Legendary Captain

Chapter 286 Don't offend my eyes!

Given the powerful output of the two engines, even with the roll issues caused by flap asymmetry, there are no concerns about the rate of climb.

As Xu Qing lifted the nose of the aircraft, he maintained the pressure plate movement to keep the aircraft on the correct trajectory. With the combined action of the two engines, a positive climb rate was generated the instant the nose lifted.

"Rising!" Lu Xinyu reported.

Xu Qing glanced at the gauge: "Put the cover back on!"

If the manual landing gear lowering cover is not closed, the landing gear cannot be retracted. Normally, the landing gear lever is currently in the retracted position, and the hydraulic A system is working properly. There is no issue with the landing gear retraction or extension. Once the manual landing gear lowering cover is closed, the lowered left landing gear will naturally retract.

"Okay!" Lu Xinyu unbuckled his seatbelt. The manual landing gear lowering panel was on the floor behind the center console, and it was inconvenient to do so while wearing a seatbelt.

Lu Xinyu quickly resolved the issue with the cover plate. Under hydraulic pressure, the left landing gear began to retract, and soon after, the landing gear indicator light showed that the landing gear had retracted.

"Let's keep the landing gear handles neutral!" Xu Qing said, sounding a little tired and weak.

"Oh!" Lu Xinyu quickly put the landing gear handle in the neutral position.

Xu Qing glanced at the positions of the various instrument switches in the cockpit, then casually switched on the near-ground flap suppression switch. Seeing that there were no major problems, Xu Qing raised his eyelids slightly and said, "Tell the control tower that after 1,200 meters, we will maintain our altitude and make a right turn on our own."

1,200 meters, or 3,900 feet, is the standard altitude for visual takeoffs and landings at Hamchi Airport. In fact, for normal takeoffs and landings, it is not necessary to reach 1,200 meters to make a right turn. Sometimes, a right turn can be made at 400 feet. The area around Hamchi Airport is flat, so there are no terrain obstacles if you turn earlier.

However, Xu Qing was perhaps still shaken by the swarm of drones earlier, so he preferred to gain altitude first and then turn to the three sides for safety.

Upon hearing Xu Qing's instructions, Lu Xinyu quickly contacted the control tower: "Control tower, Star Travel 6333 has resumed flight. Now maintain an altitude of 1200 meters on one side, then turn around on the other three sides and begin the approach again."

"Star Travel 6333, you can stay on one side for now, and then turn right three times after reaching an altitude of 1200 meters." The control tower quickly gave the instructions.

Immediately, the control tower urgently inquired, "Star Travel 6333, is everything alright?"

Lu Xinyu subconsciously glanced at Xu Qing first, only to see Xu Qing shake his head slightly before replying, "The plane is fine now."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the lounge who had also received the radio communication was overjoyed, especially Mei Tingting, whose eyes were slightly moist.

"If you re-approach, will you continue with the original plan?" the control tower inquired.

If they were to do another round, the airport would definitely clear the runway and the airspace above it. It's not impossible to do it again, but at least if they did, there certainly wouldn't be any patrol vehicles stopping in the middle of the runway or drone swarms encroaching on the airspace above the runway.

In this matter, Lu Xinyu had to see what Xu Qing thought. Xu Qing himself replied to the control tower: "The original plan is cancelled. After this round, we landed normally!"

After Xu Qing finished speaking, he took off his headphones and tossed them onto the window visor, then turned to Lu Xinyu and asked, "Can I take over the controls?"

Lu Xinyu paused for a moment, then quickly gripped the steering wheel and confirmed, "Yes, yes, take control!"

Xu Qing sighed wearily, "Then it's up to you. Hand over the controls!"

"Take control!"

After completing the entire handover of controls, Xu Qing released the steering wheel and placed his right hand naturally on his right thigh. If observed closely, one could see that Xu Qing's right hand was trembling slightly.

Lu Xinyu glanced at Xu Qing, whose face was somewhat pale, and cautiously asked, "Mr. Xu, what about the one that lands behind us?"

"Go ahead!" Xu Qing replied softly, "Is it alright if the flaps are asymmetrical?"

"No problem, no problem, I can handle it!" Lu Xinyu said repeatedly.

If it were just a single malfunction like flap asymmetry, Lu Xinyu could handle it; he could even do it all independently.

Xu Qing also felt that Lu Xinyu was, after all, the chief pilot of Xingyou Airlines, so he couldn't be a complete incompetent person, and he was quite at ease.

"Then you fly!" Xu Qing waved his hand. "You don't need my help, do you?"

"No need, no need, I can handle it myself. Mr. Xu, you can rest if you feel tired." Lu Xinyu could almost see the fatigue on Xu Qing's face. Although it was only a short two-minute operation, the control and design involved consumed a lot of mental energy in a short period of time; the intensity was simply too great. Xu Qing's health had never been very good, and with such a huge mental exertion, he was really struggling to keep up.

Xu Qing chuckled self-deprecatingly: "I guess I really am getting old and should retire."

"Mr. Xu, your maneuver just now is still top-notch even among today's civil aviation pilots. I admit I couldn't do it myself. Mr. Xu, if you're already old, then 99% of the pilots currently flying will have already retired," Lu Xinyu said sincerely.

In less than two minutes, Xu Qing managed to devise a way to survive in a situation where there was almost no way out, and he is now putting it into action.

Xu Qing's control over the touchdown point, his mastery of the pressure plate force, and his final correction of the aircraft's direction all demonstrated his abnormally strong piloting ability and his unwavering will. At least in Lu Xinyu's eyes, Xu Qing was a perfect pilot template, an example with virtually no flaws or shortcomings.

Before this, Lu Xinyu could only learn about Xu Qing from other media. Now, having actually flown with Xu Qing on a thrilling special mission, Lu Xinyu realized that the evaluations of Xu Qing on the internet and in the media were never exaggerated, but rather in line with the facts.

Xu Qing deserves all the praise!

If someone like Xu Qing can't become a benchmark in the civil aviation industry, then who is qualified to shoulder this responsibility?

"I'm tired," Xu Qing said, as if she had let go of all her burdens. "To live an old age without dying is to be a thief. I've already reaped twenty years of glory for nothing. If I continue to do so, I'll truly become a thief!"

Sometimes, Xu Qingzhen felt he should have simply announced his complete retirement from the civil aviation industry after the X10 prototype was injured during its test flight. However, at that time, he thought he could use his reputation to promote the development of the X10 project, so he kept putting off retiring for nearly twenty years.

Even when Yun Shang launched his attack on him some time ago, most of the people in the audience were just watching the show. At that time, Xu Qing felt that he had been occupying a certain position for too long and it was time for him to take his final bow.

However, Xu Qing was not the kind of person who would quietly disappear into obscurity. Even if he were to leave the stage, he wanted to make a grand entrance. Even though he knew that his final performance would be capricious and would bring criticism from the authorities to Qingyuan Group, he couldn't vent his anger; his thoughts were stuck, and he was deeply distressed. Xu Qing had been disciplined his whole life, and now, at the moment of his departure, he was going to be capricious this once and for all.

Although the ultra-low-altitude leveling maneuver was not completed, and Xu Qing had already exhausted all his energy and was unable to perform another ultra-low-altitude leveling maneuver, the process was different, but the result was ultimately achieved. With his emotions calmed and his mind at peace, he naturally felt comfortable.

Lu Xinyu sensed the firmness in Xu Qing's tone, realizing that Xu Qing had made up her mind and wouldn't change it. Therefore, Lu Xinyu stopped trying to persuade her, only sighing softly, "I don't know why, but suddenly flying seems a bit boring!"

Xu Qing's lips curled slightly: "Flying... really isn't that interesting."

In the lounge, Cheng Guangyu overheard Xu Qing's explanation for canceling the plan and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that Xu Qing would be stubborn and insist on completing the so-called ultra-low-altitude leveling maneuver. Now it seemed that Xu Qing was still thinking clearly.

"Let's go!" Xu Xian looked at the planes that were already turning into a three-sided triangle in the sky and nudged Wen Jingshu: "Let's go down and get some fresh air."

Wen Jingshu glanced at the somewhat noisy environment below: "If you go down now, you'll be surrounded by people."

"So I have to go down now." Xu Xian suddenly felt a little bored, and without paying any attention to Wen Jingshu, he walked straight towards the exit.

Wen Jingshu hesitated for a moment, but still followed.

Shortly after Xu Xian left, Mei Tingting exchanged a few words with Chen Yi, the vice president of Blue Sky Airlines, and then left the lounge as well.

Xu Xian is gone, Mei Tingting is gone, and with the two most talked-about figures no longer there, the people in the lounge suddenly felt they had nothing to talk about. Especially the media representatives, who knew that it wasn't Xu Xian sitting on the plane, but Xu Qing. After this round of travel, Xu Qing would definitely get off, and they had to notify their subordinates to capture images of Xu Qing exiting the plane. These images could easily be the cover photos for tomorrow's headlines.

With the main character gone, the remaining people were all preoccupied with their own thoughts. Most of the media representatives were in a corner making phone calls to their subordinates and assigning tasks.

Only a few airline representatives and invited social celebrities remained standing in the center of the lounge.

Chen Yi, the vice president of Blue Sky Airlines, who had been given some instructions by Mei Tingting, was about to leave when he suddenly stopped as he passed Yun Shang. He smiled and said to Yun Shang, "Chairman Yun, I heard that Han Qi is no longer with Kunlong Airlines. You'd better take good care of your own little territory and not lose the legacy built by the older generation!"

Yun Shang's eyelids twitched. He first glanced at the other airline representatives around him, and when he realized that they hadn't heard their conversation, he breathed a sigh of relief. Then he sneered, "Nonsense! You should be more worried about the punishment the authorities will give your Qingyuan Group."

Xu Qing's act of replacing Xu Xian at the event was absolutely a violation of the bottom line. No matter how famous or high-ranking Xu Qing is, he should be dealt with accordingly, and the punishment this time will definitely be severe.

Recently, Qingyuan Group has been losing ground and its stock price has been declining. If the authorities were to impose further penalties, it would only make matters worse. However, Chen Yi seems unaffected and even dares to make a few jokes to Yunshang.

If it were any other matter, Yunshang would only retort with considerable confidence, after all, in the current situation, Kunlong Aviation is the strongest in the country, and its confidence is certainly not lacking.

However, Chen Yi hit the nail on the head, pointing out Yunshang's biggest worry, which made Yunshang extremely alarmed.

Few people knew that Han Qi had submitted a notice of termination of employment to Kunlong Airlines; even many members of Kunlong Airlines' board of directors were kept in the dark. How could Chen Yi have found out under such tight secrecy?

Despite its current size and influence, which makes other airlines wary of Kunlong Airlines, it will be large but not strong without Han Qi's departure, lacking any overwhelming advantage.

"Chairman Yun, you don't need to worry about that. The civil aviation market is indeed very tempting, but it's not Qingyuan Group's only source of revenue, or even its main source. You're being too naive to think you can bring Qingyuan down with that," Chen Yi mocked. "Your Kunlong Airlines has made so much money, haven't you ever thought about expanding into other businesses? Or are you still living off ticket revenue?"

Yun Shang's face stiffened; he really had no words to refute Chen Yi's mockery. Kunlong Airlines was currently living off ticket revenue; any other income was probably just from the sale of merchandise. In any case, ticket revenue remained Kunlong Airlines' largest source of income.

Kunlong Airlines did want to expand its business like Qingyuan Group, but expanding its business meant a lot of upfront investment, and sometimes the returns on that investment were not good. As a result, the board of directors was not very keen on developing new businesses.

There's no way around it, making money off airfare is too comfortable; it's practically like making money while lying down. Expanding into new businesses? Risky and troublesome, how can it compare to the comfort of making money with your eyes closed?

It is precisely based on this hedonism that Kunlong Airlines has truly stuck to one path since its rise, with its business remaining almost unchanged. Unlike Qingyuan Group, which has almost completely integrated into all aspects of the civil aviation business. Even after Qingyuan Group's civil aviation operation market shrank and it could no longer generate much revenue from ticket sales, its provision of training services, catering services, and fuel services to other companies' flight attendants remained largely unaffected.

Qingyuan Group has long since transcended the realm of making money from passengers and has begun to profit from other airlines. Therefore, regardless of how things develop in the future, Qingyuan Group may experience some difficulties, but it will not suffer a devastating blow.

Seeing Yun Shang's discomfiture, Chen Yi chuckled: "Is this what they call the difference in vision and perspective?"

On the tarmac, the plane flew a very narrow takeoff and landing path, and by the time Xu Xian got off, the plane was almost touching down.

Now, thanks to the airport's restoration of order, the media reporters who were previously scattered along both sides of the runway have maintained a much greater safe distance. Meanwhile, many of these reporters received reprimands from their superiors, quickly retracted their drones hovering above the runway, and were assigned to film the crew disembarking from the aircraft.

The patrol vehicle that had been stuck in the middle of the runway has been towed away, and the runway has been cleared clean; there is absolutely no foreign object left.

By the time Xu Xian found a relatively quiet spot to stand, the plane had already landed and was slowing down, preparing to leave the runway.

During this touchdown, observers could clearly see that the aircraft was operating with both engines running, which did not meet the prerequisites for a low-altitude leveling maneuver. Furthermore, after touchdown, the aircraft noticeably began to decelerate, seemingly preparing to leave the runway, indicating that the demonstration was likely over.

Seeing this, many reporters were stunned. Wasn't this supposed to be a low-altitude leveling maneuver? All that hype beforehand, and now it's just fizzling out?

However, more discerning journalists understood that the single-wheel touchdown maneuver performed by the flight crew not long ago was likely even more difficult than a low-altitude leveling maneuver. Even if they didn't witness the low-altitude leveling maneuver, seeing the extremely dangerous single-wheel touchdown would make the trip worthwhile.

Many reporters have already begun to discuss how limitless Xu Xian's future potential is.

Xu Xian's ultra-low-altitude leveling operation has already made him famous. Today, his single-round grounding operation is being exposed again. Isn't that like adding fuel to the fire and taking him to the next level?

"I never expected our civil aviation industry to be so lucky, producing another Xu Xian. We'll never have to worry about food and drink again," a reporter said happily to his colleague.

Civil aviation should be a news wasteland, so there must be a leader who can continuously generate a broken window effect; otherwise, civil aviation media will be left with nothing.

The question of Xu Qing and Han Qi's successor had been troubling these media reporters, as it was a crucial issue concerning their livelihoods. However, it now appears that Xu Xian truly has the potential to succeed them.

"Yes, civil aviation has been prosperous for twenty years, and it will continue to prosper in the future. Before Xu Qing's reputation was ruined, I was worried that there would be nothing left to write about." Another reporter chimed in.

The reporter laughed heartily: "Xu Qing? He's just an old relic! But at least he can contribute this bombshell before retirement, so he's made the most of his talents. An illegitimate child, tsk tsk tsk."

Suddenly, he saw a figure that seemed quite familiar beside him.

"Xu Xian!!!" The reporter, upon recognizing the person beside him, almost screamed, his voice cracking: "What are you doing here?"

Xu Xian glanced at him indifferently, then his gaze shifted downwards, focusing on the reporter's work badge. The badge clearly stated his employer.

The reporter quickly realized that Xu Xian was looking at his work ID, and hurriedly covered it up, but it was too late.

"I'll remember you!" Xu Xian withdrew his gaze and said calmly, "Civil aviation will naturally continue to prosper, but it has nothing to do with you anymore."

The reporter, "I," turned ashen-faced. Several of his colleagues even distanced themselves from him as if he were a plague carrier.

The commotion quickly attracted the attention of many people, who were horrified to discover that Xu Xian, who should have been on the plane, was actually standing next to them. So who was on the plane?

As the plane taxied onto the tarmac, everyone's attention was focused on it. The passenger boarding bridge slowly approached the aircraft, and a maintenance worker quickly went up and opened the cabin door.

At this moment, everyone below, and countless cameras, were all focused on the cabin door.

However, when the person everyone was looking forward to finally stepped onto the stairs, Xu Xian's lips curled into an undisguised smile.

The person who came out was actually Lu Xinyu!

"Lu Xinyu? The deputy general manager of the flight department at Xingyou Aviation?"

"Wasn't he one of the people involved in this operation? Where's the operator?"

"Who wants to see him? Where are the people behind him?"

Everyone in the audience was very dissatisfied with Lu Xinyu's appearance. They weren't there to see Lu Xinyu, but rather to look forward to the mysterious manipulator who had replaced Xu Xian.

Perhaps because he had never been watched by so many media reporters before, even Lu Xinyu was a little nervous. He calmed down, and finally mustered up his courage to announce loudly: "The person inside said that he hates blind, foolish, and rumor-mongering people the most. Now, the tarmac below is full of such blind people. He is afraid that seeing you will offend his eyes, so he will not come out for the time being. You should disperse first and not hinder his departure."

Upon hearing this, the reporters in the audience gasped in unison. Lu Xinyu heard a chorus of gasps, and a moment later, countless reporters roared angrily at Lu Xinyu.

"What do you mean? Are you saying we're blind, foolish, spreading rumors, and utterly ignorant? What exactly do you mean?"

"Did you say that, or did someone inside say it? Who exactly is someone inside?"

"Everyone inside, get out! Get out!"

Good heavens, Lu Xinyu's words completely blew the minds of all the reporters present. In Lu Xinyu's eyes, these reporters were all blind, foolish, troublemakers, rumor-mongers, and blind to reason; he even said that seeing them would offend their eyes—it was simply intolerable!

However, just as the reporters' insults continued, Xu Xian's voice suddenly boomed over the entire room: "Why are you so agitated? Isn't it the truth? I've remembered all the rumors that have been spreading against me lately! I'm a petty person, and I'll settle the score with each and every one of them in the future!"

(End of this chapter)