- "Pass through B7R. It's an awful place, but the fastest shortcut."
- ― AWACS Eagle Eye
Operation: Thunderbolt was the first part of a two-part engagement between the Allied Forces and the terrorist organization A World With No Boundaries.
Prelude
The Allied Forces had found out that A World With No Boundaries had taken control of the Avalon Dam at Mund Valley, where the experimental weapon of mass destruction, previously thought to be at Glatisant, was being held. The weapon was a MIRV missile that launches and separates into multiple warheads, destroying multiple targets at once. Each warhead had the power equivalent of over 20 of the nuclear bombs set off on June 6th.
Because the Avalon Dam was covered by water, the Allied Forces could not observe it until now when the facility inside the dam revealed itself. All Allied air troops were mobilized for the operation; wherever they were, they were immediately sent to Avalon. Galm Team, in particular, had to perform a primary operation before being able to take part in the attack on Avalon; their quickest path to Avalon was through airspace B7R, and everyone knew that there were always other pilots in "the Round Table."
Summary
Valais Air Force Base launched Cipher and PJ for what they thought would be their final sortie. The two made it to B7R fairly quickly and cut into it, but they were immediately engaged by an ace squadron of A World With No Boundaries.
Here, accounts vary: some say the 32nd Tactical Fighter Squadron "Wizard" engaged the Galm Team, while others say the 32nd Tactical Fighter Squadron "Sorcerer" were who showed up. Even others say that the 5th Tactical Fighter Squadron "Gault" had entered B7R. This was never made very clear, but one thing was for sure: Cipher, or more known as "the Demon Lord of the Round Table" at this point, had shot down all of the enemy pilots without much effort. According to records, all of these squadrons were downed by the Galm Team, so it is also believed that each of the squadrons engaged the Galm Team and were shot down.
Result
The success of Operation: Thunderbolt ensured the Galm Team's presence over Avalon Dam for the next part of the attack, Operation: Point Blank.