Legendary Captain

Chapter 114 Emergency Landing

"Flare?" The controller had never received such an instruction before. The director's thought process was so bizarre that the controller felt completely unable to keep up.

The director confirmed, "Is there a problem? The crew can't establish sufficient visual range, but we can assist them from the sidelines. That should be fine! Our artillery should be able to fire three precision-guided illumination rounds without any issues!"

"Contact the local command and request precise detonation at three locations: 42 nautical miles from the 070 radial line, 44 nautical miles from the 075 radial line, and 41 nautical miles from the 081 radial line, at an altitude of 12,000 feet." The director thought for a moment, then said, "Go and convert the locations into latitude and longitude coordinates, then inform the local command and ask if they can detonate precisely at the designated altitude. If not, this plan is not feasible."

The beacon tower is a VOR station near the artillery barracks, and the entire restricted zone is a circular area centered on this beacon tower.

In the civil aviation industry, the radial line plus distance is a very common way of expressing location, but others may not be used to it. Therefore, the director asked the person in charge of contacting the military base to convert the location information into latitude and longitude for easier understanding.

Furthermore, the precision required for the use of the flares is extremely high. Three flares need to detonate at a point slightly above the hilltop. Any higher, or even below, the illumination effect will be significantly reduced. Moreover, not only is the altitude requirement extremely stringent, but the positioning is equally critical.

Otherwise, if you miss the mark, you'll get nowhere. Even worse, if you hit the plane directly, that would be a huge blunder.

Therefore, if the accuracy of the artillery station's response cannot be guaranteed, then his proposal is absolutely unfeasible.

……

Yunnan First People's Hospital!

"What's the condition of the patient in room 34?" Wen Jingshu asked the doctor in charge.

Ward 34 is the ward where Xu Jingyang is located.

The doctor found it strange that patient number 34 had just explained the condition to the family. Why was the doctor asking again?

The doctor had seen countless patients; the previous elderly person who inquired about their condition clearly had a different air about them. This time, a beautiful young woman, equally elegant, was the one with the most refined air. But patient number 34 seemed completely ordinary, with nothing particularly special about her.

However, the doctor was very patient and explained to Wen Jingshu in detail: "All four stents implanted in patient number 34 have experienced restenosis and need to be replaced as soon as possible, otherwise, the situation may be dire..."

Before the doctor could finish speaking, Wen Jingshu quickly interjected, "Then let's change it! Arrange the surgery!"

"Well... the surgery costs..." the doctor hesitated slightly, "and the fact that his coronary arteries have become narrowed again indicates that his condition has worsened. Even if the stent is replaced, he won't be able to do any strenuous work afterward and will need a long period of follow-up treatment."

"The cost is not a problem, you just need to hurry..." Wen Jingshu's words were interrupted by another rough voice: "Wen Jingshu!"

Wen Mingyuan suddenly appeared and approached Wen Jingshu: "Get your stance straight! Do you still have illusions about that kid?"

Wen Jingshu lowered her eyes and replied indifferently, "I...didn't..."

"We Wen family members don't have the habit of going back to an old flame!" Wen Mingyuan snorted.

Wen Jingshu hesitated for a moment, then finally asked, "Dad, did the Wen family really invest 500 million yuan in the Renxin branch back then?"

Upon hearing this, Wen Mingyuan immediately glared at him coldly: "Still asking!?"

Wen Mingyuan was clearly genuinely angry. Wen Jingshu glanced at the bewildered doctor and finally gave in for the time being: "Dad, I'll go back to Xingyou now!"

Without waiting for Wen Mingyuan's reply, she turned and left. Yang Ning was anxious, but seeing that Wen Jingshu had already gone far away, he had no choice but to hurry after her.

Watching Wen Jingshu's retreating figure, Wen Mingyuan's face turned ashen. Although Wen Jingshu had outwardly yielded, as her father, Wen Mingyuan knew exactly how stubborn she was.

This is Wen Jingshu's strength, making her ruthless in the business world. However, it's not such a remarkable trait when it comes to matters of the heart.

Especially after Wen Yiren, the eldest son of the Wen family, turned out to be an incompetent wastrel, the status of Wen Jingshu, the second princess of the Wen family, rose sharply. Wen Jingshu's love life could greatly affect the future of the Wen Group.

"Go and investigate Xu Xian's background!" Wen Mingyuan instructed his assistant.

He had a very bad feeling! It was extremely strange that Wen Jingshu chose to gain experience at Xingyou Airlines, a second-tier subsidiary. He had initially thought she simply wanted to start from the bottom, but now he suspected his precious daughter's motives weren't so pure.

If his daughter rekindles her old flame with that brat Xu Xian, Wen Mingyuan would probably faint from anger.

No matter what, he still has a useless son, and his entire family fortune depends on his daughter for the future. And Wen Yiren, the eldest son, seems to be happy with this.

The more he values ​​Wen Jingshu, the more ironic it will be if Wen Jingshu and Xu Xian reconcile in the future.

But this is a dead end, and there's absolutely no way to fix it.

"Has the matter of that old bastard Chen Chuan preparing to exchange shares with Wang Fengying been finalized yet?" Wen Mingyuan asked his assistant in a deep voice.

Wen Jingshu's situation was merely a hidden worry. Now, someone within the Wen Group was plotting a rebellion. This was the truly urgent and pressing matter.

Wen Mingyuan could call those two old guys that name, but his assistant would never dare to.

Chen Chuan is the second-in-command of Chimelong Airlines, and Wang Fengying is the second-in-command of Shenggong Construction. Both are executive directors of the Wens Group's board of directors, making them truly powerful figures.

The assistant replied, "The two directors did meet privately, but whether it involved a share swap, nobody knows! They didn't seem to be trying to hide their private meetings!"

"They think they have victory in their grasp?" Wen Mingyuan sneered. "What about the other shareholders?"

"Most of the remaining minority shareholders haven't taken sides; they seem unwilling to get involved!" the assistant said.

He could basically understand what those minority shareholders were thinking.

Those minority shareholders weren't interested in company decisions; they just wanted a small share of dividends. Of course, even a small share of dividends only applies to top billionaires like Wen Mingyuan; for ordinary people, it's still an astonishing amount.

Neither Wen Mingyuan nor the alliance of Chen Chuan and Wang Fengying were people they could afford to offend. They also had the ability to expel them afterward, so they were unwilling to get involved in this power struggle between the three, preferring to protect their own territory.

"Wang Fengying will benefit more from the equity exchange, so the key to breaking the deadlock lies with Chen Chuan. Go and investigate Chen Chuan privately to find out what dirt he has on her!" Wen Mingyuan instructed.

After speaking, Wen Mingyuan sighed deeply. The Wen Group's current predicament was entirely due to the rapid rise of Shenggong Construction after the Xu family's Tianyu Construction went bankrupt, even threatening to surpass the Wen family's core business, Renxin Hospital.

It was precisely because of the transformative upgrade of Shen Gong Construction that Wang Fengying, who had originally buried his ambitions deep inside, began to have many inappropriate thoughts.

Sometimes, Wen Mingyuan even doubted whether betraying the Xu family back then was a wise move.

……

Star Travel Airlines President's Office.

After returning home, Wen Jingshu sat on the sofa, her mind filled with the conversation she had just had with Xu Jingyang and her father.

After Yang Ning followed her in, Wen Jingshu immediately looked up and stared directly at her: "Aunt Ning, you've been at Renxin Hospital all this time, do you know why the case at the Dianyun branch has been stalled until now?"

Yang Ning felt a sense of foreboding, but maintained a nonchalant expression: "It was due to a shortage of manpower at the time. Miss, you should know that."

At this point, even the usually composed Yang Ning seemed somewhat flustered.

Back then, she was the financial director of Renxin Hospital. How could she not know the inside story about the construction of Renxin Hospital's branch in Dianyun City? But she absolutely couldn't tell Wen Jingshu this inside story, otherwise, things would probably turn upside down.

"That's what my dad said too. The 500 million was indeed allocated to that case back then." Wen Jingshu still had doubts. However, she instinctively trusted Yang Ning, so she murmured, "Am I overthinking it?"

Wen Jingshu's voice wasn't loud, but she didn't try to hide it from Yang Ning. Upon hearing this, Yang Ning secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If this matter continued to be pursued, it would likely cause a huge uproar; she felt it necessary to speak with those who knew about it again.

……

Shangdu Area Control Room.

Control Room Chief: "What did they say from the base?"

The person in charge of contacting them replied, "They said there's no problem."

"Is the accuracy also fine?" the director pressed.

The contact staff immediately replied, "That's what they said on the grounds; they told us to trust their skills."

"Indeed!" the director laughed. "With so many drills and training sessions, how could their skills not be good?"

When artillery units conduct exercises or training, the no-fly zone is usually larger than the restricted zone. The Shangdu Area Control Center has already received numerous temporary no-fly orders.

Pilots are already dissatisfied with restricted airspace. This is because, typically, such situations require them to take a longer, more time-consuming detour.

If you encounter a short-tempered person, they'll either make sarcastic remarks or inexplicably argue back, and in the end, it's the controller who suffers.

Therefore, the controllers not only disliked certain pilots, but also had grievances against the bases where frequent exercises and training were conducted. Shouldn't the director seize this opportunity to make a sarcastic remark?

Of course, the director could only be tough in his own little corner of the country. If he were to speak to the person in charge of the artillery garrison face to face, he would find it difficult to be assertive.

"Chimelong 5677, current location confirmed!" The director thought for a moment: "It's the radial line of the beacon tower!"

There are many ways to express one's position in civil aviation, but the director still thinks that using a unified reference beacon tower is the best.

Chen Qi pressed the POS button, and the radial lines of the beacon towers immediately appeared on the navigation page.

"Radial line 110 from the beacon tower!"

"If we're aligning the beacon tower with the 110-kilometer radius, that's about right!" The director estimated the distance should be just right. "Contact the base and prepare flares!"

The military is known for its swift and decisive actions; if they agree to something, they're sure to deliver. Upon receiving the request from the Shangdu Area Control Center, a squad was immediately assigned to prepare artillery fire.

Even in the middle of the night, the army can still obey orders in the shortest time. Moreover, it's only seven or eight o'clock, so the efficiency is even faster.

The artillery garrison has its own dispatch and command center, which can be notified to fire artillery fire as soon as the Shangdu area control receives the message.

"Chimelong 5677, you are absolutely not allowed to cross the 090 radial line of the beacon tower. If you are about to cross the 090 radial line, you are allowed to maneuver and circle freely!" The director added as the time was about right.

While flares aren't considered lethal weapons, their explosion at close range still poses a certain danger. It would be a joke if Chimelong 5677, which escaped volcanic ash, were ultimately destroyed by a flare.

He had to ensure that there was a safe distance between the flare's detonation point and the aircraft.

Fortunately, there were no other planes in the vicinity, so there was no worry about conflict. Therefore, the director generously granted Chimelong 5677 a great deal of freedom.

"The radial line for Beacon Tower 090 has been received!" Chen Qi directly typed a radial extension line for Beacon Tower 090 into the CDU, which was then displayed visually on the navigation page.

Xu Xian could directly see the relative position of the aircraft to the 090 radial line from the navigation page, so as to maneuver in advance.

After confirming a safe distance with the aircraft from Chimelong, the Shangdu area control room immediately sent a request to the artillery emplacement to fire flares.

The command center at the artillery post instantly relayed the order to fire illumination flares to the duty squad.

The squad leader's booming voice rang out instantly in the open artillery range: "Prepare for artillery fire!"

In the Shangdu area control room, the director instructed his subordinates: "Contact Chimelong and inform them of the current aircraft status."

At the same time, Wen Mingyuan and Wen Jingshu received a report from the general manager of Chimelong Airlines' flight department that Chimelong 5677 had been put on emergency code.

Furthermore, Chimelong Airlines' flight department also informed Wen Mingyuan and Wen Jingshu of the crew information for Chimelong 5677.

When I learned

Actually, they don't even need to be notified by air traffic control. As long as the aircraft displays an emergency code, Chimelong Airlines' operations control system can see it. Even some publicly available civil aviation auxiliary software can detect it.

Chimelong Airlines might know about this, but they probably don't know the specifics. That's why the air traffic control director had his subordinates tell Chimelong Airlines the details.

In the cockpit, Xu Xian contacted the cabin crew in advance, instructing them to ensure passengers fastened their seatbelts and not to allow passengers to move around unnecessarily if any abnormal shaking occurred.

Xu Xian was considering the possibility of the aircraft scraping each other later. Although the control was confident that they would clear a path for them, he had to consider any possible scenarios, including the possibility of the aircraft scraping each other.

Proactive warnings will always give passengers some mental preparation, preventing them from encountering sudden changes and causing another round of commotion.

That's what makes passenger planes different! They consider not only the pilots but also the passengers.

In the cockpit, Xu Xian wiped the sweat from his palms. Who knew what unexpected situations might arise when they were crossing the Qinling Mountains? Even with Xu Xian's mental fortitude, he was still finding it hard to remain calm.

"How are you going to guide us during the traffic control? Are you going to set off some big fireworks?" Chen Qi was very curious about how the traffic control would guide them.

How about setting off a big firework display and creating an artificial sun?

"Who knows?" Xu Xian looked at the Qinling Mountains, which were only outlined, and wondered to himself, "What if it really is..."

Before Xu Xian finished speaking, a dazzling burst of light, as if the world had just begun to open, suddenly erupted from the darkness ahead, illuminating the entire sky as if it were daytime.

Under the illumination of the flares, the lowest point of the valley, as indicated by the control points, was clearly visible.

"Holy crap, what the hell is that? It's a real firework!" Even Chen Qi, who had seen a lot, had never seen anything like it!

Even the entire cockpit was brightly lit.

This is the first flare!

"The places chosen for regulation are definitely different!" Chen Qi exclaimed excitedly.

This ravine is shaped like a perfectly rounded U, and there are hardly any protruding obstacles; it is almost entirely covered by trees, so crossing it is not very difficult.

Xu Xian also strongly agreed, as this was indeed a very good obstacle course location.

Just then, the control voice came through again: "Chimelong 5677, has the flare exploded ahead?"

"Yes!" Chen Qi confirmed.

"Chimelong 5677, maintain your course and speed! We will detonate two more flares on the back side of the Qinling Mountains. Be careful to maintain speed!" the director said.

The director instructed Chimelong's aircraft to maintain a certain speed to ensure a safe distance. Currently, Chimelong's aircraft are underpowered and will experience a continuous descent. If they are too conservative and prevent the aircraft from clearing obstacles, it would be disastrous if they descended below the altitude of the ravine.

"Received!" Chen Qi replied.

Actually, they're already at a very low altitude, basically just passing through the middle of a ravine. Fortunately, there aren't any particularly prominent obstacles in this ravine, so even if the clearance for crossing isn't high, it shouldn't be too dangerous.

The reason why the control system detonates flares on the back is to illuminate some blind spots, just in case.

"Is the control system really that good-natured? They even managed to get their hands on flares? These must be flares!" Chen Qi's mind suddenly sharpened as he was about to cross the mountain pass, and he even became a little carried away with his excitement.

Once you've passed the most dangerous Qinling Mountains, isn't the road ahead smooth and easy?

Just as Chimelong's plane was about to pass through the mountain pass, two flares exploded simultaneously on either side in front of them. Xu Xian and Chen Qi could even see the vast plains beyond the Qinling Mountains.

This is exactly what it means to find a new path after a dark period of darkness!

Suddenly, Chen Qi's eyelids twitched, and he pointed to something standing upright not far ahead, asking, "What's that? Is it a tree? Are there trees that tall?"

Xu Xian looked closely and broke out in a cold sweat.

"A windmill? No! This is a wind turbine!?" Chen Qi finally realized what was happening and yelled at the top of his lungs, "How the hell can a wind turbine be installed this high up?"

In front of the aircraft are several wind turbines that closely resemble windmills. They are all located on the other side of the valley, where the first flare indeed had a blind spot. These wind turbines were hidden in that blind spot!

What a deadly blind spot!

The mast of a wind turbine is quite conspicuous. But the height of a wind turbine isn't just the height of the mast; the length of the blades also matters!

Xu Xian felt all 36,000 pores on his body tighten; if things continued like this, he would crash into the blades of the wind turbine.

At this critical moment, Xu Xian disregarded the limited thrust of the number one engine. He immediately increased the throttle of the number one engine and simultaneously increased the rudder input to prevent the aircraft from yawing!

Chen Qi didn't expect Xu Xian to directly increase the thrust of the No. 1 engine. By the time he realized what was happening, Xu Xian had already stepped on the throttle.

After generating additional power, the effect was very obvious. The aircraft instantly stopped its descent and, in a level flight, narrowly passed the tip of the wind turbine blades.

As the plane flew over, a vast plain suddenly opened up before our eyes, and there were no more towering mountains or natural barriers!

Xu Xian was overjoyed, for he had saved his life at the last moment!

Just as Xu Xian was about to ease off the throttle a little, the No. 1 engine seemed to let out a mournful cry. It only made one sound, exerting its last bit of strength, before finally dying!

Engine number one has stalled again!

Xu Xian's face turned deathly pale. If the No. 1 engine stalled now, it couldn't be restarted. They were truly facing a forced landing without power!

"MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY! Shangdu is under traffic control. Chimelong 5677 is currently experiencing engine failure on both engines and is unable to make an emergency landing at Shangdu. Emergency landing is required!" Even though an emergency had already been announced, at this moment, Xu Xian instinctively shouted "MAYDAY" again!

Just as the old troubles were over, a new one began. This was Xu Xian’s last struggle!

The plot will end in the next chapter, or at most the chapter after that!

And... taking care of kids is so tiring!

(End of this chapter)