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Radar operators swept the skies over the Sea of Okhotsk, but they were unable to locate their target. It seemed to have disappeared entirely, vanished without a trace. They found themselves wondering if the fighters sent in to intercept the target had already shot it down without a second thought. And if there was no longer any target, there was no longer any problem, so why keep talking about it?
There were various reasons why it might have disappeared. Perhaps one of the pilots had lost his temper and, completely fed up with this impudent intruder, had decided to teach it a lesson. Nor could one could rule out the prospect that the target itself had pulled some clever move and disappeared on its own, which sometimes happens with aircraft.
There was no shortage of possible explanati
