Legendary Captain

Chapter 167 Despair Blooms Above the Sky (Seeking Monthly Tickets!)

Flight 6233 was taxiing on taxiway F. Captain Li Zhiming glanced around and saw no other aircraft. At that moment, the ground control instructions indicated a long, straight taxiway, so there was no pressure. Therefore, Captain Li Zhiming had some energy to talk to Xu Xian about other things.

"After takeoff, the company should contact us to verify some kind of communication system. We can just say a few words to them then," Captain Li Zhiming said.

Xu Xian found it strange, as he hadn't received this notification: "The dispatch center didn't tell me about this!"

"They told me," Captain Li Zhiming said. "If we're selected, be a little more formal and polite when you speak. There will be leaders observing, so don't be too casual."

The dispatcher didn't specify which leader was in charge, but it was quite rare for them to give Li Zhiming such a serious reminder. Therefore, Li Zhiming felt it necessary to communicate with the co-pilot beforehand, just in case they were actually selected and Xu Xian didn't think things through.

"What kind of leader is he? He needs to communicate with the crew in advance, being so careful. He must be of a very high rank." Xu Xian laughed. "I've heard some captains say that it's mainly to facilitate communication between the crew and the company's operations control, as well as to add an automatic communication function."

There are actually no obstacles to communication between the crew and air traffic control; routine VHF communication is with air traffic control. In the past, before satellite phones were widespread, in special circumstances where someone wanted to contact the company headquarters, they had to go through air traffic control as a relay, which was quite cumbersome.

However, with the advancement of technology, it is now quite common for airplanes to be equipped with satellite phones. In fact, the authorities have issued regulations on the airworthiness of satellite phones, stipulating that airplanes should not be allowed to fly if they are not equipped with a satellite phone or if the satellite phone is not functioning properly.

Therefore, there are no major problems with communication between the crew and the company at present.

However, since the crew communicates with the control center via VHF and the company via satellite phone or ACARS, there is no way to unite the three parties.

Normally, this problem isn't obvious. Because there's no urgency or necessity, the crew doesn't usually need to communicate with the company.

However, in emergency situations, especially when technical support from the airline is needed, this disconnect can be quite unpleasant.

Pilots need to switch back and forth between VHF and SAT transmitters, and this frequent switching can significantly increase the crew's workload in emergencies. After all, in abnormal situations, sometimes the crew doesn't even have time to press the talk button, let alone accurately switch transmitters.

Therefore, Star Travel's technical department developed this emergency communication system. Its three-way calling and automatic calling functions can significantly reduce the communication pressure on the crew in emergency situations, which is quite a good design.

However, Xu Xian thought that if it really came to that kind of extremely urgent situation, even if three-way communication and automatic announcements were possible, the crew probably wouldn't even have a chance to speak.

Of course, Xu Xian wasn't denying the system's usefulness, but he found its formality somewhat troublesome. Especially when leaders got involved in certain matters, it took on a lot of formalism.

"There's an option to enable automatic dialing on the CDU's satellite phone dialing page. We'll test it later," Li Zhiming said. "You can take a look beforehand so you don't miss it later."

"Hmm? Is it still the satellite phone option on the menu page?" Xu Xian glanced outside and saw that there was still some distance between the F1 lane and the plane, and no other planes were cutting in, so there wouldn't be any conflict. So, he prepared to follow Captain Li Zhiming's instructions and see how to operate the CDU.

On the CDU's menu page, you can access the FMC, ACARS, ACMS, and SAT systems. Of course, the functionality may differ slightly between different CDU models. SAT stands for Satellite Telephone System.

However, to make a satellite phone call, you can't dial the number like a normal phone call; you need to add the international prefix, international code, and area code, which is very troublesome to remember. Therefore, the crew usually only dials the company numbers stored in the database.

"Is it under the AOC option?" Xu Xian asked.

"Hmm! Take a look. It seems to say the CDU has been updated, but I haven't checked it." Li Zhiming glanced at the CDU screen on the passenger side: "It should be the AUTO COM option."

Originally, there was no automatic communication option in the system. This feature was added to the CDU after Star Travel's technical department contacted Boeing for a minor modification. It's estimated that only Star Travel's technical department and the Boeing technicians who participated in the modification knew about this new feature; almost all the pilots were unaware of it. This time, the emergency communication system was being tested, so the dispatcher informed Captain Li Zhiming about the new feature.

"Alright, minimum speed, Kunlong 9478."

"Star Travel 6233, you're moving fast!" the control tower urged.

Xu Xian replied, "Okay!"

At the same time, Xu Xian turned on all the lights, activated the terrain display on his side, and set the transponder to TA/RA, giving the cabin a signal that takeoff was imminent.

"Runway safe, proceed to runway 21, takeoff thrust 92.1." Before entering the runway, the crew must confirm that there are no other aircraft, vehicles, personnel, or obstacles on the runway.

Once the plane was aligned with the runway, Xu Xian reported: "Star Travel 6233, ready."

"Star Travel 6233, ground wind 040/01, runway 21, cleared for takeoff." Takeoff clearance has been issued.

"Runway 21, ready for takeoff, Star Travel 6233."

Hearing the wind direction and speed information, Li Zhiming muttered, "It's still a bit tailwinded."

"Yeah, they're probably going to change runways soon." As Xu Xian started timing, he followed up on Li Zhiming's words and said, "Takeoff clearance is in order, takeoff configuration is good."

At the last moment before takeoff, Xu Xian checked the takeoff configuration to make sure it was correct, in order to avoid a takeoff configuration warning.

Li Zhiming: "No problem, let's go."

Yunnan Cloud Tower Control Room.

The control tower at Yunnan Airport is located in the center of the airport. Except for a few areas that are partially obscured by the terminal buildings, most of the airport area can be seen.

The newly arrived tower controllers were drinking coffee to perk themselves up, enjoying the last moments of tranquility before the departure peak.

My colleague who was off work didn't leave immediately. Instead, he stretched his muscles a bit behind the control tower. He had been sitting for most of the night and his back was aching.

"What did you say about the training at the new airport?" the colleague asked the control tower casually, stretching his muscles.

The air traffic controller glanced at the control panel, yawned, and said, "Stop it, of course. The airport's closed, why can't we?"

"Oh dear, Yunnan isn't even a big city to begin with, and they insist on building a giant airport with three runways. Aren't they afraid of choking themselves?" a colleague mocked, clearly disapproving of Yunnan's decision to build a second airport, or at least expressing considerable doubt about the scale of the new airport.

"Isn't it just like having something stuck in your throat, unable to swallow it or spit it out?" The air traffic controller in the tower truly agreed: "They say they're going to build three runways, two parallel runways both 4200 meters long, using the runway numbers 03/21 and 04/22, plus a slightly shorter runway, 10/28, which seems to be 3400 meters. The airport site is more than twice the size of the current airport. I really didn't know Yunnan was so rich."

After nearly twenty years, the perennial winds in Yunnan and Yunnan have changed somewhat, so when designing the airport runways, an additional runway, number 10/28, with an angle of nearly 90 degrees, was added.

A 3400-meter runway is considered a good length for a regular airport, but at Yunnan's new Kunyang Airport, it's only the smallest runway.

This alone demonstrates Yunnan's immense wealth. However, the size and projected throughput of the new Kunyang Airport seem somewhat excessive for the city of Yunnan.

"Have you seen the design plans for the new airport? Are the taxiways and procedures complicated?" my colleague asked.

This wasn't out of enthusiasm for his work, but purely out of curiosity. He applied to stay temporarily at the old airport and wouldn't be transferred to the new airport anytime soon.

"No! The taxiway routes for the new airport are based on those of the old airport, so you'll get used to them quickly. The procedures remain largely unchanged; the two airports are very close, and there are no major changes to the arrival and departure directions," the control tower said.

"That's good!" my colleague laughed. "You can scout things out for me. If I decide to go to the new airport, you can give me a crash course."

"What's there to make up for?" the control tower chuckled. "Seriously, does our airport really not care about our lives anymore? The morning rush hour is starting earlier and earlier."

Previously, the morning rush hour at Yunnan Airport was around 7:30 a.m., then it was moved up to 7:00 a.m., and now there is a trend of moving it even earlier.

"All the good times are already taken. If we want to increase flights, we can only move the times as early or as late as possible. Don't you think that not only are the morning rush hours getting earlier and earlier, but the evening rush hours are also getting later and later? We don't earn as much as those who fly, but we're still working from dawn till dusk. Who can stand that?" a colleague complained.

"Once we move to the new airport, there will be more and more international flights, and there will be many more early morning flights than now. That's when the real headache will begin," the air traffic controller complained.

Many international flights not only land at 2 or 3 PM, but also take off at 2 or 3 PM. Once the new airport is built, the number of international flights will definitely increase, and then the air traffic control will be in for a real headache.

"Let you guys worry about it for now. I'll just retire at the old airport." My colleague laughed heartily. "But do you think the new airport will be a disaster? It's been under construction for so long."

"Oh no, no way! I bought a house near the new airport. If the new airport fails, I'm doomed." The air traffic controller was almost in tears.

The new airport was located in a remote, desolate area. Without the airport's presence, property prices there would practically be free. However, following the announcement of the new airport, property prices in many areas near the airport rose significantly. Air traffic controllers believed that property prices would continue to rise, and coupled with the convenience of commuting to the new airport, they still took out loans to buy houses even though prices had more than doubled.

However, if the new airport project falls through, his purchased house will be stuck with bad debts. Just thinking about this made the air traffic controller's heart sink.

"It shouldn't be like that." The colleague was just joking, but it unexpectedly touched a nerve with her friend, who immediately felt embarrassed and quickly reassured her, "The site has been chosen, construction has started, and the word has been spread, how could we possibly give up halfway? Don't worry! Okay, stop overthinking, a plane is about to land, keep an eye on it."

"So you're messing with my mindset while I'm working?" the tower controller complained.

"Hehe, I didn't know you bought a house near the new airport. Well, you go ahead and do your thing, I'm done exercising, I'm heading out now!" After twisting his body, his colleague prepared to go back for a nap.

The air traffic controller said goodbye to his colleagues and friends and prepared to get back to work. But as soon as he looked at the radar screen, he noticed another Star Trek aircraft that had already taken off, in addition to a plane about to land on the fifth wing.

What caught his attention was that the rate of ascent of Star Travel's aircraft was for some reason very low, and it was continuing to decrease.

Such a small rate of climb makes it difficult for subsequent takeoffs to create sufficient spacing; he wanted to launch another plane before the Kunlong's plane landed.

After thinking for a moment, the control tower contacted Xingyou's plane: "Xingyou 6233, climb to altitude as soon as possible, it will affect those behind you."

However, after waiting for a while, there was no response from the Star Travel crew. Logically speaking, during a time when the tower frequency is not frequent, his call should have been very clear, and the probability that the Star Travel crew could not hear it should be very small.

However, after waiting for a while, when the control tower was about to call the Star Travel crew again, it was interrupted by another voice.

"MAYDAY! MAYDAY! MAYDAY!"

In the air, after Xingyou 6233 took off, as soon as the landing gear and flaps retracted, Xu Xian completed the post-takeoff checklist.

Looking at the sky, still shrouded in darkness, Xu Xian blurted out, "Will there be flights departing at around 5 a.m. in the future?"

Xu Xian's complaint is about the company's increasingly earlier flight times, just like the air traffic control tower's complaints. It's not just air traffic controllers who are unhappy about the constantly earlier flight times; pilots are equally dissatisfied.

To catch this 6 a.m. flight, Xu Xian had to get up at 3 a.m. to wash up; it was an inhumane flight schedule.

"Looks like it really is happening. I heard from the fleet that the company is going to start a single flight to Binjiang at 5:50 in the morning. I guess the maiden flight will be next month." Captain Li Zhiming picked up on Xu Xian's comment: "Whoever wants to fly this flight, and lives far from the airport, won't get any sleep at night. The marketing department is really something else, managing to get this kind of flight slot. It's outrageous. Are they treating us flight crew like animals?"

"5:50! I really want to know what those people in the marketing department are thinking." Xu Xian was shocked by the 5:50 takeoff time; he felt his future was bleak.

After touching his hair again, Xu Xian felt that if he continued like this, his shiny black hair would be in danger of being lost.

Suddenly, as Xu Xian stared at the windshield, a look of confusion gradually appeared on his face. He tilted his head and pointed uncertainly at the dense black dots in front of him: "Brother, what are these?"

Captain Li Zhiming's gaze followed Xu Xian's words and shifted to the outside of the windshield.

"Yeah, what is this thing?"

It was still too early; the sun hadn't even peeked out yet, and it was practically night, with no light source for illumination. Therefore, even after Xu Xian's prompting, Li Zhiming couldn't figure out what it was after a careful examination.

"It's not a cloud, is it?" Xu Xian said softly.

Li Zhiming shook his head: "It doesn't seem like it. That thing in front looks very scattered; it almost feels like it's moving!"

The movement here is not a relative motion caused by the movement of the airplane, but rather the appearance that the black dot in front is moving autonomously.

"This...you didn't turn the lights back on," Li Zhiming instructed.

Having just finished the post-flight checklist, Xu Xian had turned off all the lights except for the fixed landing lights and strobe lights. Li Zhiming thought that turning the off lights back on would make things brighter and maybe they could see what was ahead.

"Oh, okay!" Xu Xian nodded and reached out to turn on the retractable landing lights. But just as he was about to turn on the other lights, Xu Xian subconsciously glanced out the windshield and his face immediately showed a look of horror.

Not only Xu Xian, but Li Zhiming was also paying attention to the outside world. The moment the retractable landing lights were turned on, the light source was enough for him to see things clearly.

However, after clearly discerning the outside world, Li Zhiming's pupils instantly constricted.

The dense black dots outside are not scattered clouds, nor anything else; they are a large flock of birds!

It's already within reach!

Lian Shanxue's home in a residential area near the airport.

Lian Shanxue's mother, Tian Huiyun, struggled to sit up, found a backrest, and leaned against it, her right hand groping for the water glass on the bedside table.

"Mom, what's wrong?" Lian Shanxue had always maintained a good sleep schedule, usually getting up around 7 a.m. She was already in a light sleep when she was startled awake by Tian Huiyun sitting up.

"It's too dry. Go get some water to drink. You should go back to sleep," Tian Huiyun said.

Lian Shanxue did not do as Tian Huiyun said. Instead, she got up, turned on the light, and went downstairs to pour Tian Huiyun a cup of hot water.

"It's cool in the mornings and evenings now, so don't drink cold water." Lian Shanxue handed the hot water cup to Tian Huiyun, put on a coat, and sat down on the bed next to her mother.

"I'm not even sixty yet and you're already taking care of me. It's really hard on you." Tian Huiyun has a long-standing ailment, suffering from chronic back pain. Sometimes the pain is so severe that she can't sleep all night. Poor sleep quality makes it impossible for her to gain weight, and coupled with the torment of her illness, she has virtually no ability to take care of herself.

"Mom, what are you saying!" Lian Shanxue patted Tian Huiyun's leg and comforted her, "You took care of me when I was little, so it's only natural that I take care of you now that I'm grown up, isn't it?"

Tian Huiyun didn't mince words: "Then tell me, who is Xu Xian?"

"Xu Xian?" Lian Shanxue exclaimed in surprise, "Mom, how did you know?"

"You kept talking in your sleep all night, calling out the name Xu Xian. How could I not know?" Tian Huiyun said with a smile, her expression full of concern for her daughter's love life.

Lian Shanxue fell silent. After learning that Xu Xian and Xia Qing had confirmed their relationship, she was unwilling to mention him again.

"What's wrong?" Tian Huiyun noticed Lian Shanxue's unusual behavior and asked softly.

"What else can we do?" Lian Shanxue sighed. "We are destined to be together but not to stay together. What can we do?"

Tian Huiyun didn't say much. She felt that her daughter was already an adult and had entered society, and she didn't want to interfere too much in her daughter's love life.

"If you meet a guy you like and he asks you about us, you can send me to a nursing home and don't need to worry about me," Tian Huiyun said.

Her current situation makes her a complete burden to Lian Shanxue. If it's just dating, it's fine, but if it comes to marriage, the other party might back down if they knew about her situation. So, Tian Huiyun thought that if they really encountered such a problem, she might as well send her to a nursing home.

Because in her case, it's not just about the financial investment, but more importantly, the investment of her energy.

Upon hearing her mother's words, Lian Shanxue immediately snorted loudly, "Mom, I'll get angry if you say that again."

Tian Huiyun knew that Lian Shanxue was a filial daughter and would definitely not accept her suggestion. However, she felt it necessary to remind Lian Shanxue of one thing: "Leaving aside my own affairs, you've worked so hard to earn money for me all these years that you haven't had time to think about anything else. We've saved some money recently, and I think you don't need to be in such a rush to make money anymore. You should start thinking about your own marriage. For example, that young man named Xu Xian, why don't you invite him over for a meal sometime, and get to know him?"

Upon hearing Xu Xian's name, Lian Shanxue became unhappy: "He already has a girlfriend, so don't even think about it."

"So you haven't seemed happy at all during my stay here?" Tian Huiyun asked.

"Mom, please stop asking," Lian Shanxue said angrily.

Seeing that her daughter was about to explode, Tian Huiyun quickly stopped her: "Go open the window and let some air out. It's been terribly stuffy all night."

"Open the window? Then find a coat to wear, so you don't get cold," Lian Shanxue instructed.

The air here in Yunnan is dry, and after a stuffy night, you might feel a bit short of breath.

Seeing that Tian Huiyun had put on her clothes, Lian Shanxue drew back the curtains and looked outside, but it was still pitch black.

"It's not even dawn yet!" Tian Huiyun also forgot to go outside.

Above the pitch-black sky, Lian Shanxue spotted a tiny point of light tracing a slanted path as it steadily climbed upwards.

"Is that an airplane?" Tian Huiyun also noticed the light.

Lian Shanxue examined it carefully and nodded: "It should be!"

"This flight is really early, taking off before dawn. The pilots must be working really hard!" Tian Huiyun exclaimed.

Lian Shanxue sighed, "Yes!"

As she spoke, Lian Shanxue prepared to open the window. But the moment she began to move, her gaze was suddenly drawn to something else.

The point of light representing an airplane on the sky suddenly burst into dazzling light, as if it had been ignited!

It's almost the end of the month, so as usual, I'm asking for your monthly votes! Hehe!

(End of this chapter)