 Where was the space craft heading in the end?
By H. B. FYFE [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, September 1961. The glowing semi-disk of Jupiter was more than half a million miles distant. "A little percentage here and there on the cargoes never shows by the time figures get back to Earth. Maybe they live soft back on Earth since the mines and the Jovian satellite colonies grew; but they were out here in the beginning, most of them. It had been built for Ganymede, but not for Jeffers. Tolliver began to have his doubts the next day; which was "Tuesday" by the arbitrary calender constructed to match Ganymede's week-long journey around Jupiter. His contract guaranteed a pilot's rating, but someone had neglected to specify the type of craft to be piloted. On the bulletin board, Tolliver's name stood out beside the number of one of the airtight tractors used between the dome city and the spaceport, or for hauling cross-country to one of the mining domes. He soon found that there was nothing for him to do but hang around the garage in case a spaceship should land. Sometimes there's no reason but them for sending a ship back with a crew instead of in an economy orbit. Under a portable, double-chambered plastic dome blown up outside the ship's airlock, a crewman helped him load two trunks and a collection of bags into the tractor. They found they could send back loaded ships by 'automatic' flight—that is, a long, slow, economical orbit and automatic signalling equipment. Then they're boarded approaching Earth's orbit and landed by pilots who don't have to waste their time making the entire trip." He followed the signals of a spacesuited member of the port staff and maneuvered out of the dome. Then he headed the tractor across the frozen surface of Ganymede toward the permanent domes of the city. When the rock and ice are set to sliding, they come at you practically horizontally. He enlarged upon other dangers to be encountered on the satellite, taking care to impress the newcomer with the daredeviltry of John Tolliver, driver of "missions" across the menacing wastes between dome and port. "I'm retiring in six months if I'm still alive," he said bravely, edging the tractor into the airlock at their destination. "Daddy gave me the title of tenth vice-president mostly as a joke, when he told me to find out what was wrong with operations on Ganymede. He stared unbelievingly at Betty, and Tolliver thought he muttered something about "just landed."
 In orbit around Ganymede
 In orbit around Ganymede  To the Space Patrol ship  To Koslow Spaceways headquarters  A 6-month journey back to Earth