[1] The Palestinian-dominated Royal Jordanian Army's 17th Armoured Brigade has revolted with Syrian assistance, and has seized the southern part of Jordan, including the port city of Aqaba.

However, the major concern for the British Army is that a prototype main battle tank on trials in the Jordanian desert has gone missing.

After a terrorist attack in London fails, British military intelligence discovers that the tank is hidden in the ruins of an ancient Crusader fort near Wadi Rum.

SAS-trained Major Harry Maxim, who formerly trained the Jordanian Army, is the ideal candidate to send in a commando raid to destroy the tank before it can fall into rebel (and thus Soviet) hands.

The tank itself, and the culture of the soldiers who operate it, are the focus of this book, which has been compared to Tom Clancy's The Hunt for Red October in terms of the amount of detailed information conveyed to the reader.