Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 834 100-meter Luxury Cruise Ship
In the past, there was a classic program on the internet called "Super Factory". Many large factories around the world were recorded in the video program, such as Coca-Cola, Mercedes-Benz car factories, potato chip production bases, and Boeing's super aircraft factory.

Among these, aircraft manufacturing is the most difficult because there are millions of parts in an aircraft. All of these parts need to arrive at the assembly plant on time, and quality control must be flawless. If any part in the process has a problem, it may affect the production of the entire aircraft. Of course, the same applies to the assembly process; no step in the process can be problematic.

Anyone who has worked in a manufacturing factory knows how difficult it is to achieve this, and the quality tolerance for subsequent aircraft is almost zero. Once an accident occurs, the consequences are unimaginable.

It can be said that in any era, airplanes are the absolute crown jewel of industry. Even Boeing collaborates with many global giants in research and development and production to ensure quality.

Before the Indian group took over Boeing, the quality of Boeing aircraft was absolutely the best in the world, especially the Boeing 737, 747, and the future 777, 787, etc.

Boeing's gates were also inspected very strictly, just like a military site, and the entire car was searched.

Thomson smiled and said, "Mr. Yang, please don't mind. Boeing factories are very strict about controlling external visitors, just like on airplanes. Flammable and explosive materials are not allowed to be brought in. Please understand."

"It's alright, I understand." Yang Wendong nodded;
The factories were worried about problems, and their paper-related businesses did not allow flammable materials to enter. If a fire broke out, the consequences would be unimaginable. Boeing naturally took this even more seriously.

Thomson added, "Mr. Yang, we can go inside the factory later and take a look. You can also see the assembly of the Boeing 747. There is also an aircraft undergoing final assembly."

“Okay, I’d love to accept that too.” Yang Wendong smiled.
He had seen the assembly of the Boeing 737 before, but the 747 was much bigger than the 737. It was a true aerial behemoth. Before the Airbus A380 appeared, the 747 was the strongest aerial ruler.

Soon, they arrived at the workshop entrance, but cars were not allowed in. Instead, a small car resembling a golf course vehicle was provided, which appeared to be electric.

Once inside, Yang Wendong discovered that the Boeing factory was enormous, and the employees used bicycles as their mode of transportation. This was because, often, it was simply too far to walk from one side of the workshop to the other; walking would likely wear out one's legs.

Thomson then introduced the aircraft next to Yang Wendong, and they eventually arrived at a Boeing 747 that was almost fully assembled.

"It's really big," Yang Wendong exclaimed. Standing in front of this plane felt completely different from standing in front of a 737.

Thomson chuckled, “The interior is much larger, Mr. Yang, would you like to go in and take a look?”

"Can we go in here?" Yang Wendong asked curiously, looking at the dozens of workers still working above.

Thomson shook his head and said, "Not here, but in our special simulators for all kinds of aircraft, which are as big as the interior space of an aircraft."

However, these are all shown to major airlines, so they are mostly seats, but you can still get a feel for the size of the space.

"Okay," Yang Wendong nodded in agreement.
Once you've seen how this aircraft is manufactured, that's enough. There's no point in looking at it again. Just take a look at the internal dimensions, or even just get a feel for it.
After a while, Yang Wendong and the others arrived at another small workshop outside the main workshop, where there were a large number of aircraft "fusels," only their external structures were different.
Thomson quickly led Yang Wendong to the interior of a Boeing 747 "fuselage," which was already filled with various seats, but Yang Wendong could still tell the size of the entire aircraft.

At that time, Boeing had not yet developed a business jet business. Although it would sell some aircraft to the super-rich or heads of state, it was only a small number. It wasn't until the 90s, when the wealth of Silicon Valley billionaires and global billionaires surged and Gulfstream made a fortune, that Boeing and Airbus began to specialize in this business.

The Boeing 747 has a second floor, and Yang Wendong walked up and down it, roughly planning the layout he wanted. However, he still needed professionals to provide a specific plan.

After a while, Thomson walked up with a smile: "Mr. Yang, what do you think?"

"It's alright." Yang Wendong naturally wouldn't overpraise what he wanted to buy: "If I want it, when can it be delivered?"

Thomson said, "It will be done soon, within two months, but it will be an empty plane; you will need to do the interior decoration yourself."

“I know that, I’ve bought a 737 before.” Yang Wendong was naturally familiar with these procedures, and then asked, “Why can it be delivered in two months?”

Thomson said, "As Mr. Yang knows, many airlines have been struggling recently, and some have defaulted on their orders. So, we can take one of the planes you need, and the delivery will be quick."

This matter has been reported by news media around the world. Although the details are incomplete, given Yang Wendong's status as a super-rich man, it would be easy to investigate, so there is no need to hide it.

"Well, what is the range of this 747?" Yang Wendong asked again.

Thomson replied: "That depends on the customer's needs. Some airlines want to operate short-haul flights, so they use normal fuel tanks with a high load capacity; otherwise, they want to add auxiliary fuel tanks with a lighter load capacity."
But no matter what, our aircraft was designed for long-range flight, with a minimum range of 6000 km.

Your private jet shouldn't need high payload capacity, but rather long range. Adding an extra fuel tank would allow it to fly at least 1.5 kilometers.

"1.5 kilometers? Can it fly to any halfway around the world?" Yang Wendong asked rhetorically.

Thomson said, "Most of them are possible, but not all. For example, if you want to go from Singapore to New York, or from Hong Kong to South America, it probably won't be enough. These are probably among the very few places in the world without direct flights." "Are there direct flights from Hong Kong to the United States and Europe?" Yang Wendong asked again.

Thomson nodded and said, "Sure, that's definitely not a problem. With a full tank of gas, we can get anywhere from Hong Kong, except for South America and southern Africa, where we might not be able to reach them in one go."

"Okay, that's good." Yang Wendong also felt it was sufficient.

For him, being able to fly directly from Hong Kong to Europe and the United States is enough. He might not go to South America even once every few years, let alone Africa. The virus doesn't discriminate against the super-rich.
Previously, his Boeing 737 needed to refuel in Japan to go to the United States and in Turkey to go to Europe, which wasted half a day each time. Over the years, the amount of wasted time was considerable.

Although a Boeing 747 isn't cheap, it's worth it if it saves enough time and provides more comfort.
Thomson smiled and said, "Customer satisfaction is our greatest honor."

"What is the price of an aircraft that has been modified and equipped with an auxiliary fuel tank?" Yang Wendong asked.

Thomson said, "The specifics still need to be discussed in detail, but the approximate price is between $4500 million and $5000 million."

"This is more expensive than your transaction price," Yang Wendong retorted.
For a top billionaire, it's not difficult to check the cost of purchasing aircraft for various airlines, especially since many of these airlines are publicly listed companies, so it's not exactly a top secret.
Thomson said, "That's right. Since you're buying one unit, the price naturally can't be compared to that of multiple units purchased by a typical airline."

“Then I can just buy some airplanes from airlines, dismantle and renovate them, right?” Yang Wendong said nonchalantly.

The oil crisis has also hit airlines very hard, and some airlines are selling their planes, including some very new ones.

“Then it won’t be new,” Thomas said. “And even if you buy it, you’ll need to send it back to Boeing for refurbishment, which will probably cost even more unless you buy an older, used aircraft, in which case you can save some money.”

"That's settled for today. I'll arrange for a team to contact you." Yang Wendong thought for a moment and didn't try to negotiate the price any further.

There are many details to negotiate regarding his private jet, which he won't personally spend time negotiating with Boeing. Instead, his assistant will handle these matters, compiling the negotiated details before reviewing them for him, thus saving him time.
As for the price, he knew he couldn't negotiate much lower. There was nothing he could do; Boeing was the only company in the world capable of manufacturing large commercial aircraft—it had a monopoly. Airbus in Europe, on the other hand, had only just released its 737 competitor, the A380, which was still nowhere to be seen.
Even major airlines are unlikely to be able to negotiate lower prices. It's only because of the current oil crisis that global demand for aircraft has decreased. Otherwise, Boeing might not refuse to accept this order, but it certainly wouldn't take it seriously, and it might take several years to receive the aircraft.
Thomson understood this and said, "Okay, no problem."

A single 747 costs forty to fifty million US dollars. It would be good enough if we could reach an agreement today; it's impossible to finalize the deal today.

At the end of the month, on the 28th, Yang Wendong returned to Hong Kong by private jet;
This gold investment was top secret. Few people in the United States knew about it, and Yang Wendong did not intend to tell anyone in Hong Kong, not even his family. He only said that he had made some money by speculating on gold, but his family did not ask for the specific amount, so he did not say it.

Money was no longer of great significance to the Yang family; what mattered more were their various industries and assets that could continuously generate wealth and create jobs—in other words, "means of production."
However, the purchase of a private jet naturally requires informing family members.

“A Boeing 747, oh, that’s huge inside,” Bai Yushan said with a smile.

Yang Wendong said, "There will be several rooms inside later, so everyone can rest when they take the plane."

The space inside a Boeing 747 is quite normal, with two or three rooms, totaling four or five hundred square meters. It's not just bedrooms; there are also conference rooms, bathrooms, home theaters, and more. It can be said to be a true aerial fortress.

"Wouldn't that be equivalent to a luxury yacht?" Su Yiyi asked.

Yang Wendong laughed and said, "Haha, you could say that. It's a small one. Also, we can consider changing our yacht. If I go to Europe after the New Year, I will also order a large yacht."
With current satellite technology, it's possible to support yachts navigating deep waters. This means we could potentially travel directly to Southeast Asia and even Australia by yacht in the future.

Early yachts were small and lacked advanced communication technology, so they could only travel along the coastline to other places.

But by the 80s, there were more satellites in the sky, making weather forecasting and positioning much more accurate. In addition, ships could be built larger, so safety was almost not a problem.
With my current wealth, my old 30-40 meter yacht is no longer enough. If I'm going to upgrade, I need to get one that's over 100 meters long so I can have more fun. I've made so much money, it's time to enjoy it.

Luxury homes, luxury cars, private jets, luxury yachts—these are basically the ultimate experiences one can have.
Of course, there are also deep-sea submarines, space travel, and so on, but these are a bit too exciting, and their safety cannot be guaranteed, so he won't touch them for the time being.
Bai Yujie asked curiously, "The American shipbuilding industry is also good, so why not order the ship from the United States?"

Yang Wendong said, "Relatively speaking, Europe's luxury cruise industry is more developed, even surpassing Japan's. This is due to its long-standing foundation; we should just buy based on brand recognition."

In the luxury goods sector, Europe is the true pioneer. From small handbags to medium-sized cars to large yachts, Europe has basically dominated everything. Only airplanes, a product of the 20th century, have been pioneered by the United States.
Decades later, China's industrial sector surpasses that of the rest of the world, but in the luxury goods sector, it still cannot compete with Europe.
Take watches, for example. A mechanical watch made by any random factory in mainland China is more accurate than those made by luxury brands in Europe and America, but the market only recognizes European brands. The same goes for leather bags. There's nothing we can do about it; that's just the reality, and it's hard to change.
"Oh." Bai Yujie nodded.

“Let’s go to Europe together after the New Year,” Yang Wendong added.

"Great!" The girls were all quite excited; going to Europe would certainly mean they could travel and have fun.
The Spring Festival of 1980 passed quickly, and Yang Wendong took his family to Europe, with Italy as their first stop.

In the 80s, Italy's industry was quite good, and its luxury goods industry was very developed, including shipbuilding.
This is also one of the target destinations for purchasing a super cruise ship. The shipyard he visited is called Fincantieri Group, which is also the largest cruise ship manufacturer in Italy.
"100 meters long?" Upon hearing Yang Wendong's request, Markel, the vice president of Fincantieri Group, almost exclaimed in surprise.

PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
(End of this chapter)