"Appleton, Victor - Tom Swift Jr 02 - And His Jetmarine" - читать интересную книгу автора (Appleton Victor)

"What's holding me up now is the speed control," Tom went on. "And also I
still haven't ? foolproof way of keeping the water intakes from fouling."
"One thing at a time, skipper," Bud pleaded, "Just how do you control the
speed?"
"It's regulated by a battery of cadmium rods. They control the rate of fission
when they're inserted or withdrawn from the atomic pile. The deeper the rods are
inserted into the pile, the less the heat energy. The more the rods are withdrawn,
the faster we generate power."
"I'll take a dozen." Bud laughed. "Say, this may be Sandy coming now." He
pointed skyward to a black speck growing larger. "That's one of your Pigeon
Specials, isn't it?"
"Yes. She's demonstrating it to a prospective buyer."
When they arrived at the field, the boys climbed to the observation tower,
where the dispatcher told them that Sandy was cleared to land.
"She certainly knows how to handle a ship," Bud
WING-TIP ESCAPE 11
said admiringly as they watched her swing deftly into the air traffic pattern.
"Indeed she does-" Tom started to say when his attention was drawn to a
small red plane that was flying in across the field at Sandy's altitude.
"Look!" Bud cried. "That plane's cutting her out!"
"It's Sidney Dansitt's plane," the flight dispatcher said.
He shouted into his mike for Dansitt to stay away, that Sandy's plane had
clearance to land first. But the pilot merely increased his speed, held his course,
and bore in on the Pigeon. Sandy seemed oblivious of the danger.
The three in the observation tower turned colder than the concrete floor and
their necks stiffened as they watched helplessly.
"Sandy, look out!" Tom cried.
The next instant, just as it appeared as if the planes might collide, Sandy
realized what was happening. She gave her ship full throttle, pulled back hard on
the stick, and the little craft shot up.
"Whew!" Bud said. "One more foot and-"
As Dansitt's plane lurched down the runway, Tom was white with anger. The
flier's carelessness had nearly cost his sister her life!
"That crazy pilot!" he cried. "I'll wrap his wings around his neck!"
With a bound Tom was out of the control tower. He leaped down the steps
and ran up the field toward Dansitt's plane which was taxiing in.
12 TOM SWIFT AND HIS JETMARINE
Suddenly a man raced toward the craft from the opposite direction. As it
stopped, the door opened and the stranger quickly climbed inside. Tom, running
at top speed, was only a dozen yards from the plane.
"What do you mean, coming in-" he cried out, but did not finish.
Without warning Dansitt's plane shot forward, heading straight at Tom!
CHAPTER 2
A BRAZEN DENIAL
AS DANSITT'S PLANE roared toward Tom, Bud Barclay and the dispatcher
stared horrified. There was no time for Tom to dodge completely out of the way!
But, as the two watched, he threw himself to the ground. The left wing tip
rushed above him, missing his head by inches.
Bud, already out of the tower, rushed to his friend's aid as Dansitt sped by
and took off. As the cloud of dust raised by the exhaust cleared, Bud saw to his