Legendary Captain

Chapter 143 Your Golden Lock is With Me!

"So you forgot to replace the personnel?" In a satellite phone call with the company's AOC, Qin Zongyang learned that the company had not thought of replacing the personnel with RNP AR qualifications. In other words, Xingyou Aviation was a bunch of useless people from the dispatch desk to the planning office to the dispatch desk, and no one had thought about the qualification issue.

It's ridiculous that only their company had qualification issues, while none of the other companies did.

"The weather was fine a few days ago. It only started to get worse during the day today, and I didn't think about it for a moment," the dispatcher explained.

If the weather is good, RNP APCH is sufficient for execution. RNP APCH does not require simulator training, and almost all co-pilots are qualified, so there is basically no situation where someone is not qualified for RNP APCH.

Perhaps the good weather and lack of problems in the previous days led to complacency within the company. It's clear that company staff weren't paying enough attention to the flights. The weather only worsened during the day, which meant there was less time to react, but this brief window of opportunity was missed by the relevant personnel.

Qin Zongyang wouldn't accept such perfunctory excuses: "If I didn't remember I had a flight to take today, is that my fault?"

"Mr. Qin, what do you mean?" The dispatcher was momentarily at a loss for words.

"What did I do wrong?" Qin Zongyang was furious. "All the operations control, dispatch, and scheduling personnel on duty today, go report to your respective departments and receive your punishments!"

Although operations control, dispatch, and scheduling all fall under the Flight Department, there are still some differences in their respective affiliated organizations. It's not always the Flight Department that should be in charge when something goes wrong; it's more convenient for their own department to manage things.

It's like how co-pilots belong to the flight department, but when something really happens, it's still more convenient for their own squadron to handle it.

Qin Zongyang and Lu Xinyu are basically the powerful figures in the Flight Department now, and they are not bluffing when they say they will punish those on duty.

"Tell me, where are you going!" Qin Zongyang sneered, "Shangdang and Chuyun, you choose yourselves!"

Just then, the first co-pilot said from the side, "Mr. Qin, we've arrived at the designated location. Shall I begin circling?"

Qin Zongyang hummed in agreement but didn't say anything, because the matter of choosing an alternate landing site was already giving him a headache.

"Star Travel 6777, arrived at the designated location, initiating right turn!" Before turning, the first co-pilot contacted the approach control.

Approach Control: "Received. Please proceed as instructed to circle to the right, maintaining a safe distance of 12 nautical miles. Once you have made contact, please contact us immediately if there are any updates. There are thunderstorms in the Izumo direction, so it may not be a suitable alternate landing site yet. If you need to make an alternate landing in Izumo, we can help you contact the Izumo control tower to inquire about the situation at this site."

It's not that you can't land if there's thunderstorm. As long as the thunderclouds aren't approaching or in the final five-sided position, it's still possible to land by maneuvering to avoid them.

Qin Zongyang heard the approach control announcement through the loudspeaker, but he showed no emotion regarding the bad weather at one of the alternate landing sites, since he had never intended to make an alternate landing in Izumo anyway.

"President Qin, the weather at Izumo Airport is bad right now, you may have to wait in the air for a while longer," the dispatcher said.

"So now you know the weather's bad at Izumo Airport?" Qin Zongyang said. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. I wasn't planning on going to Izumo anyway. Can I even get to Izumo Airport? And if I do, will it even be able to take off?"

Izumo Airport isn't a large airport, but it's not small either. However, for some reason, its airport operations are shockingly poor. Even on-time flight operations are sometimes poorly handled, let alone diverted flights. Furthermore, Izumo Airport is notorious for its alarmingly high delay rate; once a flight is diverted to Izumo, it's virtually impossible to take off again.

Qin Zongyang could have foreseen this!

The dispatcher, of course, knew what kind of place Izumo Airport was, and after being sternly questioned by Qin Zongyang, he had no choice but to change his tune: "Then, Mr. Qin, shall we go to Shangdang?"

"But Mr. Qin, if we go to Shangdang, the flight to Shangdang isn't until tomorrow afternoon, so the crew will have to spend the night in Shangdang tonight! Is that alright?" the dispatcher asked.

In fact, dispatch would have preferred Qin Zongyang and his crew to make an emergency landing in Izumo, even if it meant a long wait, it was still better than sending a new crew to Shangdang the next afternoon to change personnel. Keep in mind, the weather in Jinyang wouldn't improve until at least tomorrow, so RNP APCH was out of the question.

However, if the aircraft is diverted to Izumo, the crew will have to endure a long waiting period. This period is supposed to be a rest time, but since takeoff could occur at any moment, there is no way to get proper rest, and the crew will be under a lot of pressure.

In comparison, if the plane makes an emergency landing in Shangdang, it won't take off again until a new crew arrives to replace it tomorrow, and the crew can rest assured.

Star Travel doesn't have any hotels in Izumo or Shangdang. However, Izumo Airport is a bit larger, and there are airport hotels nearby, making it convenient for crew members to rest. In contrast, Shangdang is a very small airport with only a handful of flights a day, so there are hardly any airport hotels there. If the crew were to stay overnight in Shangdang, contacting a hotel would be much more difficult.

The problem isn't just the hotel; it also involves arranging transportation and various other琐事 (trivial matters), which is very troublesome.

So, if the flight crew is comfortable, then they will be uncomfortable; if the flight crew is uncomfortable, then they will be comfortable. If they had to choose, they would definitely prefer the latter.

However, how they choose to serve is not of much concern to them; it still depends on Qin Zongyang's decision. All they can do is provide guidance and direction.

"Then let's go to Shangdang! At least we can get some rest there. In Chuyun, we don't even dare to sleep too deeply, for fear of not being able to get a takeoff time." Qin Zongyang said, "Besides, the weather at Chuyun Airport is bad, and it's uncertain whether we can even land. There's no need to waste time."

"President Qin, the thunderstorm weather at Izumo Airport is expected to improve within half an hour, so why don't you reconsider?" The dispatch center still hadn't given up.

Qin Zongyang then made the final decision: "Contact the hotel! Also, arrange for a shuttle bus! And while you're at it, contact Shangdang Airport to prepare for the pick-up!"

Small airports like Shangdang have very few flights and long intervals between arrivals, meaning airport staff might need to take breaks at specific times. Without advance notice, many airport staff might still be wandering around somewhere when you arrive at Shangdang Airport!

For an aircraft to safely land at an airport, it takes more than just air traffic control; maintenance personnel, ground staff, and even cleaning staff are all indispensable.

Qin Zongyang made his point clear, so the contracting agency couldn't say anything and agreed.

After hanging up the satellite phone, Qin Zongyang said to the first co-pilot, "To Shangdang!"

The first officer understood and said, "Approach, we have decided to make an emergency landing in Shangdang. Request radar guidance."

"To Shangdang?" Approach control seemed quite surprised by the Xingyou Airlines crew's choice. Shangdang is a very, very small airport; they would only choose to go there if they had absolutely nowhere else to go. Who would use Shangdang Airport as their first alternate airport?

"Yes, we've decided to go to Shangdang. Give us a direction!" the first co-pilot said.

The distance between Jinyang and Shangdang is very short, less than half an hour. Since it's a temporary diversion route, air traffic control usually guides the passenger via radar, so there's no established company route. Therefore, for diversions, air traffic control often provides an initial heading first.

Approach control waited a short while before finally replying: "Star Wanderer 6777, turn right onto heading 170, ascend to altitude 7200 meters, contact Jinyang Control 117.15."

Once the frequency is switched to area control, area control will provide radar guidance or verbally direct a flight path to the alternate airport.

"Turn right, heading 170, altitude 7200 meters, contact Jinyang control 117.15, thanks!" the first co-pilot replied.

"23600 feet, right turn, heading 170, confirm!" Qin Zongyang took over the aircraft controls, confirmed the altitude and heading, then turned around and said with a smile to Xia Qing in the back, "Could you please have our third pilot inform the flight crew that we are making an emergency landing in Shangdang?"

"You're saying the Wen Group is having internal strife?" Xu Jingyang asked incredulously.

Huang Ying said, "Didn't some of my old friends know that my family almost had a marriage alliance with the Wen family? They have many sources of information, and they told me about the Wen Group. It seems that the second-in-command of Shenggong Construction and Chimelong Airlines, both subsidiaries of the Wen Group, are intentionally joining forces to oppose Wen Mingyuan."

When Huang Ying was a wealthy woman, she knew many other rich women. These wealthy women lived boring and dull lives every day, and sharing gossip was a great source of fun in their group of wives.

Some of these wives have their own careers, but many more are idle women with no ambition other than serving their husbands. They have plenty of time every day, and their husbands happen to be business leaders, so their information channels are incredibly powerful. The gossip they hear from this group of wives is always juicy and sensational.

Later, when the Xu family fell into ruin, Huang Ying did not lose contact with those ladies. Sure enough, as soon as these wealthy women learned of the inside gossip of the Wen Group, they immediately thought of Huang Ying and eagerly told her, enjoying the pleasure of sharing.

"Wang Fengying is ambitious but incompetent, and Chen Chuan is a coward. These two good-for-nothings actually want to rebel against Wen Mingyuan?" Xu Jingyang said contemptuously.

Few in the business world are unaware of the true backgrounds of Wang Fengying and Chen Chuan. Even if the two of them joined forces, Xu Jingyang didn't think they could defeat Wen Mingyuan.

Huang Ying continued, "Recently, a special incident occurred at Chimelong Airlines, and Chen Chuan's son was one of the people who handled it. It seems that they are preparing to use this opportunity to launch an attack on Wen Mingyuan."

"Chen Qi, the son of Chen Chuan, the special agent of Chimelong?" Xu Jingyang pondered for a while, and a flash of inspiration appeared in his mind.

He suddenly asked, "Was the fight fierce?"

"Wow! Didn't I just say that it's questionable whether the Wen Group can even survive? So, wealth is fleeting, and even a company as large as the Wen Group can collapse so easily?" Huang Ying sighed.

Xu Jingyang took a deep breath, seemingly trying to calm his turbulent emotions. He murmured, "Is there really retribution?"

It's ironic that the Wen family is on the verge of falling apart, and the only possibility of turning things around is in the hands of his son!

"You said you found this in the cockpit of Chimelong 5677?" At the Chimelong Airlines lost and found, Wen Jingshu held the gold lock, her voice filled with shock: "The 5677 that crashed that day?"

A staff member at the lost and found said, "That's right! The maintenance crew member in charge of the inspection that day found it in the cockpit and then handed it over to the company. We asked the crew that day and the crew members who had flown on that plane in the previous days, and they all said they hadn't lost anything, so we posted a notice on the bulletin board."

"Not from the crew?" Wen Jingshu immediately turned to Yang Ning: "Aunt Ning."

"I know!" Yang Ning said, "I checked Xu Xian's schedule for day 5677. It was a day of rest; there were no flights or extra crews!"

"Then he didn't go up as a crew member!" Wen Jingshu thought for a moment and then said, "Contact the marketing department—no, Xingyou's marketing department—and see if Xu Xian used internal channels to purchase tickets!"

"Okay, just a moment!" After saying that, Yang Ning contacted the marketing department of Xingyou Airlines.

Not long after, Yang Ning sent a message: "Miss, the marketing department does have Xu Xian's ticket purchase record, and the flight is Chimelong 5677."

Shangdang Airport!

Half an hour later, the plane landed at Shangdang Airport. Since the weather at Jinyang Airport did not improve, the company decided to cancel today's flights and instead send a qualified crew to make up the missed flights tomorrow afternoon.

All crew members disembarked from the terminal, and the company arranged transportation for them to a hotel for the night. While checking in, I suddenly received a phone call.

"Dad? What's wrong?"

"You've landed? I noticed your flight went to Shangdang instead of Jinyang, didn't it?" Xu Jingyang asked.

Xu Xian installed an app for Xu Jingyang that could check flight status, and Xu Jingyang waited until Xu Xian landed before calling him. However, he was a little curious because, according to the app, the plane did not follow the planned route to Jinyang, but instead went to Shangdang, which surprised Xu Jingyang.

Xu Xian explained, "The weather in Jinyang isn't very good, so we can't land today. We'll have to stay in Shangdang for the night."

"Oh, oh!" Xu Jingyang wasn't too surprised; emergency landings weren't uncommon.

"You didn't give that recording of Chimelong 5677 to anyone else, did you?" Xu Jingyang asked.

Xu Xian frowned: "No! What's wrong? Why are you suddenly asking about this?"

"Son, listen carefully! No matter who asks you to stand up and take responsibility for 5677, or to ask for that recording file, no matter who it is, don't agree!" Xu Jingyang said firmly.

"What? Dad, what's wrong with you?" Xu Xian was a little confused by Xu Jingyang's inexplicable words. What was all this about?

"You don't need to worry about the reasons, just remember what I said! If you don't listen to me, I won't rest in peace even if I die."

"Holy crap! Is it that serious? He's already at the point where he won't even close his eyes when he dies, is it really that bad?" Xu Xian was shocked.

Xu Jingyang reiterated: "It's even more serious than Mars colliding with Earth!"

"Then it's not serious!" Xu Xian said with a smile.

"Write this in your head: disobeying me is treason!"

After hanging up the phone, Xu Xian clicked his tongue: "Could it be that the heart problem has spread to the brain?"

I had just put my phone in my pocket when it vibrated again.

"What?! You're still acting crazy?" Xu Xian muttered.

But when he took out his phone and looked at the screen, it wasn't his father's number, and the location was still Changfeng. He didn't remember knowing anyone in Changfeng. But why did the phone number look so familiar?

Xu Xian thought for a moment and then answered the phone. A woman's voice came from the other end: "Xu Xian?"

Just those two words felt like an electric current running through his body, making Xu Xian's scalp tingle!

"Jing Wen Jing Shu?" Xu Xian swallowed hard, frantically trying to compose himself and keep his voice as calm as possible.

"Should I thank you for remembering my voice?" Wen Jingshu said calmly.

Xu Xian immediately felt guilty: "Jing, is there something you need?"

After waiting for a long time, Wen Jingshu finally spoke up: "Were you on the plane to Chimelong 5677 on October 21st?"

"What do you want to ask?" Xu Xian immediately became alert.

"You were in the cockpit then, weren't you?" Wen Jingshu asked bluntly.

Xu Xian's mind involuntarily flashed back to his earlier phone call with his father, Xu Jingyang, and he stammered, "I don't know what you're talking about?"

Wen Jingshu didn't bother beating around the bush with Xu Xian and asked directly, "Where's your gold lock?"

"Huh?" Xu Xian subconsciously touched his chest. "Why are you bringing this up? It's...on my side!"

"With you?" Wen Jingshu sneered. "Your golden lock is with me!"

(End of this chapter)