Legendary Captain

Chapter 206 Blessing or Curse?

In Wen Jingshu's living room, just after she hung up the phone, Xu Xian asked anxiously, "How did it go? Where is the plane now?"

"Except for the captain who was unconscious due to lack of oxygen, everyone else is fine. We should be landing in Rongcheng soon," Wen Jingshu said, looking somewhat unhappy.

"The captain is unconscious?" Xu Xian's expression showed a hint of worry. "How could the captain be unconscious? Isn't there an oxygen mask? Doesn't a captain know how to put on an oxygen mask?"

In Xu Xian's view, once the pressure is relieved, wearing an oxygen mask is just a matter of muscle memory, so how could something go wrong?

Wen Jingshu explained, "It seems that during the decompression, the captain experienced sudden abdominal pain, which is why he didn't put on the oxygen mask."

Clearly, Lian Shanxue communicated with the company again afterward, explaining more details.

"Stomach ache? Abdominal pain?" Xu Xian was quite displeased. "You certainly picked a good time!"

Xu Xian's dissatisfaction with the captain was practically written all over his face. He was even a little angry that the captain had messed up at a crucial moment.

Hearing Xu Xian's sarcastic remarks about the captain, Wen Jingshu lowered her eyes slightly and remained silent, her thoughts unknown.

"What about autonomous driving? Where should we make an emergency landing?" Xu Xian continued to press.

If autonomous driving becomes available, then it can be implemented, and the risks will be greatly reduced.

"Autonomous driving is usable, didn't I just say it's about to be launched in Chengdu? You weren't even listening to me," Wen Jingshu complained. "You and she are just ordinary friends, is it really necessary to be so concerned?"

"Any friend is still a friend! Besides, she did help me before, so it's normal to show concern now that she's in trouble." Xu Xian noticed something unusual in Wen Jingshu's words: "Don't overthink it! It's not what you think between us!"

Upon hearing this, Wen Jingshu shrank back and snuggled into Xu Xian's arms, grinning as she asked, "What do you mean?"

At this moment, Wen Jingshu's red lips parted slightly, so close to his eyes, making Xu Xian's heart flutter. He recalled the scene of him stealing a kiss from Wen Jingshu that morning. Even though Xu Xian had a thick skin, he still felt a little hot.

Perhaps sensing Xu Xian's somewhat heavy breathing, Wen Jingshu dared not be too unrestrained, lest she go too far.

"I need to go back to the group headquarters in a couple of days," Wen Jingshu suddenly said.

Xu Xian quickly realized: "Is it about Kunyang Airport?"

"That's right! This project is too big, and the group can't afford to be careless. Even with your promise, Uncle Qing, we still need to plan it out carefully."

If the Kunyang Airport investment goes well, it could provide the Wen Group with profits for a long time. Such an important project means that even if Wen Jingshu doesn't want to leave Xu Xian, she has no choice but to temporarily step away.

"Yes! This is such a big matter, you need to go back and take charge." Xu Xian expressed his understanding.

"There's something about your Uncle Qing that I don't know if you've noticed," Wen Jingshu suddenly said, her expression gradually becoming serious.

Xu Xian's eyelids twitched: "You mean his hand?"

"You knew?" Wen Jingshu was somewhat surprised, not expecting that Xu Xian had also figured it out.

"I thought I was seeing things, but it turns out I wasn't!" Xu Xian's interest immediately waned. "You really were hiding something from me!"

"More than a decade ago, the X10 prototype suffered a serious accident during its first test flight, reportedly almost resulting in the loss of the aircraft and lives on board. People in the industry are saying that your Uncle Qing seemed to have suffered a significant injury back then. Could it be that those old ailments haven't fully healed?"

It's no secret that Xu Qing survived a test flight accident and was injured, but few people know the details of his injuries or how serious they were.

"Can you investigate?" Xu Xian's eyes suddenly flashed with a sharp light. "Help me find out what happened! Qingyuan Group's sudden foray into the internet industry certainly wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision; perhaps the two are related!"

Wen Jingshu laughed and said, "Since your Uncle Qing won't tell you, why did you still go and investigate?"

Xu Xian lowered his head, leaned close to Wen Jingshu's ear, and whispered, "So, if your father doesn't want you to marry me, you won't marry me?"

Xu Xian's words caused Wen Jingshu's cheeks to flush red, like a ripe peach about to drip with juice.

She gently punched Xu Xian's chest, buried her face in his chest, and whimpered, "Who said I was going to marry you?"

Xu Xian's lips curled slightly: "God said so!"

Wen Jingshu suddenly raised her head, looking directly at Xu Xian with seductive eyes: "We are destined to be together by heaven, you can't escape!"

Just then, Huang Ying's voice rang out from the doorway.

"Jing Shu! Let's go!"

This voice broke the already slightly pink atmosphere. Wen Jingshu composed herself and quickly stood up: "I'm going shopping with your mom and your Aunt Ting. I guess you don't like shopping, so just stay home! All the locks here have your fingerprint registered, so you can come whenever you want!"

"When were my fingerprints collected?" Xu Xian was taken aback.

Wen Jingshu blinked: "I'm not telling you!"

Watching Wen Jingshu's departing figure, Xu Xian was overwhelmed with mixed feelings. He narrowed his eyes slightly and closed them to rest.

Fifth side of runway 02 at Chengdu Airport.

"Star Trek 6341, blind landing on runway 02!"

"Star Traveler 6341, Ground Wind 030/02, Runway 02, you can land. After landing, turn left and disembark at the nearest exit. The tow truck is already waiting."

Since Lian Shanxue couldn't taxi, after maneuvering the aircraft off the runway, he requested the airport to dispatch a tow truck to tow the aircraft directly to its parking position.

"Runway 02, ready to land, Star Travel 6341!"

After confirming the landing permission, Lian Shanxue engaged another A-channel autopilot. She was preparing to conduct a dual-channel autopilot landing, which was also recommended in the manual.

"Landing checklist!" Lian Shanxue called out.

At this moment, the flight attendant, who had been called in and was now sitting in the observer's seat in the back, picked up the inspection form card and asked, "Is it just a matter of reading it as it is?"

Although Lian Shanxue had already taught her how to read the check-in form, the flight attendant was still worried at the last minute and confirmed it.

"Okay, just read it as instructed, I'll check it!" Lian Shanxue confirmed.

"Oh! Engine starter switch, continuous!"

The flight attendant read aloud a command, and Lian Shanxue followed up by verifying the position of the engine start switch: "Start switch, continuously!"

"Speed ​​brakes, green light ready!"

"Green light for pre-registration!"

"Green light to lower landing gear!"

"Landing gear down, three green lights!"

"Flap. Green light!"

"Flaps 30, green light in place!"

The flight attendant explained each item, and Lian Shanxue verified each one, thus completing the landing checklist.

"We'll be performing an autopilot landing soon. The most important thing about autopilot landing is monitoring whether the aircraft automatically levels off and reduces throttle. If the leveling action doesn't work at 50 feet, I'll immediately alert you. I'll disengage the autopilot and manually level off. If the throttle reduction doesn't occur at 27 feet, I'll disengage the autothrottle and manually reduce throttle. Your task is to monitor these two actions," Lian Shanxue said.

"Pull-out method, deceleration method? What are those? Where can I find them?" The flight attendant was a little confused, and only remembered a few words from Lian Shanxue's long speech.

This is what is meant by knowing each word individually, but not understanding what is being said when put together.

"Pull-out and deceleration are Chinese translations; on the FMA, they are represented as FLARE and RETARD."

"What is FMA?!" The flight attendant was going crazy. One problem hadn't been solved yet, and now a new incomprehensible term had appeared.

"FMA! Flight Mode Annunciator! It's the display that shows the autopilot mode! It's right here." Lian Shanxue said, pointing to the FMA on the PFD display, "MCP SPD, VOR/LOC, G/S. This is the FMA display for intercepting ILS. In a moment, the first box on the left will switch to throttle reduction mode, and the third box will show leveling mode, but it's all in English."

The flight attendant's face darkened: "You were just saying that the 'flattening' method takes effect at 50 feet and the 'throttle reduction' method takes effect at 27 feet, right? I didn't misunderstand, did I?"

"Yes, that's right, that's correct!"

"Where do you look for altitude? That altimeter?" The flight attendant pointed to the barometric altimeter on the right side of the PFD, which was one of the few instruments she could recognize.

"No, you can't look at the barometric altimeter!" Lian Shanxue directly refuted the flight attendant's statement.

"Huh?" The flight attendant was taken aback. "This is all wrong?"

"That's right! You should look at the radio altimeter, not the barometric altimeter."

"Nothing?" The flight attendant frowned, leaned closer to Lian Shanxue, and asked about a new term she had never heard before.

"The radio altimeter! It's here." Lian Shanxue was originally going to show the purser the radio altimeter reading under the PFD attitude indicator, but thinking about the purser's puzzled expression during the communication just now, she finally gave up the idea: "Never mind, you don't need to worry about this."

"By the way, after we land, the medical team will come in first to carry the captain out. You stay in the cabin and don't let the passengers rush around."

Upon hearing that she no longer needed to pay attention to those strange things, the flight attendant finally breathed a sigh of relief. When it came to her job, she was no longer afraid.

"No problem! It's not a dangerous situation requiring evacuation or rapid disembarkation. I guarantee I'll maintain order in the cabin."

If the engine were to catch fire now, and the cabin doors were to open, it would be difficult to maintain order as passengers would try to escape. After all, escaping is a human instinct, and it's hard to control.

However, since only the front cabin door seal is broken, there are no external hazards visible or odorous to the passengers, so their emotions are naturally less agitated. This makes it easier for the cabin crew to maintain order in the cabin.

She's been a chief flight attendant for so many years. If she can't even manage cabin order under these circumstances, she might as well resign and leave to avoid making a fool of herself.

Seeing that the flight attendant was confident, Lian Shanxue felt a little relieved. Today's wind was only about two meters strong, and the wind direction was almost entirely along the runway, with virtually no crosswinds. The wind direction and speed were also very stable, making it a fairly good weather condition.

"When the tow truck pulls the plane to its parking spot, you can go out and take charge of the cabin operations," Lian Shanxue instructed.

Since we're still in the air, it's not appropriate to open or close the cockpit door anymore.

The flight attendant nodded, indicating that she understood.

Having explained everything, Lian Shanxue finally focused all her attention back on the plane.

As the plane descended, a small white "FLARE" appeared below the G/S display on the FMA. Upon seeing this white lettering, Lian Shanxue immediately shouted, "Level the course!"

Next, Lian Shanxue adjusted her seat to make herself more comfortable. However, this adjustment seemed more like a subtle movement driven by Lian Shanxue's restlessness.

At the same time, Lian Shanxue glanced at the instructor next to her.

At this point, the instructor and his seat had been pulled to a relatively far back position, with all his seatbelts fastened, his hands crossed and secured behind his shoulder straps, and his legs adjusted to be pulled back.

This was done to prevent any part of the instructor's body from interfering with control. The memory of an unconscious instructor leaning against the control stick during decompression, causing an unauthorized descent, is still fresh in everyone's mind!

After confirming that the instructor's body was properly secured and would not affect the operation of the aircraft, Lian Shanxue withdrew her gaze.

"1000 feet, landing configuration complete, stable approach!"

Lian Shanxue signaled to the cabin that the plane was about to land, and the chief flight attendant sitting in the back also held her breath slightly.

"500 feet altitude, good heading path, good glide path!"

Although it was an autonomous driving system in operation, Lian Shanxue still held the accelerator lever with her left hand and the steering wheel with her right, ready to disengage from the autonomous driving system and manually drive the vehicle at any time.

As the plane descended, she could clearly see the runway. Even though she wouldn't need to control the landing this time, she was still a little nervous, and her palms began to sweat.

"One hundred decisions!"

"High decision line, visible on the track, directly ahead!"

Shortly after the minimum electronic report was published, the balancing process began to work automatically, which is the preparation for the deployment of autonomous driving.

"Balance achieved!"

"one hundred!"

"Fifty!"

At a radio altitude of fifty feet, under Lian Shanxue's watchful gaze, the FMA instantly switched from pitch to level, and the aircraft began to increase its attitude and reduce its rate of descent.

Shortly after establishing a grounding attitude, at a radio altitude of 27 feet, the throttle release mechanism activated precisely on time, and the automatic throttle command brought the thrust down to idle.

When the plane was about ten feet away, it was in a near-landing position.

Ten feet, which is only three meters, but in the blink of an eye, a five-foot electronic message appeared.

The moment the five-foot-long message was delivered, almost within the time it takes for a thought to pass, the main wheel touched the ground.

As soon as the main wheels touch down, the air-to-ground logic switches instantly, and the autothrottle automatically disengages without the pilot needing to manually disconnect it. In contrast, the autopilot does not disengage automatically and requires manual disengagement by the pilot.

This was the first time Lian Shanxue had used autopilot to land in a real flight. Perhaps due to nervousness, she only realized what was happening two seconds after the plane touched down and disengaged autopilot, but this was not a big deal.

As the aircraft touched down, the speed brakes automatically rose, and the Lianshan Snow Reversal Jet was activated, causing the aircraft to begin decelerating.

In contrast, co-pilots usually hand over control to the captain after the aircraft touches down, so in actual flights, co-pilots don't always have a good grasp of the amount of manual braking required. Therefore, Lian Shanxue didn't deactivate the automatic brakes early, but waited until the aircraft had decelerated to a sufficiently low speed before deactivating the automatic brakes and switching to manual braking.

Retracting the anti-jet and speed brakes, Lian Shanxue spotted the nearest exit lane and began to turn left to escape.

Since Lian Shanxue didn't have a handwheel, she didn't need to use it. Fortunately, the angle for the left turn off the road was very small, probably less than thirty degrees, so she didn't need to use the handwheel either.

If the angle of departure from the road is very steep, it can be quite troublesome without a handwheel.

After the plane left the runway, Lian Shanxue gradually brought it to a stop. She didn't continue taxiing; she would never do anything reckless.

"Star Traveler 6341 has broken free!" Lian Shanxue reported.

"Star Traveler 6341, then you just stay here and wait for the tow truck. Make sure the tow truck has a proper tag!"

"Okay!" Lian Shanxue was a little tired at this point, and replied with just two words without saying anything more.

Watching the trailer and a maintenance vehicle gradually approaching from not far away, Lian Shanxue took this opportunity to complete the post-landing procedures: turning off the probe heating, turning off all lights except for the taxi lights and strobe lights, turning off the engine start switch, turning on the lower DU display, retracting the flaps, balancing the trim, pressing the weather radar test button, and switching the transponder to ground mode.

After a group of maintenance personnel arrived and a brief discussion ensued, Lian Shanxue started the APU first. Once the startup was complete and the power and air supply were switched to the APU, she shut down both engines and simultaneously turned off the hydraulic system of the A system.

Shortly after, the trailer was attached.

"Star Traveler 6341, trailer attached!"

"Star Cruises 6341, towable, report when in position!" Before the plane landed, the airport had specifically communicated the taxiing route with the tow truck driver. Now, Star Cruises 6341 is given the highest priority on the ground at Chengdu Airport, ensuring a smooth and unobstructed journey.

"Arrival report!" Lian Shanxue contacted maintenance again: "It can be towed now, let's go!"

"Crew, I'll delay it then!"

Once the plane started moving, Lian Shanxue leaned back in her seat, looking completely exhausted.

"It's finally over!" Lian Shanxue relaxed a little, and with that relaxation, a wave of exhaustion washed over her. She even felt like she could fall asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

However, although it was nearing the end, it wasn't time to rest yet. Lian Shanxue forced herself to stay alert and whispered to the flight attendant, "You can go out now and keep an eye on the cabin for me."

The flight attendant nodded, got up, stowed the observer's seat, and quickly left the cockpit.

After the flight attendant left, the cockpit was quiet. Beside her was an unconscious instructor, and Lian Shanxue's mind was blank. The mere decompression of the aircraft had almost exhausted her; what if it were a more serious or complex emergency?

At this moment, she really didn't know how Xu Qing, Han Qi, and even Xu Xian and his group had handled emergencies that were more critical than the decompression of the plane time and time again.

Only after experiencing it firsthand could she truly understand how terrifying those people were!

It's not just about their technical skills, but more about their steely will. Even when faced with certain death, they can still find a glimmer of hope through their own abilities.

After the plane arrived, medical personnel boarded and removed the captain first, then arranged for passengers to disembark in an orderly manner. This plane won't be able to fly anytime soon; it will definitely need to be replaced.

The disembarkation was very fast this time; soon only the flight attendants and Lian Shanxue remained on the plane.

After seeing off the passengers, the flight attendant came into the cockpit and asked Lian Shanxue, "What should we say?"

"I'll call." Lian Shanxue was about to make a call to ask the company, but before she could say it, several people came down from the corridor, and the leader went straight to the cockpit.

"Was the captain taken to the hospital?" the man asked Lian Shanxue directly.

"Hmm!" Lian Shanxue frowned. "Who are you?"

"I'm the manager of the Chengdu base. You can't fly anymore, so go to the hotel and rest for a bit. There are no more flights back to Yunnan today. You can go back to Yunnan early tomorrow morning."

Lian Shanxue lowered her gaze to the ID card hanging on the man's arm, which seemed to be a Star Travel Airlines work ID, and she believed it.

"Okay, I'll get ready. Please wait a moment!"

The man then said, "If it's convenient, could we rest for a while and then go to the base to talk?"

The manager of the Rongcheng branch wants to know what's going on!

This was the normal procedure, and Lian Shanxue was aware of it, so she had no objections, even though she was already very tired and somewhat exhausted. However, she couldn't do anything about following the procedure.

Perhaps noticing that Lian Shanxue sounded somewhat listless, the base manager added, "It's just a brief inquiry; it won't take long. The main purpose is to give the Flight Department and Safety Supervision Department a general overview, so they won't be caught off guard when they ask questions tomorrow."

Only after returning to Yunnan tomorrow can we have a proper joint interrogation. Today's questioning at the Chengdu base will probably just be a casual chat, and won't require too much effort.

"Hmm," Lian Shanxue didn't say much, just hummed softly, and then went to pack her things.

Seeing that Lian Shanxue didn't seem to want to say anything, the base manager didn't press her. He then explained the company's arrangements for the crew to the flight crew again, and then waited at the cabin door, seemingly to leave with the crew.

Escorted by the base manager, Lian Shanxue and his group went to a hotel in Chengdu for the night. After checking into their rooms, they went to rest separately.

The base manager said that a car would pick up the crew at the hotel entrance in three hours and take them to the base. He told them to note the time so they wouldn't oversleep.

The entire crew is exhausted; you can tell just by looking at their eyes and expressions. The base manager can't say a word, because he's really afraid they'll sleep until tomorrow.

After seeing off the incessantly chattering base manager, Lian Shanxue returned to her room, took off her coat, leaving only her underwear, plopped down on the bed, stared blankly for a while, and finally let out a soft sigh.

After slowly getting up, Lian Shanxue prepared to take a shower to refresh herself, but her phone rang just as she made a move.

Lian Shanxue paused, glanced at her phone screen, and her pupils contracted slightly. It was Xu Xian's number.

After hesitating for a moment, Lian Shanxue finally answered the phone.

As soon as the call connected, Xu Xian's urgent voice came from the other end: "Where are you?"

"I'm staying at a hotel in Chengdu. I'm heading back to Yunnan tomorrow!"

"Are you alright?"

Lian Shanxue: "No!"

Xu Xian clearly breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good. Then you can rest assured and I won't disturb you anymore!"

The conversation was brief; Xu Xian didn't even ask about any details regarding the pressure relief.

"Aren't you going to ask me what happened?" Lian Shanxue suddenly said.

"Is that important?"

Lian Shanxue froze for a moment. At this moment, she could no longer hold back, and tears welled up in her eyes: "Xu Xian, I was so scared then! I'm a professional pilot, how could I be scared when something like this happened?"

"Pilots are human too! Humans are afraid, there's nothing to blame yourself for," Xu Xian comforted him. "I was scared too during the emergency landing on the Kunyang River! Don't think too much about it."

"But."

"No buts! Rest assured, I'll come back to the company to see you tomorrow." Xu Xian said solemnly, "Remember, flying isn't everything. As long as you're safe, everything else is fine."

Lian Shanxue had previously told Xu Xian that she had earned enough money to pay for her mother's medical expenses. In other words, even if Lian Shanxue stopped doing anything related to flying, she could still live a peaceful life. She didn't need to go down a dead end.

"And what about you?" Lian Shanxue suddenly asked Xu Xian, changing the subject abruptly.

Xu Xian was caught off guard by Lian Shanxue's sudden question, and only paused for a moment before replying: "I still have to fly down; it's something I have to do."

Lian Shanxue's expression darkened: "See you tomorrow then!"

Xu Xian knew that Lian Shanxue was probably really tired, so he simply replied, "See you tomorrow!"

Then, I hung up the phone.

After resting for more than two hours, Lian Shanxue was woken up by her alarm clock. She got dressed in a bit of annoyance and went downstairs. Sure enough, she saw a shuttle car at the hotel entrance.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the entire flight crew had already arrived, leaving her seemingly all alone.

The overnight hotel was only a five-minute walk from the Rongcheng branch base. Compared to the magnificent Dianyun base building, the Rongcheng branch base building looked rather shabby, just a four-story building that was quite inconspicuous among the surrounding skyscrapers.

When the car arrived at the entrance of the base, the base manager, who seemed to have been informed, was already waiting at the gate.

After Lian Shanxue and her group came down, the base manager said to everyone, "The crew, go to the conference room on the second floor. Lian Shanxue, come with me."

He then gestured to Lian Shanxue, signaling her to follow.

"Are there any other leaders present?" Lian Shanxue asked directly.

The base manager is the highest-ranking leader at the Rongcheng branch base, so logically there's no need for him to come out and greet them. Therefore, it's highly likely there's an even higher-ranking leader inside, and the base manager came specifically to give her a heads-up beforehand.

"Security Director Chen is here, and so is Director Lu. Don't be nervous, just say whatever you want."

Just as Lian Shanxue had predicted, there was an even bigger leader waiting inside!

Xingyou Airlines has a branch base in Chengdu, another in Fulai, and several overnight stops. Sometimes, company leaders will travel to these branch bases or overnight stops to conduct inspections.

Unfortunately, Safety Director Chen Fei and Deputy General Manager of Flight Department Lu Xinyu happened to be inspecting the Rongcheng branch base and happened to come across this incident, so naturally they had to inquire about it.

Even knowing she would be questioned by two leaders soon, Lian Shanxue remained remarkably calm, even smiling slightly: "So, the so-called 'chatting and understanding the situation' requires the presence of the Safety Director and the Deputy General Manager of the Flight Department? Quite a grand affair!"

The base manager was a little embarrassed: "You don't need to be nervous, just tell the truth."

"I'm not nervous!" Lian Shanxue smiled. "But I feel like you seem quite nervous? What's wrong?"

From the moment she got out of the car, the base manager had a worried look on his face, and there must be something going on.

The base manager stopped in his tracks and didn't hide anything: "Your stress relief story has already spread online, and it seems to be gaining traction."

"Isn't this normal? Once the emergency code goes down, it can't be hidden anymore. Nothing major has happened, so what's the panic?"

Once an aircraft crew displays an emergency code, not only air traffic control can see it, but many flight assistance software programs can also detect it. Since some of these programs are publicly available, it's impossible to hide the fact.

However, this incident didn't cause any major impact, and it couldn't compare to the explosive buzz surrounding the previous forced landing on the Kunyang River. It'll probably only be a three-minute frenzy, and things should calm down quickly.

Given the recent emergency landing incident on the Kunyang River, it's normal and temporary that the public is paying excessive attention to news related to flight safety.

Lian Shanxue didn't think it was a big deal!

The base leadership didn't see it that way. They had been pressured by public opinion after the forced landing on the Kunyang River and really didn't want to suffer that again.

Lian Shanxue was just an employee; all they needed to do was focus on doing their job well and earning money. The company's reputation and public opinion were irrelevant to them.

Since the company being criticized online doesn't affect their salaries, they basically don't feel anything about it.

The base manager is already considered a leader, and has to consider many more things than the employees. Perhaps he's overthinking it, but he really doesn't want to experience the online pressure like during the Kunyang River emergency landing incident!

Whether this is a blessing or a curse, no one can know for sure!

(End of this chapter)