels have been fighting the government for years, but have been unable to gain the upper hand due to lack of popular support. Now, however, a famine has broken out and the rebels have been stealing Red Cross food shipments, blaming the government for the shortages. The Mauritanian government has hired the Wildcats to escort a C-130 Hercules loaded with food to a nearby airfield where they would be able to distribute it to the local population.
Hawk and The Commander take off in their F-16s to rendezvous with the C-130 in midair. Though they expect the rebels to offer no aerial resistance, three rebel MiG-21s intercept them halfway to the airfield and attempt to shoot the C-130 down. The Wildcats shoot down the rebels instead, and the C-130 lands safely. The Wildcats make a short pass over Nouakchott to scan for additional rebels, but the skies are clear and they return to base.
Stern congratulates The Commander on his performance, saying that the food shipment should help the government buy time to defeat the rebels. On the other hand, he says that rebel propaganda is intensifying, and that they are actually expanding their influence in the surrounding areas. The Mauritanian government has asked for the Wildcats' assistance in defeating the rebellion, and given the rebel attack on innocent people and the supplies sent to relieve them, Stern feels that the only moral choice is to accept the mission.
At the barracks The Commander also runs into Billy "Primetime" Parker, who boasts about his encounter with an A-10 during the previous mission. The Commander quickly points out Billy's hot-headed mistake in that encounter, engaging a plane with a massive gun that caused severe damage to his F-16. Billy seems to get the point, but his hot-shot ego seems to survive the conversation intact.
Early next morning, Lyle "Baseline" Richards and Vixen head out to bomb a new rebel base out in the desert, while Hawk and The Commander take off to strike an established rebel training facility. Though heavily defended by anti-aircraft guns, the pair bomb their targets and obliterate the base easily. On their way back home however, they are ambushed by two Mauritanian government Mirage IIIs. They manage to shoot both Mirages down.
The Commander is outraged that the Mauritanian government would backstab the Wildcats, but Stern brings news that a right-wing isolationist coup has taken place among government ranks, and that the new government wants the Wildcats out of Mauritania immediately. Unfortunately, they've also seized the banks holding the money that was to be paid to the Wildcats for the last mission. Janet suggests taking revenge, as a demonstration that one should never cross the Wildcats, but Stern decides against this. He says that nothing the Wildcats do now would bring the lost money back. He suggests taking the money already paid for the C-130 escort mission and bugging out of Mauritania, which infuriates Janet. The Commander considers the situation, and suggests that there could be an alternative to both proposals.
Early next morning, Hawk and Tex attack a nearby Mauritanian government base, taking out its anti-air defenses. Phoenix then lands the company C-130 at the base, unloading Vixen with a group of Wildcat commandos to "confiscate" equipment worth around 2 million dollars from the base's warehouses - equivalent to what the government was supposed to pay the Wildcats for the rebel base attack mission. Unfortunately, both rebel MiG-21s and Mauritanian government Mirage IIIs are scrambled faster than expected, requiring Hawk and The Commander to fly out and intercept them. When the F-16s finally reach the enemy base, they find the C-130 taking off the runway. Shortly after it takes off, the entire base goes up in flames as a result of bombs planted by Janet and her strike force. The F-16s escort the C-130 back to base through another enemy fighter attack, and manage to land safely. Stern congratulates The Commander for his plan and performance, the Wildcats quickly pack up, and return to Istanbul with a respectable pay for a job well done.
Soon after the group returns to Istanbul, Stern calls The Commander to the rec room, explaining that he wants to teach The Commander how to handle reprimanding the crew when they step out of line. Janet arrives as ordered, and Stern chews her out for her impulsive decision to take revenge on the Mauritanians by blowing up their base - an action he did not sanction, and one that he sees as incompatible with the Wildcats' moral standards. Janet argues that the Mauritanians got what they deserved for betraying the Wildcats. She is dismissed, and leaves the room in a huff.
The Commander runs into Lyle in the hangar, who is reading the newspaper. It seems that a new tax is being applied in Istanbul, and prices are going up. Lyle is worried that this means that competition for jobs is going to get even harder. The Commander reassures him that the Wildcats' reputation for getting the job done will ensure that the fixers will still prefer to pick them over other mercenary groups, but Lyle is skeptical. He argues that sooner or later, the Wildcats are going to have to become less picky about the kinds of jobs they'll be willing to perform, hinting that some unsavory work may be impossible to avoid in the future.
The Commander is sent into Istanbul to a small bar called "Selim's", where fixers come looking for mercenary contacts to negotiate jobs. The bar is mostly empty, but The Commander quickly spots Muhammed, a local Arab fixer. The Commander introduces himself as second-in-command of the Wildcats, and Muhammed happily offers him a job. He explains that a group of board members from oil conglomerate Trans-World Petrochemical are taking a private jet to a board meeting that will soon take place at one of their refineries near Istanbul. There, they intend to discuss a large purchase of stocks by TWP. Global Oil, a rival corporation, wishes for the Wildcats to attack the refinery in order to delay the landing, buying Global Oil just enough time to purchase those same stocks themselves. Muhammed specifies that the strike need not cause any real damage to the refinery, and that the private jet need not be attacked at all - since the delay is itself the objective. The Commander accepts this mission for a fee of 3 million dollars.
Vixen flies her F-16 to patrol around the refinery and watch for the arrival of the private jet. At 15:00 that day, she spots the jet coming in and sends the call back to base. The Commander scrambles immediately to join her. As soon as he reaches the refinery however, Vixen shoots down the private jet. Its Su-27 escorts attack the Wildcats, who shoot them down. A pair of MiG-29s assault them on the way back from the mission, but the Wildcats easily dispatch them as well.
Back at base, Stern once again calls Janet in for a reprimand, asking what her excuse is for shooting down a plane full of innocent civilians, when the mission only required preventing them from landing. Janet replies that she did exactly that, and got the job done quickly and easily. Stern tells Janet that if she can't meet the moral standards of the Wildcats, she should leave. She concurs. The Commander tries to stop Janet from leaving, but she says that putting food on the table is more important to her than living up to Stern's lofty ideals.
As Janet leaves, Gwen runs up to The Commander to ask where she's going, and he explains the situation. Gwen sympathizes with The Commander, hinting that she knows he has feelings for Janet. However Gwen says that if this is what Janet really wants, it's probably for the better. Virgil, on the other hand, is dismayed by Janet's departure for a completely different reason: He thinks that Janet's actions during the last two missions were both cost-effective and lucrative, putting the company firmly back in the black for a while. He says he'd prefer it if the Wildcats had more pilots like her.
A few days later, The Commander returns to Selim's, where he finds Stern having a conversation with Jean-Paul Prideaux, leader of a rival mercenary company called "the Jackals". Miguel tells The Commander that Stern and Prideaux used to run the Wildcats together, but the Jackals split off from the Wildcats a long time ago over differences regarding finances: Prideaux was happy to accept any contract that paid well enough, while Stern was adamant on only taking up contracts that were not morally corrupt.
The Commander approaches Stern and Prideaux, who are having a drink in a private niche at the back of the bar. Prideaux takes an immediate interest in Stern's new protege, but his interest quickly turns into derision as he mocks The Commander for sparing the life of the downed pilot in South America despite the large bounty on his head (as seen in the game's intro). He warns The Commander against following in Stern's moral footsteps, claiming that Stern's idealism no longer has a place in this new world. Stern takes this in stride, saying that Prideaux is just misguided, but Prideaux dismisses his remark off-handedly. During the conversation, Prideaux also takes a sly jab at The Commander by mentioning that Janet had joined the Jackals the day before.
Stern obtains a new contract for the Wildcats, supporting the small South American country of Andes Mallorca, which had recently established itself between Peru and Ecuador. After landing in Andes Mallorca, Stern and The Commander are invited to the palace of the leader of Andes Mallorca, Generalissimo Jorge Mendez. He explains that his country is currently at war with Peru, and requests the Wildcats' assistance in support of his ground troops. Their task would be to attack Peruvian artillery and armored divisions, as well as a Peruvian stronghold, which are threatening the Generalissimo's supply lines. He offers to pay a total of 20 million dollars in gold bullion for the job - a massive sum for just one mission - including 6 million paid in advance. Stern wonders if there is a catch to go with this hefty reward, but the Generalissimo claims there is none. When pressed by The Commander, he admits that the generous payment is also meant to deter mercenaries from turning around and coming after him instead, adding that his opponents are barbarians and bandits who could not possibly pay as well as he does.
Back at the Wildcats' local strike base, The Commander asks Stern why he accepted this mission. Stern replies that Mendez' goal is to unite the region and restore peace to war-torn South America. He explains that neighbouring countries have been sending assassins after Mendez, attempting to prevent any prospect of peace. On top of his general disdain for assassins, Stern wishes to give Mendez a chance to fulfill his noble ambition.
Early the next morning, Hawk and Baseline fly out together to attack the Peruvian stronghold, while The Commander and Phoenix attack an armored column up in the mountains. Although they are jumped by several Peruvian MiG-29s and MiG-21s, and threatened by SAM and AA defenses around the convoy, the Wildcats manage to complete their missions without much problem.
Back at the base, Miguel tells The Commander that Stern and Lyle have just returned from their strike on the stronghold. Though they were successful, Lyle nearly crashed his plane trying to avoid a sidewinder missile using a high-G maneuver. Just as Miguel is describing the event, Stern's voice comes over the P.A. system, calling all planes to scramble to intercept Peruvian fighters coming to attack the Wildcat base. The Commander meets Stern near the tarmac. Stern instructs him to take off and repel the attackers, while Stern himself takes the company C-130 to Mendez's palace to receive the rest of the payment for the mission. The Commander objects to Stern flying without escorts, but Stern counters that protecting the Wildcat base should be their primary concern.
The Commander and Zorro take off with haste, flying out to intercept a group of MiG-21 bombers and their MiG-29 escorts. Once these are dispatched, a call comes from the Wildcat base indicating that they are under attack by a second group of enemies. The Wildcat pilots return to base just in time to intercept those attackers as well. With only minimal damage to the Wildcat base, the attack has been repelled.
Once The Commander lands at the base, he is confronted by Travis, who is angry that The Commander allowed Stern to fly off unescorted. He accuses The Commander of being good at nothing but following orders. Before they can resolve the argument however, a call comes in from Stern over the radio: He is under attack by Peruvian fighters, and his C-130 is taking damage. Before the Wildcats can scramble to assist, Stern gives his fond farewell to the Wildcats and the radio goes silent - he has been shot down.
The Commander rushes over to Mendez's palace to express his desire to take revenge against the Peruvian pilots who shot down Stern. Mendez says that would be very difficult, given that it took a whole wing of fighters to shoot Stern down. On top of this, he has even worse news: Stern was returning to base with the remaining 14 million dollars in gold bullion that Mendez had promised to pay for the previous mission. Though he cannot compensate the Wildcats for the financial loss, Mendez offers an alternative: A revenge strike against the Peruvian army.
The Commander assumes command of the Wildcats. His first order of business: Attacking a Peruvian nuclear facility whose location has been disclosed by Mendez. He wants to do it in broad daylight, so that the Peruvians would know exactly who did it. Lyle objects to this idea, saying that the added expenditure on munitions for this raid would only serve to put the Wildcats in even deeper financial trouble - exactly what Stern was trying to prevent. Travis, however, argues that the raid would serve to teach others that there is a hefty price for killing even a single Wildcat. The Commander agrees with Travis, and the Wildcats take off for the mission. With Zorro as his wingman, The Commander flies out to the nuclear facility and completely levels it, shooting down a throng of Peruvian fighters attempting to stop him.
The Wildcats pack up their strike base and return to Istanbul, only to discover upon landing that their home base has been heavily bombed in their absence. Virgil and Miguel take account of the damage, figuring that four F-16s have been disabled beyond repair, costing 2 million dollars to replace - and this cost does not even include the damage to the base itself. The identity of the attackers remains unknown. The Wildcats bury Stern's body in the hills overlooking their base, while The Commander gives a heartfelt eulogy for the man he had considered a surrogate father. He pays homage to Stern's commitment to his ideals, and promises that the Wildcats will always follow in those footsteps. A flight of Wildcat F-16s performs the Missing Man Formation overhead.
Later, Virgil chastises The Commander for his decision to execute a revenge mission for no pay. When The Commander insists that this is what Stern would have done for one of them, Virgil points out that Stern is no longer in command, and that the Wildcats are going to be having serious financial difficulties with the damage to their base and the loss of Mendez's gold. He even suggests that The Commander should start thinking about purchasing lower-grade weapons instead of high-grade ones, and learning to work around their deficiencies.
To secure some sort of cash inflow, The Commander heads out to Selim's. Entering the bar, he bumps into Janet. He confronts her about joining the Jackals, but she tries to avoid the conversation and just offers him a drink. The Commander insists, causing Janet to lash out about Stern's condescending moralism. The Commander informs her that Stern has been killed, and she is visibly saddened. In response to news about the Wildcat base being bombed, however, Janet seems to play coy for some reason.
Inside the bar, The Commander spots Prideaux, who calls him over to express his condolences about Stern's death, and calls him a "worthy adversary". Nevertheless, he argues that Stern was doomed to fail. He urges The Commander to adopt a "fight to win" mentality, if he wishes the Wildcats to survive.
Selim's is full of contractors this time around, so The Commander approaches Muhammed, with whom he is already familiar. Muhammed does have a job for the Wildcats, but it is somewhat unusual: An airshow in Egypt. The Commander is somewhat offended by this offer, but Muhammed says that the Egyptians will provide their own planes and fuel for the job, as well as $500,000 plus expenses. Given that the mission is simple enough and poses no risks nor overhead for the Wildcats - not to mention the Wildcats' dire financial situation - The Commander has no choice but to accept.
Virgil, at least, is pleased with the Commander's decision, though he says the $500,000 payment is barely going to keep the Wildcats fed. He jokes that if The Commander is asked to put on a clown suit, he should do so for no less than $10,000 extra.
The Wildcats land in Egypt and set up for the airshow. At the airfield, Travis jokes that this is exactly the sort of mission Stern would have loved - one where absolutely no one gets hurt. Miguel concurs and adds that this is probably the lousiest job the Wildcats have ever taken, though The Commander reminds him that there is practically no risk or overhead involved - easy money.
Before the Wildcats can get to their planes, Phoenix runs up and exclaims that she's just been contacted by an Egyptian government minister, who told her that Libyan bombers are crossing the border en-route to Egyptian targets. Since the Wildcats are the only experienced pilots ready to take off immediately, the minister has offered them 4 million dollars to intercept the Libyans; However they would have to do so with the F-16s that have been prepared for the airshow, which are armed only with cannons.
The Commander and Tex climb quickly to altitude, intercepting the vanguard Libyan MiG-21s, and then proceed to intercept three massive Tu-95 bombers headed directly for the airshow. Once the Libyan planes are destroyed, the Wildcats land back on the ground, and are promptly contacted by the Egyptian government. The Egyptians are very thankful for the Wildcats' assistance, and offer them a contract to stay in Egypt and help defend it from further Libyan incursions. The Commander contacts Virgil and arranges an immediate shipment of weapons from Istanbul to Cairo. The Wildcats quickly set up a local strike base at the airfield for the coming conflict.
Gwen is highly enthusiastic for more action. Billy, meanwhile, is busy training some newly-recruited Egyptian pilots, who seem to have no clue on how to dogfight properly. He tells a story about how one rookie dropped all his flares during a training mission and still couldn't shake a missile, not realizing that he had to actually turn sharply to break the missile's lock on his engine. Billy is exasperated, but says he did manage to keep himself from punching the recruit on the spot.
At a briefing the next day, The Commander explains the situation to the other pilots. The Wildcats have been contracted to patrol Egyptian airspace for further Libyan bomber raids, and particularly to defend Egyptian monuments and keep the road to Cairo clear of encroaching Libyan ground forces. To sweeten the deal, the Wildcats will be paid extra for every Libyan plane they can shoot down. On their very first patrol, The Commander and Primetime encounter several waves of MiG-21s and Mirage IIIs, followed by a pair of Tu-95 bombers headed directly for the Pyramids at Giza. In a grueling dogfight, the two experienced pilots take down the Libyans, saving one of the Seven Wonders of the World from destruction and netting the Wildcats a cool million dollars in extra pay. Billy jokes that if The Commander keeps flying like that, one day he'll almost be as good as him.
The Libyans, however, are not deterred. A small Libyan armored column has apparently made its way to Sudan and covertly moved up the Nile river unopposed, setting up camp near the Pyramids to prevent the Egyptians from using artillery against them. The Egyptian government wants the entire column destroyed before they can attack the Pyramids, and before Libyan air power can join up to escort them all the way to Cairo. The Commander heads out with Phoenix - the group's most accurate bombardier - to eliminate the threat. They reach the Pyramids just as the Libyan air support arrives, and as the ground units begin to attack the ancient monuments. The Wildcats proceed to destroy all targets rapidly, careful not to hit the Pyramids as they do so. They follow this up with an air patrol of the surrounding area, taking out several more MiGs before heading home.
The Libyans are cleared out of Egypt, but apparently they haven't had enough: Their forces are massing on the border for one final assault. Instead of waiting for them to arrive, the Wildcats launch a strike at their rallying point, a well-defended stone fortress, bristling with AAA guns. After shooting down a pair of Mirage IIIs attempting to intercept them, The Commander and Zorro home in on the fortress and bomb the radar facility set up to control the guns, then systematically destroy the fortress and everything inside. The Libyans attempt to retaliate with additional jets, but these are shot down as well.
With the Libyans finally admitting defeat and calling off their attacks, the Wildcats receive their payment and head back to Istanbul.
Virgil is beside himself with joy when The Commander describes to him how the mission in Egypt turned from a sideshow into an extremely profitable opportunity. Virgil says that the 4 million dollars gained from the operation - not to mention the hefty bonuses collected on shooting down Libyan planes and leveling their fortress - would go a long way towards repairing the Wildcats' home base. Nevertheless, there is still work to be done.
The Commander heads back to Selim's, where Gwen and Travis are already enjoying their time off after Egypt. Travis congratulates The Commander for a job well done during the campaign, but The Commander doesn't seem very cheery - still preoccupied with both Janet's departure and the attack on the Wildcat home base. Gwen tries to get his mind off these things, but he insists that Janet didn't have to leave after being chastised by Stern. Gwen counters, saying that Janet chose to leave, and tells The Commander that he has better things to focus on than moping around.
The Commander makes his way into the bar, where he runs into Farhad, a shifty, sweaty-looking fixer. Farhad initially mistakes The Commander for someone else he owes money to. When he realizes who he's talking to, Farhad goes right to business, offering the Wildcats a new contract. It seems that the war between Canada and Quebec has taken a strange turn: The mercenary company hired by Canada to harass Quebec's military - the "Hammerheads" - has taken to piracy of civilian traffic in order to boost their earnings. Quebec is now willing to pay 8 million dollars to rid themselves of the Hammerheads once and for all. Punishing opportunistic mercenaries is right up the Wildcats' alley, so The Commander takes the job happily. Farhad slinks away.
As the Wildcats pack their equipment for the trip to Quebec, Virgil warns The Commander not to allow himself to be blinded by high-paying missions, warning that the overhead costs could easily outweigh the income if he's not careful.
The Wildcats land in snowy Quebec and begin preparing for their attack on the Hammerheads. The Commander discusses the Hammerheads with Lyle, who's run into them in the past. He calls them "a street gang with wings", and warns The Commander that they are absolutely ruthless and well equipped, flying Su-27s and MiG-29s. He implores The Commander to hit the Hammerheads as hard as possible, to keep them off balance.
The first order of business is to establish air superiority over Quebec by intercepting Hammerhead patrols over the country. The Commander takes Baseline with him on this first mission, seeing as he's familiar with the opposition. They manage to shoot down two pairs of Su-27s, but in the heat of battle they stray into a Hammerhead "No-Fly" zone along the border, where the Hammerheads have set up several SAM sites. Dodging missiles from the ground and an attacking flight of Hammerhead Su-27s, the two Wildcats barely make it back alive.
Travis congratulates The Commander for a job well done, forcing the Hammerheads to finally pick on someone their own size. However he points out that the Hammerheads are a much richer company than the Wildcats, and can replace their losses very easily. The Commander replies that they're not going to get the time to do so: The Wildcats are going to be striking the Hammerheads' main base itself. The next morning, The Commander and Tex take their F-16s straight through the Hammerhead air patrols, knock out their AAA radar, and bomb their runway full of holes.
The Hammerheads finally realize that they've been outmatched, and hastily pack up their business to get the hell out of Canada. The Wildcats, however, don't intend to let them go so easily. The Commander wants to ensure that the Hammerheads will never be able to repeat what they've done in Quebec, and that means shooting down the Hammerhead transport planes carrying the entirety of their equipment. The Commander and Primetime scramble to intercept the planes, fighting through multiple Su-27s and MiG-29s to reach the C-130s and blow them out of the sky. In the confusion, The Commander nearly shoots down a civilian private jet, but stops himself at the last second.
With the Hammerheads out of business, the Wildcats can go home with their payment. The Quebecois government even throws in a bonus for making sure the Hammerheads won't be able to return - and for scaring away any other mercenary companies that might consider working for the Canadians in the future.
Back at home base, Billy comes in with news that the war in Quebec is finally turning around. Morale is climbing, and the government is able to recruit more troops to its defense. Virgil is obviously pleased as well, given the cash inflow, but warns The Commander not to get over-confident.
The Commander heads into Selim's to find it nearly empty. The only patron is Beto, a portly fixer chowing down a plate of muffins. He offers some to The Commander, who refuses, wanting to get down to business. Beto explains that New Siberia, a break-away from the old Soviet Union, is currently attempting to invade the independent state of Alaska, but has run into severe difficulties. They want the Wildcats' help in punching a hole through the Alaskan defenses. With an offer of 2.5 million dollar for each mission flown - plus bonuses - and with no other fixers around to make another offer, The Commander has little choice but to accept.
Virgil isn't too confident about this mission. He explains that the United States (or what's left of it) still has its eye on Alaska, hoping to re-annex it in the future. He warns The Commander that the Americans won't be too happy with the Wildcats helping the New Siberians in their attempt to take over the Alaskan oil fields. However, Virgil says that the United States won't physically intervene unless Alaska asks for their help - which is highly unlikely given the bad blood between them due to past U.S. abuse of Alaska and the latter's eventual secession.
The Wildcats arrive in Fairbanks, Alaska - an abandoned airbase inside Alaskan territory. The New Siberians wish to bring in amphibious craft to launch a beach invasion, and for that the airspace above Alaska is going to need to be cleared pretty thoroughly. The Wildcats plan to shoot down an E-3 Sentry providing radar coverage for the Alaskans. The Commander and Zorro fly off to perform the interception, and are met with several pairs of Alaskan F-15s flown by very skilled pilots. Nevertheless, they manage to reach the E-3 and take it out of the sky. On the way back, they assist the New Siberians further by taking out several armored vehicles defending a nearby airbase, but leave the base itself intact in case it comes in handy later. During the airfield attack, they receive a message that Alaskan A-10s are attacking the Wildcats' strike base, and quickly rush back to defend it.
The New Siberian invasion is successful, and a beach-head is established thanks to the Wildcats. However the threat of the Alaskan A-10s is ever-looming, and could jeopardize the entire invasion. The Commander picks Phoenix to join him in attacking the main Search & Destroy base launching A-10s at the New Siberians. By luck, they catch two A-10s taking off from the base and shoot them both down. After turning the runway into a crater, the Wildcats proceed to attack other Alaskan armor in the vicinity, and even defeat an ambush by two Alaskan F-16s on their way home.
Gwen is quite pleased with the results of the last mission, but warns The Commander that the Alaskans will no longer be able to ignore Wildcat presence over their airspace - and will probably be gunning for them now. The next target is not easy either: an Alaskan off-shore oilrig surrounded by PT boats. Lyle gives The Commander some advice on how to attack through a PT boat anti-aircraft screen before the two take off for the rig. Alaskan F-18s scramble to intercept, but are shot down. Lyle destroys a PT boat, opening a gap in the enemy defenses for The Commander to fly in and bomb the facility.
The destruction of the oil rig puts a major dent in the finances of the Alaskan government and military. This opens the way for the New Siberians to make their assault. The Wildcats take off one last time to dominate the air above the battlefield, and then swoop down to assist the ground forces. The Commander and Primetime go on a combat air patrol over the entire front line, taking out another E-3 Sentry, several interceptor F-16s and ground-attack A-10s, and then strafing and bombing the M1 battle tanks on the ground in support of the advancing Siberians, while being careful not to hit any of the Siberian T-72s.
As the New Siberians march onto the oilfields, the Wildcats can finally pack up their equipment and their payment, leaving the war behind and heading back to Istanbul.
Despite the impressive income from the Alaska job, Virgil is unhappy. He reports that the United States Internal Revenue Service has contacted him and threatened to audit the Wildcats in retaliation for their meddling in Alaska. When The Commander inquires how that's possible — given that the Wildcats operate from Turkey — Virgil responds that the IRS considers any assets destroyed in any of its claimed territories to be taxable - a racket they use to extort anyone attacking the secessionist states.
On the other hand, Travis has good news: The Siberians have completed their offensive and have taken 40% of Alaska's oil fields, all thanks to the Wildcats' air support. They've decided to end the war there, satisfied with what they've managed to obtain so far. It is still unclear, however, whether Alaska would be willing to keep the 60% they have left.
The Commander heads back to Selim's for another job, only to find Janet at the front bar. Janet asks The Commander whether he's getting used to commanding the Wildcats. He replies that the base still needs repairs, and the available mercenary jobs are starting to thin out. Janet sympathizes with him, and points him to a man named Philip Walters sitting inside. She claims he has a job on offer for high pay and low risk.
The Commander thanks Janet and walks into the sitting area, where he spots a well-dressed man observing the room quietly. He walks up to the man, who introduces himself as Walters, and says he represents Trans-World Petrochem - the company whose private jet was shot down by Janet earlier in the game. He says Janet herself recommended the Wildcats to him, and offers The Commander a mission attacking three assets belonging to Global Oil - their rival corporation - in San Francisco. The fee is only 7.5 million for all three missions, but Walters assures The Commander that Global Oil's defenses are sparse, justifying the low reward. Once again, The Commander realizes that he has no choice but to accept this offer.
On his way out of Selim's that night, The Commander hears someone calling him in the alleyway behind the bar. He walks in, only to be faced with a knife-wielding mugger who demands all his cash. The Commander decides to keep his money, and instead punches the mugger in the teeth. The mugger is undeterred, and suddenly The Commander finds himself surrounded by thugs. Just then, Janet appears with an Uzi and shoos the muggers away with a few warning shots. She asks The Commander if he still thinks she's selfish. He invites her over to his place.
The next morning, The Commander hurries back to base, and the Wildcats leave for San Francisco.
At the new strike base in San Francisco, The Commander asks Miguel if he finds it suspicious that Trans-World Petrochem were willing to hire the Wildcats after what Janet did to their board members in Istanbul. Miguel replies that in the world of Corporate Warfare, the most important thing is to get the best and deadliest assets, rather than holding grudges for past slights. He compares corporate warfare to a game played by executives, and wonders if the Wildcats are nothing but pawns in that game.
The first target on the list is a Global Oil tanker sitting in San Francisco bay. The Commander and Zorro fly around the city to the west, encountering serious resistance from the North Californian F-15s on their way in. They hit a SAM site near the bay, and proceed towards the tanker. Curiously, none of the PT boats guarding the tanker engage them at all, so the pair drop their bombs, climb away from the explosion, and return to base unscathed.
After the mission, Zorro expresses concern about the strange things going on during the mission - particularly the fact that the explosion of the tanker was not nearly as severe as he'd have expected from a ship carrying oil, and he did not spot any slick in the water as the F-16s were flying away. The Commander contacts Walters to inquire about this, and learns that Walters had made an error - they bombed an empty Global Oil tanker. Walters reassures The Commander that the Wildcats will be paid for the erroneous bombing run, as well as for a second attack against the correct ship.
This time, the targeted tanker is arriving towards the bay from the open ocean, supposedly reducing the risk of intervention by the North California military since the Wildcats won't be threatening any commercial shipping. On the other hand, this tanker is well protected by an escort destroyer and several PT boats. On the way out to sea, The Commander and Phoenix run into a pair of F-15s piloted by skilled dogfighters, nearly shooting the Wildcats down. Nevertheless, they reach the tanker, destroy one of the PT boats, and use the gap to bomb the tanker. It goes up in a huge fireball - indicating that at least Walters was right this time.
Walters' next mission is a bit more spectacular than the last: bombing the top floors of the TransAmerica building in downtown San Francisco, to take out the Global Oil offices in the building. Travis is incredulous about Walters, but The Commander reassures him that the error with the empty tanker was probably just an honest mistake. In any case, the Wildcats aren't expecting any major opposition, as Walters says Global Oil only has old F-4 fighters to protect their assets. The truth is much different: The Wildcats are jumped by several Global Oil F-15s attacking the bomb-laden F-16s with advanced missiles. Nevertheless, The Commander and Tex manage to slip in through the anti-aircraft screen, destroying the top of the TransAmerica building and punching out through the interceptors.
Billy congratulates The Commander on his performance in the mission, saying he wishes he'd have been the one to bomb the TransAmerica building. The Commander jokingly says that Billy will probably take credit for it anyway when he tells the story to others; to which Billy replies that he doesn't need to - he's already a legend in his own right.
Walters' final mission is an attack on a major Global Oil refinery. Unfortunately, the refinery is protected by a nearby GO airbase, which means that the Wildcats need to bomb the airbase first, to ensure that GO planes don't come after them while they're trying to bomb the primary target. GO F-15s do ambush The Commander and Tex as they make their way to the airbase, but they are both dispatched. Luckily, another pair is caught on the runway and bombed before they can take off, and the runway is eventually destroyed. The refinery itself is heavily protected by anti-aircraft fire, but the Wildcats drop their remaining ordnance on the massive refinery building and bug out - mission accomplished.
Travis is furious about the bad intelligence fed to the Wildcats by Walters. He's willing to forgive the "wrong tanker" excuse, but the fact that GO has F-15s in its service - and so many of them - means that Walters has been lying to the Wildcats, not to mention under-paying them. The Commander drives into San Francisco later that day to confront Walters at the TWP main office. Walters admits that the goal of the operation was not to destroy Global Oil, but to blame the attacks on a third rival company - Pegasus Oil - which has been considering buying out GO. TWP hoped to throw a wrench into those negotiations, allowing TWP to buy out Global Oil instead. When The Commander asks why the Wildcats weren't at least told about the danger of the Global Oil F-15s, Walters explains that he was hoping that the fighters would shoot down the Wildcats, tying up that loose end. He says it's "Nothing Personal, just good business". Walters assumes that The Commander is just another "mercenary animal", fully expecting him to beat up Walters in retaliation. Instead, The Commander decides to pay a little visit to Walters' superiors.
The Commander tells the story about the events in California to Virgil, who asks whether he punched out Walters in the end. The Commander explains that he instead went to the CEO of Trans-World Petrochem and threatened to spill the beans about the operation to Global Oil, which would screw up TWP's buyout plans. In return for the Wildcats' silence on the matter, the CEO agreed to fire Walters and provide the Wildcats with a large monetary bonus. Virgil is quite impressed.
At Selim's, The Commander runs into Janet again. He chastises her for suggesting that he take the job with Walters, saying that it nearly got the Wildcats shut down. Janet protests innocence, claiming that she had no idea Walters was corrupt, and that the Jackals would've taken the job if he hadn't. The Commander tells Janet that she has a knack for keeping herself out of trouble, and him in trouble. Despite the argument, Janet invites The Commander back to her place to enjoy a bottle of Bordeaux later.
Inside the bar, The Commander finds Prideaux in his private niche. Prideaux stuns The Commander by apologizing for bombing the Wildcats' base. He says the job was offered to him by a Trans-World Petrochem executive — Walters — as retaliation for shooting down their private jet months earlier. He expresses displeasure that Janet screwed the Jackals over by handing the TWP job to the Wildcats, prompting The Commander to threaten Prideaux not to hurt her. Prideaux marvels at The Commander's chivalry, but then continues with a sly insult to The Commander's innocence, hinting that he might end up dying as "pitifully" as Stern did. He likens the mercenary business to a chess game, where one must know when to sacrifice a pawn, how to take an opportunity, and when to concede defeat.
The Commander walks away and starts looking for fixers. He finds Farhad. Being the paranoid that he is, Farhad asks The Commander for a password. The Commander replies "commission", pointing out that Farhad is literally paid to trust him. Farhad reveals that he does have an assignment. The former U.S. states of Arizona and Nevada are having a dispute over the Grand Canyon. The Nevadans have moved forces into the area and claimed it as their own. Arizona wishes to destroy the Nevadan ground and air forces in the area, forcing Nevada out. The pay is not great - only 8 million for three missions - but the Wildcats do need a job. The Commander accepts.
Virgil is unhappy about another mission in a former United States territory - given the threat of audit by the I.R.S. - but understands that there was no other option. He wishes The Commander good luck in his mission.
The Wildcats arrive at an airfield in northwestern Arizona, not far from Las Vegas, and set up their strike base. Billy is highly enthused about the upcoming campaign, telling The Commander that he'd better pick Billy to fly some missions inside the canyon, saying that it's been his dream to do so. He warns The Commander that the Nevadans have set up anti-aircraft defenses throughout the Grand Canyon, which seems to only excite Billy more about the prospect of flying in there.
The Commander and Primetime go on the first sortie together, to clear out the airspace over the Grand Canyon. Of particular importance is a Nevadan E-3 Sentry orbiting the area. The Wildcats encounter heavy resistance from Nevadan F-16s, but the worst part is that the entire canyon has been lined with SAM launchers, requiring them to dodge dozens of missiles as they fly past. They finally discover the Sentry orbiting above what appears to be a large Nevadan base at the northern end of the Grand Canyon. Once the Sentry is shot down, the two return to the strike base to assess their strategy.
The Nevadan base at the end of the canyon is quickly determined to be the primary airfield for enemy sorties. The Commander decides to take it out immediately to eliminate enemy air presence in the area entirely. The Commander and Baseline take their F-16s to the Grand Canyon, evading the SAM launchers lining its edge and diving into the canyon to knock out several SAM radars along their path to the enemy airfield. They slowly make their way towards the airfield, duel with a pair of skilled enemy F-18 pilots, and finally put craters on the runway to knock it out of commission.
With the Nevadan air force mostly driven out of the area, it is finally time to deliver the power punch: an attack on the Nevadan supply stores deep inside the Grand Canyon. Destroying these stores would force the Nevadans to withdraw from the area. Billy volunteers for the mission, joking that he would gladly fly it alone if necessary. Turns out The Commander's plan is just as outlandish: He will fly the canyon alone himself. The others object, with Gwen wondering out loud whether every male in the Wildcats has some sort of macho complex. The Commander explains that since the SAM sites above the canyon are too dangerous to contend with, he will have to navigate down the canyon to the target; And since the canyon is so narrow in some places that two planes would have trouble flying through it, one plane will have to do.
With his plane heavily loaded with guided missiles, The Commander sets out down the canyon. AAA guns fire from all directions, and The Commander does his best to missile-strike only the ones he can't evade. He finally reaches the storage yard, shooting down a pair of F-18s in combat within the tight canyon walls, and levels the base entirely. He flies out of the canyon and away from the SAM sites, then makes his way home. Just as he reaches the Wildcat strike base, two Nevadan A-10s make a last-ditch effort to bomb the Wildcats, but are thwarted at the last second.
With that, the Wildcats' job is done. They pack up their C-130 and return to Istanbul with their hard-earned cash.
Upon arrival back in Istanbul, Virgil has bad news: The United States Internal Revenue Service has had enough with the Wildcats, and has completed paperwork to begin an audit against them. Though Virgil remains vague about what that actually means - or what the IRS could do to a company that doesn't even operate within their borders - it is very clear that he is distressed. He implores The Commander to keep looking for jobs, hinting that the audit could cost the Wildcats a whole lot of money they don't have.
Returning to Selim's, The Commander once again runs into Prideaux. Prideaux berates The Commander for still sticking to his morality, which he calls "inconsequential". The Commander retorts that his morality keeps him from having to deal with "scum" like Prideaux, and asks the Jackal how he even lives with his choices. Prideaux gets defensive, once again issuing a veiled threat against The Commander - hinting that he will eventually meet his end just like Stern.
Fortunately, the bar is once again full of fixers, indicating that things might be returning to normal in Istanbul. Muhammed signals The Commander over to his table, and tells him of a situation developing in Germany. It seems that a British unit, stationed in an ancient castle inside German territory, is refusing to vacate the area now that Germany no longer has friendly relations with Britain. The British are citing the Potsdam Agreement of 1945 as a reason to keep forces in Germany. Unfortunately for the Germans, any attempt to attack the British could result in an international incident and possibly even a war, which they wish to avoid. Therefore, they are looking for mercenaries to do the dirty work for them. Muhammed offers 6.5 million dollars for the job.
Talking Virgil into accepting the mission turns out to be the hard part. He believes this mission is not worth the cash on offer. Nevertheless, The Commander convinces him that the British would not be able to put up much of an air defense. Virgil is finally appeased, though he warns The Commander that the castle in question is heavily defended by anti-aircraft emplacements. He implores The Commander to stay safe.
The Germans provide the Wildcats with an airbase near Nordhausen, smack-dab in the center of Germany. Travis wonders aloud what's wrong with the British, and whether they've been told that World War 2 is over. When The Commander tries to downplay the risks of the mission, Travis reminds him that the British fly the Tornado - a plane with a very powerful engine - and that their pilots are extremely proficient with years of training. He adds that the British pilots absolutely abhor mercenaries.
As usual, the first order of business is to clear away enemy air presence. This will also be the Wildcats' chance to test themselves against some of the best pilots in the world. The Commander picks Primetime to accompany him on this combat air patrol. Just past their first waypoint, the pair manage to ambush two Tornados and eliminate them both, but things only escalate from there. Tornados scream in from different angles, loosing accurate missile shots at the F-16s who struggle to evade. The Tornados are far faster than the F-16s, but the maneuverable Wildcat jets eventually manage to outperform and shoot down a whole dozen British fighters before returning to base.
The British, realizing they are under attack by skilled mercenary pilots, decide to pull back all of their anti-aircraft vehicles to defend their castle. The Wildcats decide to prevent this from going smoothly by taking out the only British-controlled bridge connecting the castle to the countryside. As an added bonus, this would leave the British with no way to withdraw from their castle except through German territory, which would surely force them to leave quietly. The attack on the bridge is carried out by The Commander with Zorro at his side. British air losses in the previous mission are keenly felt as only two Tornados scramble to repel the attack. However while the Wildcats are tangling with the Tornados, the British anti-aircraft guns manage to reach the bridge and place themselves to protect it. The Wildcats fly low, underneath the radar, to nail the bridge with a few heavy bombs and evacuate the area immediately.
With the bridge gone, the only thing left is to bomb the castle itself. The Germans decide to perform this task themselves, using a local mercenary company with A-10 Warthogs; But the Wildcats will need to go in and clear the anti-air defenses around the castle to pave a way for the bombers. After Phoenix complains about giving up the fun to the Germans on this mission, he picks her to join him for this run. The last few British Tornados take off to stop the Wildcats, but are shot down. This, however, is the easy part - because the British appear to have an entire company of anti-aircraft guns and their radar systems in store, and they hasten to deploy them around the castle even as the bombing is going on. Finally, the A-10s come in and finish the job by reducing the castle to rubble, forcing the British to finally concede and leave Germany for good.
Miguel congratulates The Commander on a job well done. He reports that the British government is finally signing a treaty with Germany to relinquish all British holdings within their territory. Virgil is naturally very pleased that the Wildcats didn't have to waste any ordnance on the castle. When The Commander points out that Virgil is the only Wildcat who's pleased about that, Virgil retorts that they are all whiners. The Commander then points out that this is akin to the pot calling the kettle black. Virgil claims that he doesn't "complain", he only "criticizes constructively", which The Commander compares to the difference between a migraine and hemmorhoids.
The Commander drives to Selim's, finding Beto chowing down on another plate of muffins as usual. When asked why he likes muffins so much, Beto replies that it's because you can freeze them - despite the fact that he's eating them at a restaurant. The Commander stops this conversation before it gets out of hand, and asks Beto to get down to business. Beto reports that North and South California are at war again. After the great earthquake (the "Big One") nearly destroyed San Francisco, the North has been having a hard time recovering. Most importantly, a water shortage is threatening to destroy their economy, and South California is now trying to cut off the North entirely from all water sources. North California is willing to pay 6 million dollars for this mission, in addition to a bonus for performance above and beyond the mission parameters. The Commander accepts the mission, and Beto replies that so long as he sticks with the underdog he'll always have a place at Beto's table. The Commander replies he just wishes the menu was different.
Virgil, of course, is less than pleased. Once again the Wildcats are going to be fighting on former-U.S. territory, but beyond this he has serious doubts that the North Californians can afford to pay the Wildcats at all, given the poor state of their economy. He also mentions that the South Californians are vicious, and will try to hunt down the Wildcats relentlessly. When The Commander calls him paranoid, Virgil indignantly asks him which "vicious little backstabber" told him that.
Once again, the Wildcats find themselves setting up a strike base in San Francisco - this time to do battle with the forces of South California in defense of the same North Californians they had fought against in the past. Miguel comments that the struggle for water feels quite primordial. He says that this kind of conflict is bound to get very ugly.
In the makeshift office, Billy tells The Commander an interesting and possibly relevant story: The Barracudas, another F-16-based mercenary company operating in Istanbul, were completely destroyed when the I.R.S. decided to collect their back-taxes. Apparently, the Jackals were contracted by the I.R.S. to "soften up" the Barracudas, leaving very little to be collected. The I.R.S. did, however, recover an advanced F-22 fighter jet hidden in an underground bunker at the Barracudas' base. He also mentions that the U.S. government already has a YF-23 stealth fighter, which they use for "private business".
Instead of their usual M.O., the Wildcats will be flying this campaign alongside North Californian F-15s. While other Wildcats are instructed to receive orders from their Californian wing leaders as they spread out to defend N.C. airspace, The Commander's own mission is already established: Defending the North California Air Force's E-3 Sentry from enemy interceptors. He takes off together with an N.C. F-15, and the pair fly off to link up with the Sentry. Soon enough, South Californian F-18s arrive and attempt to shoot the Sentry down. The Commander and his wingman fight vigorously to intercept them, and barely manage to do so with the Sentry still intact and flying. They escort the Sentry into position above the San Francisco bay, and return home.
Gwen complains about her North California wingmen, saying that while they aren't bad pilots (especially given their performance against the Wildcats during their previous stay in San Francisco), it turns out they're all Surfer Dude types - annoying her to no end. Travis, on his part, laments the fact that North and South California can't seem to cooperate despite the fact that their economies are in ruins. He says he's noticed that the skyscrapers in San Francisco are all still standing after the earthquake, even though the houses have turned to rubble around them. He concludes that in crisis, those who have money always win out.
With the Sentry now in position to observe for the North Californians, The Commander takes off with his N.C. wingman once again - this time to attack a major military base near Los Angeles, deep behind enemy lines. The South Californians are naturally unwilling to just let this happen, scrambling several wings of F-18s to intercept them, but can't prevent The Commander from putting holes in their precious runway. The F-18s hound the pair all the way back to North Californian territory.
The Commander receives a complaint from the North California Air Force about Billy. Turns out he was impatient with them waiting for the right moment to attack an enemy wing, and just broke off and took down the enemy all on his own. He defends himself by implying that the Californians are all hippies, waiting for the planets to align before committing to anything. Given The Commander's own experience with them, he can't argue.
For the last mission of this campaign, the Wildcats are back together again. This time, they're tasked to open up the sea lanes by destroying the South Californian flagship - an aircraft carrier. The Commander and Tex have a difficult time going in, having to contend with both carrier-launched F-18s as well as SAM missiles launched from the carrier's escort destroyers. Nevertheless, they bomb the carrier with heavy munitions until it sinks below the waves. With their mission complete, the Wildcats can return to Istanbul knowing that they've given the "surfer dudes" a little comfort.
Virgil is overjoyed with the huge bonus acquired by the Wildcats from the North California government. Nevertheless, he says that bankruptcy is always on the horizon, even for the richest mercenary companies like the Jackals. The Commander takes offense, saying that the Jackals have no class. Virgil replies that he'd rather have no class than no money. The Commander disagrees vehemently, much to Virgil's dismay.
The Commander finds Billy at Selim's, enjoying his bonus. He reports that the South California government has finally broken off its attacks and is suing for peace. Inside, the bar is very quiet. The only patron is a strange-looking man who seems like he would be more at home in an accountant's office than in a mercenary's bar. As The Commander approaches, the man introduces himself as Tweedley, representing the United States Internal Revenue Service. He reminds The Commander that the Wildcats are scheduled for an audit in the near future. He offers to cancel the audit altogether, as well as sign a contract guaranteeing that the I.R.S. will never audit the Wildcats in the future. In exchange, the Wildcats will help the United States / I.R.S. collect "taxes" from Rhode Island - a state that "claims" to have seceded from the union, as he puts it. The I.R.S. will also be willing to pay a symbolic reward of 5 million for the mission, plus bonuses.
Understanding the stakes, The Commander has no choice but to succumb to this extortion. He takes the job. Virgil tries to assuage him by reminding him that an I.R.S. audit would be extremely painful for the Wildcats. He says the I.R.S. aren't above inventing tax infringements if they can't find any. He balks at the low pay expected from the mission, and implores The Commander to skimp on ammunition if at all possible. Additionally, since the I.R.S. is involved, Virgil decides to come along to Rhode Island for this mission - just in case they try anything funny. He asks God to forgive the Wildcats for working with the I.R.S.
The Wildcats set up their strike base not far from Providence. Gwen is very unhappy about working for the I.R.S., given the kind of hell that Rhode Island had to go through in order to secede from the union. The Commander tells her they have no choice in the matter, but Gwen reminds him that the stakes are the freedom of an entire nation that the Wildcats will be helping to destroy. Travis approaches The Commander to ask him why Virgil came along on this mission, worried that Virgil would spend all his time complaining and make the entire affair even more painful than it already is. The Commander reveals to Travis that Virgil is from Rhode Island.
The Wildcats' first job is to neutralize most of the Rhode Island Air Force by taking out two airbases simultaneously. The Commander and Baseline go out on this mission together, carrying a large load of anti-runway Durandal bombs. They struggle to punch through the Rhode Island F-18s with the bombs, but eventually manage to get through and destroy both runways.
Back at base, in conversation with Miguel, The Commander expresses his displeasure at doing such "great work" against the Rhode Island military - in the service of what is essentially a terrorist organization. Miguel asks The Commander if, by doing so, the Wildcats haven't become terrorists themselves. Virgil is understandably depressed about the whole affair. He says he used to enjoy his reputation as a cutthroat who would "sell his own mother down the river"; but now he's actually doing it, selling out his entire home state just to get the I.R.S. off his own back.
Unfortunately, the mission has to continue. This time, the Wildcats will be dealing with the Rhode Island Coast Guard, taking out two destroyers along with their PT boat escorts. The destroyers are shelling I.R.S. troops along the coastline, which Billy seems to find rather heartwarming. He even suggests he might "accidentally" bomb the coastline instead of the ships, but The Commander puts a stop to that kind of talk immediately. The Commander and Zorro take off with a heavy load of bombs, but fortunately the Rhode Islanders can no longer mount an aerial defense. The Wildcats make short work of only two F-18 trying to block their path, then clear out the PT boats and drop heavy bombs on each destroyer in turn.
Lyle congratulates The Commander on the victory in the last mission, but The Commander is unhappy with the deaths he is causing. Lyle reminds The Commander that it's either Rhode Island or the Wildcats, as if that makes things better. Fortunately, there is only one mission left: Hitting a Rhode Island national guard base, as well as some armor on the front lines. Phoenix is picked for this mission, and together with The Commander they clean up essentially what's left of the Rhode Island military, despite the attempts of two expert F-15 pilots desperate to shoot them down.
The Wildcats start packing up their strike base, thankful that the dreadful ordeal is over now that Rhode Island has been left defenseless. Billy expresses his hope (though he doesn't fully believe it) that the I.R.S. will actually hold true to their side of the bargain and waive the audit. Just then, Virgil comes running in and tells them to stop packing. He says that the governments of Massachusetts and Vermont have posted a 5 million dollar bounty on the head of the Director of the I.R.S. - whose plane is currently circling above Rhode Island. Most of the Wildcat pilots have already shipped out, but the two top Wildcat aces, Primetime and The Commander, immediately take the two F-16s remaining on the ground and scramble into the air. They head up high to find I.R.S. One, defeating a horde of U.S. F-15s to get to the Director's plane, and finally blow it to smithereens.
Despite the fate of Rhode Island, Virgil takes solace in the knowledge that the Director of the I.R.S. paid for it with his life - and of course in the fact that the Wildcats made a cool 5 million for a single mission, on top of what the I.R.S. paid for their missions. When The Commander asks if the I.R.S. are planning to renege on their agreement not to audit the Wildcats, Virgil says he consulted with a lawyer friend of his - Vinnie the Shyster - who went through the contract and concluded that the contract was water-tight and there is no legal case that the I.R.S. could employ. The Wildcats completed their side of the bargain as agreed, and then later accepted a separate contract to kill the Director - two completely unrelated contracts that are not in legal conflict.
A highly unexpected visitor arrives at the base: Philip Walters. In the seconds he has before The Commander can punch him out for his unprecedented gall, Walters offers him a new job: To shoot down a private jet belonging to Trans-World Petrochem, which is carrying a large number of Global Oil stocks. Walters says he is representing an unnamed "third-party", but doesn't specify any further about his employers or why they want the jet shot down. He offers 3 million dollars for this one mission. He makes sure to remind The Commander that the new taxes in Turkey are brutal, and the Wildcats would be wise to accept the offer if they want to stay afloat. Though he has a good point, The Commander refuses to deal with Walters again.
The Commander heads out to Selim's, looking for work. At the bar, he shares a toast with Gwen to the death of the Director of the I.R.S., "may he rot in peace". It's a small consolation for doing the devil's work, but Gwen is hopeful that this turn of events might have a more profound effect on the future of the I.R.S. and their criminal antics.
Unfortunately, Selim's turns out to be empty - except for Walters, who has apparently been waiting for The Commander to change his mind. With no other option on the horizon, and the ever-looming threat of bankruptcy, The Commander finally shakes Walters' hand and accepts the deal, explicitly stating that he still doesn't trust Walters. Walters doesn't seem to care one way or another.
Virgil informs The Commander that the repairs to the Wildcat base have finally been concluded. He says he'd break open a bottle of champagne - if only the Wildcats could afford one. The Commander informs the other pilots of the upcoming mission, and Travis is quite incredulous. He asks The Commander whether he's even seen any of the promised money. The Commander acknowledges the risk, but says that 3 million for a single mission that doesn't even require the Wildcats to leave Istanbul is a hell of a bargain. The Commander heads off to his F-16, and takes off together with Primetime to intercept the TWP jet. The opposition is intense, with multiple MiG-29s and Su-27s with top-end pilots and equipment trying to stop them, but the Wildcats do the dirty work and return home.
The Commander returns to base, only for Virgil to come and tell him some very bad news: TWP has called him, saying that a fleet of TWP fighters and bombers are heading towards the Wildcat base to destroy it once and for all. They dare the Wildcats to stop them. The Commander and Primetime scramble back into the sky right away, while the other pilots prepare their jets for takeoff and the rest of the Wildcats rush to the anti-aircraft guns. The TWP jets attack in multiple waves of Su-27s, doing their best to shoot the Wildcats down. Primetime is forced to eject halfway through the fight, just in time for Miguel's F-16 to be fueled and armed for takeoff. After a long and gruesome battle, the Wildcats blunt the attack.
Virgil claims he had no doubt that the Wildcats would win, but recommends avoiding any missions involving TWP in the near future. He asks whether The Commander has been paid by Walters yet. The Commander says he hasn't yet, but he's definitely going to be.
A few hours before sunrise, The Commander tracks Walters to a local airfield. On the tarmac, he confronts Walters with a gun in the back, demanding to know where he's going. Walters tries to claim he's just checking out the airfield as a potential purchase for his new business. The Commander doesn't buy this story - given that Walters has a suitcase with him. Walters finally decides to come clean: He was swindling TWP by selling them fake Global Oil stocks, and needed someone to destroy the plane carrying the fake stocks so that TWP wouldn't find out. When pressed for the money he owes the Wildcats for the mission — with extra compensation for the attack on their base — Walters offers to write The Commander a cheque. The Commander is incredulous, but he sees where this is going. Walter reaches into his vest pocket for the "cheque", instead pulling out a gun. The Commander guns him down like a dog before he can even fully draw it. Opening the suitcase, The Commander finds 3 million dollars.
Word of The Commander's encounter with Walters - and especially how it ended - spreads like wildfire throughout the mercenary community in Istanbul. When next he visits Selim's, he runs into Prideaux, who congratulates him on the cold-blooded way he concluded his business with Walters, and expresses newfound admiration for The Commander's aptitude for viciousness. The Commander protests that he had to do what he did. Prideaux muses that The Commander might have a place in the Jackals, which The Commander quickly compares to having a place in the morgue.
As it turns out, the killing of Walters has also had a negative effect on the Wildcats' reputation; most fixers avoid The Commander entirely. Farhad nearly freaks out when The Commander approaches him for a mission. The Commander assures Farhad that the matter with Walters was all business, not the norm for the Wildcats. Farhad says there is one person who still trusts the Wildcats: Generalissimo Mendez of Andes Mallorca. Farhad says that the General wishes to make up for the unfortunate events of the Wildcats' previous mission in his country by offering a whopping 10 million dollars for their aid in evicting a group of Peruvian rebels who've set up shop inside his country's borders. Once again, it seems that The Commander has no choice but to accept this contract.
The Wildcats set up their strike base in the same place they occupied last time they operated in Andes Mallorca, bringing back unpleasant memories. Miguel asks The Commander how he feels about it. The Commander replies that Mendez had nothing to do with Stern's death, and adds that the neighbouring countries have banded together to put up a massive bounty on the Generalissimo's head - indicating that they are not interested in peace and unity. He claims that this is exactly the kind of mission that Stern would have taken, if he were still alive.
Mendez's first mission for the Wildcats is to take out two Peruvian guerilla airbases on the other side of the border. He warns the other Wildcats that the bounty on the General's head is so high now, that they should expect uninvited parties to show up. Billy asks whether it wouldn't make more sense to just kill the General and collect the bounty themselves. The Commander strikes this down immediately, saying that the Wildcats do not turn on their employers. The Commander picks Primetime to fly as his wingman, hoping to show him the ferocity of the forces arrayed against Mendez. The two encounter several wings of MiG-29s — strangely enough, flown by guerillas — on their way to the targets. Furthermore, neither of the bases they attack is equipped with a runway at all, despite what Mendez's orders had suggested. The Wildcats level whatever they do find at both bases. They then have to contend with several Peruvian Mirage IIIs coming to intercept them on the homeward stretch.
Lyle is as confused about the entire affair as The Commander is, asking him whether it's possible that someone else is assisting the rebels. The Commander agrees that this is the only way to explain MiGs flown by guerilla forces. Whatever the case may be, there's only one more mission to execute: An attack on the guerillas' main airbase - assuming there is one. The Commander takes Tex and flies out north. This time, Peruvian Mirage IIIs jump them on the way to the target while they are still heavily laden with bombs. As the Wildcats struggle to fend off the attack, they suddenly receive a message from Lyle: The Wildcat strike base is under attack by a massive enemy force. The two Wildcats dump their bombs and hasten to shoot down the Mirages while listening intently to the reports coming over the radio. Lyle alerts all Wildcats to reroute to an alternate landing site, as the strike base has been completely destroyed - no landing possible. Without their bomb load, The Commander and Tex make short work of the Mirages. They scream towards the Wildcat base at full speed, only to encounter Andes Mallorcan MiG-29s blocking their path.
It is now clear that Mendez's mission was a ruse, meant to open the Wildcats up for a strike. The Wildcats return to the emergency strip, and from there the remaining forces quickly pack up and evacuate Andes Mallorca back to Istanbul.
The Wildcats are incensed - they've been betrayed by Mendez, they've lost their strike base with most of their equipment and armaments, and most of the fighters that made it out of Andes Mallorca are severely damaged. To make matters worse, the Wildcats' bank account is frozen by the I.R.S. pending investigation. Struggling to come up with some sort of solution to this problem, Tex suggests going after the bounty on Mendez's head - worth a massive 40 million dollars. Virgil scrounges up some insurance money to get transports that could take them back to South America, and Miguel arranges whatever fuel and munitions they have left for the mission.
That night, one of the Wildcat pilots gets drunk at Selim's, and spills the beans to a stranger. That stranger quickly makes a collect call to Andes Mallorca, revealing the Wildcats' plans. Mendez hires three whole mercenary squadrons to defend himself against the Wildcat attack. Fortunately, the Wildcats learn of this before they leave Istanbul. There is no way they could take out three whole fighter squadrons without wasting more money than they'd earn for killing Mendez. The Commander promises he'll think of something.
The Commander goes to Selim's in a desperate attempt to find someone who might help. As fortune has it, he meets Janet. She says that she's heard about the recent events, and then suggests an idea: Stealing the F-22 confiscated by the I.R.S. from the Barracudas' base several months earlier. She says it is still stored at an I.R.S. repo facility just outside Istanbul. The Commander asks Janet if Prideaux won't be mad at her for revealing this information to the Wildcats. She says he won't - because she's left the Jackals. She asks whether The Commander still believes she is self-interested, and he is somewhat incredulous. She tells him to think it over, and says she'll swing by the Wildcat base later that night.
The Commander can't find any fixers at Selim's, but he does meet Jean Paul Prideaux sulking in his private niche. He rubs in Janet's departure from the Jackals in Prideaux's face, but Prideaux retorts that Janet's always been disobedient. The Commander mocks Prideaux for his inability to accept losing anything, but facetiously reassures him that he'll survive the loss.
Janet makes good on her word, appearing at the Wildcat base that night. She tells The Commander that her contact within the I.R.S. has revealed to her the scheduled rotation of their radar-guided missiles. If The Commander and Janet approach the base at the right time, coming from a direction with few air-defenses protecting it, The Commander should be able to land his F-16 at the base and steal the F-22 while Janet covers from above. Once again, The Commander is unsure whether to trust Janet, given that he'll be risking an F-16 on this mission by landing it at an enemy base. Nevertheless, it seems he is either desperate enough, or trusts Janet enough, to go along with her plan.
The Commander takes off in his F-16 alongside Janet's Jackal MiG-29 and flies along the coast of Istanbul towards the I.R.S. base. There, they shoot down two F-15s patrolling overhead. The Commander braves the thick anti-aircraft fire surrounding the base, landing his plane on the airstrip. From his cockpit he shoots two guards coming to stop him, then rushes to the hangar and blows the lock away. Inside is the coveted F-22. As armed I.R.S. guards give pursuit, The Commander takes off with his new prize.
The Commander and Janet turn away from the I.R.S. base. Suddenly, two bogies appear on the radar screen. The Commander prepares for a fight, but Janet orders him to stand down, revealing that she had lied earlier. She says she did leave the Jackals - but did it to strike out on her own. She wants to use the F-22 to kill Mendez herself and acquire the 40 million dollar bounty. She confesses that she does love The Commander, and doesn't want to hurt him, but business is business. She implores him to land the plane at her airbase, making it easier for everybody. He replies that breaking up is hard to do, and prepares for combat. He zooms away from the pursuers, then turns around and attacks. The F-22 displays its remarkable agility, easily outperforming the MiG-29s and even Janet's skillful flying. As her plane goes down, she only remarks that she never wanted it to end this way - implying that she means their romantic relationship.
Travis is monitoring communications at the Wildcat base when the radio suddenly comes on. It's The Commander, signaling that he's coming in with a present. The F-22 lands at the base, and the amazed Travis gives The Commander a solid salute. The Wildcats now have the means to go after Mendez and save their company.
Virgil is unsure about The Commander's plan to attack Mendez. He thinks the F-22 would be worth a lot of money if they could sell it. The Commander explains to him that if they don't make it perfectly clear that no one backstabs the Wildcats, they'll never get any work ever again. He also reminds Virgil that the bounty on Mendez's head is the biggest mercenary payoff ever offered since the "Gator Raid" of 2002. Virgil concedes, asking The Commander to bring back the F-22 (and, by implication, himself) home safely.
The Wildcats pack up and head to Andes Mallorca one last time. At their briefing, The Commander instructs the other Wildcats to take off and head for the western border of Andes Mallorca, where they will engage two of the General's mercenary squadrons and keep them busy. Meanwhile, The Commander would fly the F-22 alone to the capital and attack the General's palace. According to intelligence acquired by the Wildcats, the General's planned response to any attack would be to take off in his private jet and circle above the country until things calm down. The Commander hopes to locate his jet and repay the General's betrayal by splattering him all over the jungle.
The Commander's plan succeeds, pulling most of Mendez's escorts away. Nevertheless, he has to contend with several wings of highly-skilled mercenary Su-27 pilots as he scours the skies for Mendez's private jet. Finally, he discovers Mendez fleeing the area. As the escorts engage The Commander's F-22, the overconfident Mendez expresses his astonishment that The Commander still hasn't learned his lesson from all his previous dealings with the General. He reveals that Stern never picked up the payment from his palace, and was returning empty-handed when he was shot down. In fact, it was the General's own fighters, disguised as Peruvian jets, who shot down Stern. He claims that the expense paid to the mercenaries flying those planes was the best investment he had ever made. However as soon as The Commander shoots down his escorts and comes after his private jet, Mendez changes his tune, suddenly begging for his life and promising to pay The Commander not to kill him. As promised, Mendez is splattered all over the jungle.
The fight, however, is not over. On his way back to base, The Commander encounters something new: A YF-23 stealth fighter jet, flown by no other than Prideaux. Prideaux tells The Commander over the radio that he's been loaned this YF-23 by the I.R.S. specifically for the task of shooting The Commander down. He says the I.R.S. don't even care so much about the F-22 being destroyed, so long as they get the man who killed their Director and stole their property. He bids The Commander farewell as he starts his attack. The Commander, having run out of missiles while gunning for Mendez, engages in a protracted maneuvering battle against the superior YF-23, but his skill prevails and he shoots Prideaux's plane out of the sky.
At sundown, The Commander finally lands at the Wildcat strike base to a cheering audience of pilots. Virgil complains that he's going to have to shill out for a medal, but then concedes that with the payoff they'll receive from killing Mendez they can all afford a year-long vacation. Lyle's proud of The Commander, and Travis says he's just really jealous. Gwen is at a loss for words, so she settles for a wink. The Wildcats break out the champagne and start the night's celebrations, as a hawk flies over their airfield.
Tactical Operations
The Wildcats have been resting on their laurels for six months, enjoying their payout from the Mendez assassination. The Commander returns to the Wildcat home-base from a meeting in Istanbul, and meets Billy in the main hangar. Billy expresses his desire to fly combat missions again, and The Commander promises that he's about to.
The Commander heads into Virgil's office, where Virgil reveals that the Turkish government has decided to raise its umbrella tax, which mercenary groups based in Turkey pay to receive the Turkish government's protection against reprisals. He says that companies have begun fleeing Turkey to avoid the new tax. The Commander suggests that this might be a good turn of events, as it means more work for those companies that decide to stay. Virgil says that those companies are already gobbling up all available work before the tax goes into effect, and suggests that the Wildcats do the same.
The Commander then explains that he has just returned from a meeting with the heads of several other mercenary companies. They've received troubling news that Turkey has set up military training bases in several neighbouring countries, hoping to train a mercenary force that would be capable of enforcing the higher umbrella tax on the other mercenary groups. In an effort to delay this, the mercenary companies plan to attack and destroy the training bases. Each company will be responsible for one neighbouring country; the Wildcats will be going to Syria. Virgil is shocked to hear that there will be no payout for this mission.
The Commander instructs Billy to round up the other pilots, as the Wildcats will be heading out immediately. He tells Billy to keep a lid on the trip to Syria. Meanwhile, Miguel approaches The Commander with a serious issue: He's having trouble finding replacement parts for the F-22, and the parts he does find are extremely expensive. He recommends that selling the F-22 to the highest bidder would save money in the long run. The Commander reluctantly agrees to consider the idea.
The Wildcats set up a strike base in Halab, Syria. Tex wonders what would drive a mercenary group to help enforce a tax on mercenaries. The Commander explains that Turkey will likely give a tax exemption to the groups it would use as enforcers. Tex asks if there's no way to explain the situation to the Turkish mercs and dissuade them from working for the Turks. The Commander replies that doing so would alert the mercenaries to the Wildcats' plans, losing the element of surprise. He's adamant that those who would fight to raise taxes only on others deserve what's coming to them.
The Commander explains the situation to the other pilots. On their first outing, the Wildcats will try to shoot down as many training planes they can find, while also attempting to locate the training base and reconnoiter its defenses. Though they expect minor resistance - mostly from rookies - the flight instructors might give them some trouble. The Commander and Zorro take off for this patrol/scouting mission, with The Commander now piloting the F-22 interceptor. Together they tackle and shoot down almost a dozen enemy Mirage IIIs before locating the enemy base a good distance to the south.
With the enemy base located, the second phase of the attack can take place: destroying the runways and hangars to knock it out of commission. Unfortunately, the enemy is already anticipating an attack, so the Wildcats are instructed to attack any vehicle they find fleeing the area. The Commander takes Phoenix as his wingman, and the two fly out to the enemy base coordinates and proceed to level it. No sooner do they bomb the runway when a message arrives from home base indicating that two enemy cargo planes have been spotted on their way out of the area. The two F-16s turn to pursue, intercepting both planes and thus destroying all remaining enemy equipment.
Virgil congratulates The Commander on a job well done, admitting for once that this was a no-pay mission worth flying. With no mercenaries to enforce their new tax, the Turkish government will have to delay the introduction of the tax by at least a few months. However, as Virgil points out, this has only bought the Wildcats some time; Unless the Turkish government changes its mind, the tax will eventually come into effect and the Wildcats may have to relocate from Istanbul altogether. In the meanwhile, he urges The Commander to go seek some work to offset the losses incurred on the Syria mission.
The Commander heads to Selim's to look for contracts. To his great surprise, at the back of the bar he meets Jean-Paul Prideaux, who has apparently survived their previous encounter. The Commander pokes fun at Prideaux for besting him in combat, and asks whether he is still a lackey for the I.R.S. He then asks Prideaux why the Jackals did not participate in the joint mercenary attack on the Turkish bases, to which Prideaux replies that the Jackals never work for free. The Commander tries to convince Prideaux that fighting the tax is in the interest of all mercenary squadrons in Istanbul. When Prideaux refuses to listen, The Commander voices his suspicions that Prideaux has his own angle on the umbrella tax situation.
Looking for fixers, The Commander finds a familiar face: Muhammed. The fixer is glad to see The Commander, saying that he had assumed the Wildcats had retired altogether. He offers The Commander a job working for South Africa in their territorial dispute with Zimbabwe - a few bombing runs for a modest 6 million dollars. Muhammed adds that the missions should be fairly easy given the poor condition of the Zimbabwe airforce. The Commander gratefully accepts.
The Wildcats pack up and fly south across Africa to Zoemekaar, on the South Africa-Zimbabwe border, where they begin setting up a strike base. With the attacks scheduled for the next morning, Miguel begins work on getting the planes ready to fly. However before the day is out, The Commander calls an emergency briefing. He informs the other pilots that the South African government has reported that one of their armored columns is under attack by enemy planes. They've offered an additional $1 million if the Wildcats intercept and prevent this attack. Unfortunately, the only plane that's ready to fly is the F-22, so The Commander has to fly this mission completely on his own.
On the way to the target, The Commander is jumped by several wings of MiG-29s, all bearing Jackal markings. He shoots them down and hurries to defend the tanks, which are being attacked by Zimbabwean A-10s. He just barely manages to shoot the bombers down before they can hurt the convoy, while simultaneously struggling to keep the Jackals off his six. Fortunately, the F-22's powerful engines make it a much more formidable opponent than the Jackals were expecting, and The Commander wins the engagement and returns home safely.
The appearance of Jackals in the service of Zimbabwe is highly disturbing. The Commander decides to seek out their base and bomb it immediately, driving the Jackals out of the area - even though the South African government will not pay for this extra attack. As luck would have it, the Wildcats manage to find an informant from Zimbabwe who claims to know where the Jackal base is located. Lyle is sent to meet with the informant, after which The Commander will meet him in the air and the two will proceed to the given coordinates to hit the base.
The Commander's F-16 is loaded for bear with bombs and air-to-ground missiles. He flies east and makes his rendezvous with Baseline, who relays the coordinates he received from the informant. The two planes then head north to the location of the Jackal base. However when they arrive, they are suddenly jumped by two Jackal MiG-29s. The heavily-loaded F-16s struggle to dogfight with the ace Jackal pilots and The Commander manages to shoot them both down; However two additional MiG-29s appear suddenly out of nowhere, and a missile is launched at Baseline's plane which explodes in a massive fireball. Overcoming his shock, The Commander takes out the remaining enemies and looks around for the Jackal base to complete the mission, but can't find it anywhere. Angry and shaken, he returns to base.
The Wildcats are all shaken by Lyle's sudden death, but there is no time to hold a funeral. The South African government has had enough of the Jackals' presence in the area, and has managed to discover the true location of their airbase. This time, they offer the Wildcats a large bonus to eradicate the base completely - an offer the Wildcats accept very willingly. Once again The Commander's plane is loaded to the brim with heavy munitions, and he takes off escorted by Primetime. Several Zimbabwean MiG-21s take off to intercept them on the way to the target. The Wildcat pair also catch and shoot down two Jackal MiG-29s just as they're taking off from their base. The base is quickly leveled and the Wildcats make their way home, but partway there they encounter a hidden Jackal SAM site that nearly takes them out. Nevertheless, they make it to base without serious trouble.
With the Jackals evacuating the remainder of their equipment, the South African government gives the go-ahead for the final strike against the Zimbabwe airforce itself, just across the disputed border. The Commander and Tex attack the airbase together, and this time the Zimbabwe airforce is markedly less prepared to meet them head on - eventually throwing rookie pilots at them in desperation. The Wildcats level the base to the ground.
The Wildcats return to Istanbul with their pay for the mission. Virgil gets to work immediately, sorting out Lyle's bereavement paperwork and arranging his funeral service. Meanwhile, he asks The Commander whether he's found anyone to replace Lyle on the roster. The Commander replies that pilots are in short order, as the impending tax increase has been driving mercenaries away from Istanbul. He says he's found two promising pilots, but is especially impressed by the ex-Israeli Air Force pilot called Ari "Teflon" Ben-Gazi, who left a successful military career after it had reached a dead end. As an aside, Virgil warns The Commander to make sure not to let another "Janet Page" join the group. This triggers The Commander; He angrily says there are no other pilots like Janet Page, obviously hinting at his personal feelings of loss. The two have a loud argument, during which The Commander warns Virgil that the umbrella tax has caused a surplus of available accountants. When Virgil is visibly shocked by that remark, The Commander apologizes for his insult, and admits that Virgil is an essential part of the team.
Ari arrives later that same day - exactly on schedule. He turns out to be a no-nonsense, all-business type of man, calling The Commander "Sir" multiple times during the conversation, and quietly pointing out that he does not like to "mingle". The Commander doesn't have time for a lengthy conversation, so he sends Ari to Virgil's office to handle the paperwork. He also tells Ari that since he's no longer in the military, addressing The Commander as "Sir" is strictly optional.
The Commander heads out to Selim's to look for work, and fortunately finds the bar full of fixers. First, however, he pays a visit to Prideaux's private niche in the back, where Prideaux seems particularly displeased with seeing him after the affair in South Africa. The Commander rubs Prideaux's nose in his squadron's retreat, but Prideaux twists the knife by mentioning that the Jackals have collected Lyle's remains, including the black box containing his "touching" final words. The Commander demands they be handed over immediately. Prideaux gives an off-handed insult about Lyle's mediocre flying abilities; This angers The Commander, who retorts that —unlike the Jackal— at least Lyle had morals, and knew that being a mercenary was more than just the paycheck. Prideaux agrees, saying that the size of the check matters too. When he tries to dismiss The Commander and his "intrusive altruism", The Commander reminds Prideaux that said altruism had saved his life once. He leaves the Jackal seething in his niche.
The Commander spots Muhammed among the fixers, and approaches to thank him for the South Africa job. Muhammed says he has another mission that would perfectly suit the Wildcats' altruistic preferences: Assisting the recently-seceded country of Hawaii in repelling a United States carrier group coming to assault the island. The Commander balks at the idea of attacking a U.S. carrier group, if for no other reason than this would put the Wildcats into a collision course with the Internal Revenue Service once again. Muhammed says that this would not be a problem: Hawaii is willing to offer legal defense in case the I.R.S. tries any legal shenanigans; and the payment offered for the contract is an impressive 8 million dollars. Wishing to thank Muhammed for keeping the Wildcats in mind, The Commander accepts the contract.
After a long journey, a strike base is set up at Hanamaulu, in western Hawaii. The United States forces have apparently already landed nearby on Kaua'i island, and have set up a forward airbase to assist an invasion of the other islands. Billy wonders why the Wildcats aren't planning to take out the air patrols first, as they usually do. The Commander explains that he's counting on the element of surprise to catch the base unawares, before additional patrols can be sent from the carrier to defend it. The Commander takes off with Phoenix on his wing. Soon enough, his gamble turns out to have been somewhat risky, as the bomb-laden F-16s run into a large patrol of U.S.N. F-18s and a difficult dogfight ensues. Two pairs of agile F-16s also await them at the destination. On the bright side, it appears that the Americans had not yet had enough time to set up anti-air defenses, leaving the base open for a quick bombing run and hasty escape.
The attack on the carrier itself, off the coast of Kaua'i, offers no element of surprise, so the Wildcats return to their tried-and-true tactics. The Commander sets up a rotating schedule of sorties so that each pair of Wildcats will follow the other, hitting the carrier's defense squadrons and depleting them over the course of an entire day. The Commander leads the first pair with the F-22 and Primetime as his wingman. The opposition is tough, but the two Wildcats manage to knock out no fewer than four pairs of enemy F-18s on that first run.
The Americans have apparently realized the severity of the threat, because they send an entire squadron of F-18s to attack the Wildcat strike base itself. Two F-16s are hastily prepared to scramble. The Commander and Primetime take off to defend the perimeter as the other planes are fueled and armed. The F-18s nearly break through several times, and nearly shoot the two defending Wildcats out of the sky, but ultimately they are all defeated before they can punch holes in the runway or cause any other serious damage.
With so many enemy F-18s shot down, The Commander reasons that the carrier's defensive screen must be close to depletion. Now is the time to strike. The Commander's and Zorro's F-16s are fitted with a pair of heavy laser-guided bombs each, as they take off for the final mission. The Americans throw all of their remaining F-18s at the two incoming jets, but even with the heavy bomb load the Wildcats punch through the screen, past a veritable fence of anti-aircraft and missile fire, dropping their bombs on the carrier itself. With the carrier slowly being swallowed by the waves, the Wildcats return home to collect their paycheck.
The Commander finds Selim's oddly empty. The only person sitting in the fixer section of the bar is a scrawny, mustachioed American man with drunken, blood-shot eyes, nursing a bottle of beer. With no other choice, The Commander introduces himself to the man, who calls himself Maxwell. He at first tries to ingratiate himself to The Commander with platitudes, but The Commander demands he cut to the chase. Maxwell proceeds to tell a very interesting tale. He says that a corrupt Nicaraguan resource minister named Enrico Romero has hired a mercenary group - the Golden Eagles - to drive some Indians out of their territory, as a recent earthquake had unearthed a large deposit of gold there. The Bureau of Indian Affairs in the country wishes to counter this move by hiring their own mercenaries. Maxwell says the mission offers a massive payout of 12 million, but the Wildcats would only be paid if they can keep the Natives on their land. Seeing as there are no other contracts on offer, and that Maxwell's story does perfectly align with the Wildcats' creed, The Commander accepts the offer.
Virgil does not see things so favorably. He doubts that the Bureau of Indian Affairs could pay such a huge sum, and says that Romero had paid a significantly higher amount to the Eagles to attack the Indians - insinuating that the Wildcats should've taken the other side in this conflict. Furthermore, he makes the mistake of predicting that the Eagles would win against the Wildcats in this fight, angering The Commander, who retorts that he should always bet on the Wildcats.
The Wildcats land in Prinzapolca, Nicaragua a few days later. At the strike base, Miguel expresses his trepidation about being in Nicaragua. Apparently, he and Gwen had fought there in Nicaragua's war in 2005, and both were thrown into a hellish POW camp not far from the Wildcats' current strike base, where they were held for a year and a half. The Commander implores Miguel to forget the past, because he needs his clear head in the present.
At the briefing early the next morning, The Commander describes the nature of their assignment to the other pilots. Their first mission will be to intercept a mercenary strike aimed at one of the Indian settlements. The Commander and Teflon head out to the settlement, where they encounter a much larger enemy strike force than anticipated. Enemy F-18s attempt to engage and draw away the Wildcats, while F-4s fly low towards the settlement. The Commander orders Teflon to engage the F-18s to keep them busy, while he himself guns for the F-4s, just barely managing to shoot down two groups of them before they can drop bombs on the settlement.
Back at the base, Gwen says she's sick of Nicaragua, and that the country will never change. The Commander retorts by saying that the whole world will never change so long as people like Romero are allowed to do what they do. When Gwen points out that the rest of the Nicaraguan government seems to turn a blind eye to what their own minister is doing, The Commander says that it's all about greed - but that the Bureau of Indian Affairs is showing the people of Nicaragua the right path by defending the Indians against that bully. Coupled with the success in the last mission, this seems to convince Gwen that there's still hope to be found.
While the Wildcats have indeed been successful in preventing the Indians from being attacked, the Bureau of Indian Affairs believes that Romero will next try to hurt the organization itself by attacking its headquarters in downtown Prinzapolca. The Commander and Teflon head out for another interception mission, this time fully prepared for the enemy's tactics. Fortunately, it also seems as though the Eagles are running out of planes, as this attack is significantly weaker than the last. It is easily thwarted by the two Wildcats.
The next day before noon, The Commander gathers everyone for a flash briefing. Intelligence reports that minister Romero will be in his office in downtown Prinzapolca throughout the entire afternoon, giving the Wildcats a perfect opportunity to take him out unawares. The only problem is that the building sits in a dense area of the city, right between two skyscrapers. The planes are loaded with precision-guided bombs, and The Commander and Phoenix head out towards the city. Opposition over the target is quite fierce, with a throng of F-18s coming to greet the Wildcats. This time, the roles are reversed: The Commander tangles with the F-18s, keeping them off Phoenix's back as she makes her precision bombing run and levels the building. The two then drive off the F-18s and hurry back to base to celebrate.
Unfortunately, as soon as the Wildcats land, they are contacted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to notify them that minister Romero wasn't in the building when it was leveled. He had gotten early warning of the attack, and fled the city aboard his private yacht, escorted by a pair of gunboats. Apparently, the Columbian government has offered him asylum on Isla de San Andres, off the Columbian Atlantic coast. The Commander doesn't want to anger the Nicaraguan government, so he instructs the other Wildcats to minimize collateral damage to any other shipping in the area if at all possible. Miguel bursts out angrily, accusing the Nicaraguan government of corruption and greed, insinuating that their assets should be freely attacked. The Commander shuts him down, and selects Tex to accompany him on the mission despite Zorro being the better choice.
Getting to the target proves to be rather easy, with only minimal air cover. The trouble begins when The Commander dives at the yacht, and receives a massive volume of anti-aircraft fire from the gunboats. He fires a swarm of hydra rockets at the yacht, setting it ablaze. As the F-16 climbs up and begins to pull away, however, more and more government F-18s and F-4s begin showing up to shoot down the Wildcats. They hound the F-16s pretty much all the way back to base, but eventually are either shot down or forced to retreat.
With Romero finally liquidated, the Wildcats pack up their strike base and head back to Istanbul. The next day, Billy tells The Commander that news from Nicaragua indicates that the government has finally turned around and is prosecuting some of its members for corruption. The Commander laments the fact that these are probably just scapegoats, and that the members of the government who are conducting these trials are just as corrupt as those standing trial. He predicts that the Wildcats haven't heard the last of Nicaragua yet.
Selim's bar is less busy than usual. The Commander spots Beto munching on his muffins. He is glad to see The Commander, and wastes no time offering him somewhat of a familiar contract: The New Siberians are having trouble with their occupation of Alaska — the same occupation the Wildcats helped bring about, earlier that year. It seems that Alaskan bombers have been repeatedly attacking the new New Siberian bases in the country, and they need the Wildcats' help in defeating the bomber threat. This all sounds too familiar to The Commander, who remembers how upset the Internal Revenue Service were last time the Wildcats operated in that area. Beto presses The Commander not to be so scared of the I.R.S., and offers lucrative compensation for the risk: 8 million dollars, with an option for bonuses for exceptional performance.
The Wildcat strike base is set up in Lavrentiya, on the Siberian side of the Bering Straits. The Wildcats are barely ready to begin operations when the New Siberians contact them with an emergency situation: A New Siberian Su-27 has lost its wingman and is in danger of being attacked as it tries to return home. The Commander takes his F-22 with Teflon as a wingman to clear the way for the Su-27. As the two Wildcats catch up to the New Siberian, they find him under attack by Alaskan F-4s, and a dogfight ensues. However during a high-speed maneuver The Commander's radar-warning light comes on as a missile is fired at him from an unexpected direction. He evades the missile and realizes that it was fired from an F-117 that is completely invisible to his radar. A second such aircraft appears, trying to shoot down the Su-27. The Wildcat pilots eventually manage to turn the tables and destroy the stealth aircraft, escorting the Su-27 home safely.
Back at base, Miguel expresses astonishment that the Alaskans have managed to acquire even a single F-117. Before speculations can be explored further, Tex runs in with bad news: The Alaskans have already located the Wildcat strike base, and are sending in a large wave of bombers to erase it. With the F-22 still being repaired from the last mission, The Commander must take off in an F-16, with Zorro as his wingman. The other Wildcats are instructed to load up the C-130 in case they need to evacuate. Enemy aircraft are picked up coming from the north, so the two Wildcats head that way to intercept them. They tangle with a few F-4s, but it is clearly not the main force of the attack. Suddenly, a message comes in from base: Two F-117s have slipped through the radar cover from a different direction, and are beginning their bombing run. The Wildcats must rush back and defeat them - as well as three well-trained F-18 escorts - before they knock out the runway.
The time has come to finally take out the Alaskan air base that's been sending these bombers. For this mission, the New Siberians send Su-27 interceptors to escort the Wildcat strikers on their way to attack the base. While The Commander flies in with a full bomb load, his wingman tangles with multiple Alaskan F-16s, making short work of them. Once the dogfight is finished, they look for the enemy base and find it hidden between the peaks of a tall, snowy mountain. Dodging between the anti-aircraft guns, The Commander puts some craters into the runway and drops the rest of the bombs into the hangars. After bombing the base, The Commander bids the Su-27 farewell as it breaks off and returns home.
The Wildcats pack up to leave Siberia. Ari says is convinced that the Alaskans will not be able to maintain their presence in the area after having suffered this many losses. Just then, Tex reports that the New Siberians have contacted him with an offer. They've detected Alaskan C-130 "Hercs" leaving the area, and want them shot down. They offer a sizable bonus. With most of the F-16s already packed up for transport, The Commander decides to take the F-22 alone on this mission. Phoenix warns him that it would be foolish to go alone without an F-16 wingman, but The Commander argues that the Alaskans will be long gone by the time one could be made ready. He takes off alone. As luck would have it, the only aircraft left to the Alaskans at this point are aging F-4s, but they swarm around The Commander and nearly shoot him down. In the end, he manages to reach the C-130s and shoot them down, then goes full throttle to vacate the area.
At Selim's, Farhad approaches The Commander with an interesting bit of news: The Turks haven't given up on their of training some sort of enforcement arm for their Umbrella Tax, and have re-established a terrorist training base in Syria. Since Farhad's line of work is under threat by the same tax increase that's threatening the mercenaries, he has organized for the Golden Eagles, who had fought against the Wildcats in Nicaragua, to attack the training camps. He offers the Wildcats a chance to join in the attack, to everyone's mutual benefit. As there will be no pay for the mission, he asks The Commander to do him a favor and inform Virgil himself, since Farhad doesn't like to be yelled at. Sure enough, The Commander receives his own measure of yelling when he explains the situation to Virgil, though he eventually comes around.
A strike base is set up near Halab once again. Billy expresses the same worries as virgil did about taking non-paying missions. He says it might be a better idea to just leave Istanbul instead of wasting so much time and effort trying to delay the new umbrella tax. The Commander assures him that he's got a plan, but doesn't explain further. Maenwhile, Tex is amazed that the Turks haven't learned their lesson yet.
First, The Commander takes the F-22 and Primetime to clear the airspace around the training camp. The terrorists turns out to be armed with Tornadoes, which -while old- are fast enough to keep up with the F-22, and armed with multiple air-to-air missiles to boot. It takes great teamwork from the Wildcats to trap the fast planes and shoot them down.
Back at the base, Miguel raises an important question: Why are the Turks spending so much money on creating a law that would make their country so inhospitable to business? The Commander has no answer to this, but expresses hope that the Golden Eagles and their commander, Reinhardt, are having as much success as the Wildcats.
The second mission is the attack on the facility itself. The Commander flies this one with Phoenix on his wing. They're jumped by multiple waves of Tornadoes at the target, while trying to weave through the anti-aircraft fire from the base itself. They bomb buildings and armored vehicles until nothing remains, then vacate the area victoriously.
Back in Istanbul, The Commander speaks with Miguel again about the F-22. Miguel says that if all F-22s in existence were to be stripped for parts immediately, and the Wildcats would buy all those parts, they could keep the F-22 flying for around a dozen more missions. The Commander finally relents and tells Miguel to get the F-22 ready for sale.
At Selim's, there seems to be an ever-decreasing number of fixers hanging around. The Commander approaches Muhammed for another job. Muhammed says he has the perfect job for the Wildcats: Fighting for the underdog. In this case, Nicaragua has been wrongfully accused of holding Costa Rican POWs ever since the war between these two countries in 2005. The Costa Ricans, hoping to pressure the Nicaraguans to release the prisoners, have hired an American mercenary company known as the Rhinos to bombard Nicaragua from the air. Naturally, the Nicaraguans want someone to rid them of this threat, and are willing to pay $7 million for the service.
The Commander hurries home to tell Virgil about the job. Virgil says he's familiar with the Rhinos. He says they fly older planes, but load them with top-end munitions - saving themselves a lot of money on overhead. He tries convincing The Commander to consider this for the Wildcats, but The Commander immediately refuses, saying that the real price would be losing the lives of pilots. Virgil also says that the Rhinos use ground forces as part of their service to customers, but The Commander says that unfortunately there's no way the Wildcats could expand to ground operations in the near future. Virgil wishes him luck in Nicaragua.
After a long flight, the Wildcats arrive in Prinzapolca, Nicaragua and set up their strike base. The Commander explains the situation to the other pilots, saying that the Wildcats' first mission will be to drive the Rhinos' aircraft out of Nicaraguan airspace. Billy remarks that this should be an easy task, seeing as the Rhinos only fly old F-4s. The Commander warns him that their veterans do fly F-16s, and that all of their planes are armed with the best air-to-air missiles. As The Commander and Zorro fly their patrol over the border, the assessment is proven correct: The first pair of F-4s they encounter immediately launch a swarm of radar-seeking missiles at them from long range, followed up with short-range infra-red missiles as they close in to engage. The Wildcats manage to evade the missiles and shoot down the enemy planes, but more keep showing up. As they clear the sky and prepare to return to base, they are jumped by Rhino F-16s which prove to be very difficult opponents, but the Wildcats win out.
At base, Ari compliments The Commander on winning such a tough battle, despite the technological inferiority of the enemy planes. He says that the Rhinos can't hope to stay in the area with such heavy losses. The Nicaraguans feel the same way, and order the Wildcats to go straight for an attack on the enemy airbase. This proves to be a much more difficult prospect than anticipated, as the Rhinos apparently have dozens more planes left to defend their base. The Commander and Zorro must punch through a dozen enemy planes just to get to the airfield. Nevertheless, they get the job done and return with only minor damage.
The Rhinos, however, are not deterred. Instead of cutting their losses and running out of Costa Rica, they relocate their entire base to a coastal facility where they begin to receive shipments of ground vehicles - apparently preparing for a major ground assault across the border. With the Nicaraguan government unsure what the Costa Ricans could have mistaken for a POW camp, they insist that the Wildcats hit the Rhinos again, this time destroying their entire convoy of armored vehicles. The Commander and Zorro once again take to the air, flying along the coast until they reach the enemy's new airbase. They manage to catch two F-4s just as they're trying to take off, and shoot them both down without the fight. However the convoy has already left the base, so the two Wildcats scout the area until they find the convoy making its way through the mountains into Nicaragua. They carpet-bomb the convoy with cluster munitions, wiping it out completely. With the job completed, they head home.
The Commander returns to Selim's to find it empty again, apart from Maxwell who appears to still be drinking there alone. Maxwell laments how he chose the worst possible time to move his fixing business to Istanbul, but still has a job to offer the Wildcats. British Columbia is seeking to secede from Canada, and it doesn't look like it's going to be an amicable divorce. They're offering 7 million dollars for any mercenary company that will come to their aid. Since there seems to be no other work available in Istanbul, The Commander accepts the mission, and the Wildcat aerial convoy heads out west.
The convoy lands for a scheduled refuelling stop in Dublin, Ireland. While they're all waiting for the planes to be filled up, The Commander runs up to the other Wildcats and calls them to immediate attention. He explains that he was just contacted by the Irish government with terrifying news: A B-1B Lancer nuclear bomber has just been stolen from Stornoway in Scotland, while it was carrying nuclear-armed Tomahawk cruise missiles scheduled for transport to the United States. The Irish government has reason to believe that whoever stole the plane is planning to fire the Tomahawks at Dublin. The Wildcats are to scramble immediately - first and foremost to save themselves, but hopefully to intercept and destroy the bomber itself and/or any Tomahawks it manages to launch. If they can pull this off, the Irish government will be forever indebted to them. If they fail, they might as well never have taken off.
The F-16s are scrambled immediately, and fan out to search for the bomber. The Commander and Tex run into the B-1B over the Irish Sea, and to their horror it has already fired five Tomahawks towards Dublin. While Tex splits off to intercept the bomber itself, The Commander uses every ounce of his skill to shoot the small missiles out of the air one by one. With the final missile destroyed, the Wildcats can breathe easy. The Commander suggests they all go drink something.
With nuclear destruction averted, the Irish government pays the Wildcats a massive bonus. The British Columbia mission is canceled as the Wildcats return to Istanbul to put their money into good use in preparing for the winds of change.
