Legendary Captain

Chapter 341 Investigating the Cause of the Accident

The moment the main landing gear touched down, Tang Jian immediately took over the control of the aircraft.

The co-pilot has relatively little training in ground handling, which is an objective limitation and not something that can be influenced by subjective human will. It is foreseeable that Lian Shanxue has weaknesses in ground handling.

Lian Shanxue was also very clear about her own technical strengths and weaknesses. After landing, she noticed that Tang Jian had started to take control, so she slowly relinquished control of the aircraft to prevent interference from simultaneous operations on both sides.

On the control tower of Huining Airport, Xu Xian looked at the landing point and exclaimed, "The landing point was well controlled. It made almost full use of the entire runway length, and there was no drifting."

Just before landing, Lian Shanxue deliberately pressed down on the touchdown point to prevent it from shifting forward significantly. This intentional action prevented the aircraft from establishing a proper landing attitude during the later stage of leveling off, resulting in a minor hard landing.

This wasn't because Lian Shanxue couldn't control the landing load. After entering the runway airspace, the aircraft's condition was already normal, and theoretically, controlling the landing at this point shouldn't have been too difficult. However, due to the aircraft's high speed, the touchdown point would be further forward compared to a normal touchdown point. This would further exacerbate the already insufficient runway length.

Therefore, Lian Shanxue made a decisive move, pressing down on the nose of the aircraft as it was about to land, causing the nose to move backward, compressing the drift distance, and increasing the braking distance.

The byproduct of doing this is that the grounding load will be too large, because the leveling process is done late and the grounding attitude is small, which is unavoidable.

Lianshan Snow simply made a choice between a hard landing and a choice of landing point.

Clearly, in Xu Xian's view, Lian Shanxue's choice was extremely wise. However, that wasn't enough…

The runway at Huining Airport is simply too short. Even though Lian Shanxue had already increased the braking distance, risking a hard landing, the runway was too short.

The arresting net at the other end of the runway is raised the moment the aircraft touches down. This is a necessary measure to prevent insufficient braking effect, and nobody wants to have to use the arresting net.

Yuan Fengjie noticed Xu Xian looking at the arresting net at the end of the runway and said with some concern, "This is an arresting net prepared for fighter jets. How effective is it at stopping large passenger planes..."

"Almost zero, right?" Xu Xian sighed.

Huining Airport has an extremely short runway, making it a no-fly zone for large military transport aircraft. Therefore, the arresting net here is only for smaller fighter jets. Of course, there are very few specialized arresting nets for large aircraft. Raising this net is more of a psychological comfort.

Yuan Fengjie squinted: "It's up to them."

After applying the brakes, Tang Jian instinctively tried to engage the reverse thrust. However, he quickly realized that with one engine off and the other completely dead, what was the point of reverse thrust?

Because the speed brake on the left wing had failed, neither Shanxue nor Tang Jian dared to pre-position the speed brake beforehand. They didn't know what unpredictable situation would occur at the moment of touchdown, so they decided to manually pull up the speed brake.

After realizing that reverse thrust was useless, Tang Jian manually pulled up the deceleration plate to destroy lift and increase friction.

Just as Tang Jian had predicted, the flight spoiler on the left wing did not rise, but the ground spoiler started to work, while the flight and ground spoilers on the right wing were also functioning very well.

This resulted in different levels of drag on both sides, causing the aircraft to veer to the right. However, Tang Jian had anticipated this when manually pulling the speed brakes, and being mentally prepared made it relatively easy to handle.

Tang Jian, who was prepared, stepped on the left rudder to correct the aircraft's direction. To gain more directional control, Tang Jian would continuously use the differential brakes, which were much more effective than the rudder. However, the differential brakes were so powerful that at high speeds, they required precise maneuvering; otherwise, it was easy to over-steer and cause the aircraft to overshoot the runway.

However, it is clear that Tang Jian's ability to be hired as a captain was no accident. Tang Jian had performed quite well in controlling the direction of the runway on the ground. Even with the difference in drag on both sides, he was still able to keep the aircraft's direction of the runway in the center line.

At the same time, Tang Jian pressed the pressure plate all the way down to make the aircraft press more firmly onto the runway surface, thereby increasing friction and reducing braking distance.

The crew has used every method they think is available, and thankfully it didn't rain today, otherwise they definitely wouldn't have been able to stop.

Tang Jian slammed on the brakes, achieving maximum manual braking effectiveness. However, manual braking has a major drawback: the lack of an anti-lock braking system. This means that if the manual brakes are applied too forcefully, it can easily lead to a tire blowout, just like what Tang Jian did.

Sure enough, because Tang Jian braked too hard, after a period of rapid deceleration, the tire on the left main wheel suddenly burst open with a loud bang.

Due to the difference in drag, the aircraft always tends to turn to the right, so Tang Jian not only has to use the left rudder but sometimes also the left brake. This results in the left wheel brake being used much more frequently than the right wheel brake. Consequently, in the event of a tire blowout, the left main tire naturally blows out earlier than the right tire.

These are all theoretical concepts, and Tang Jian should be able to figure them out if he calms down. However, in this situation, Tang Jian has no time to think. After the tire blowout, the plane's trajectory immediately became uncontrollable.

On the control tower, Xu Xian's eyelids twitched wildly, and he muttered, "A tire blowout!?"

In the cockpit, Lian Shanxue instinctively reached out to help when she saw the plane was becoming somewhat out of control. However, Tang Jian shouted, "Don't move! I can handle this. Don't interfere with my control!"

Based on Boeing's control principles, two people controlling the aircraft would interfere with each other, so it is not a wise choice for Lian Shanxue to join the control now.

"Trust me, I can handle it!" Tang Jian's face was extremely solemn, and large beads of sweat seeped from his forehead. He was under tremendous pressure.

Lian Shanxue's ability to control the vehicle on the ground is limited by the objective conditions of the co-pilot himself. Her participation would only be counterproductive, and everything would have to be done by him alone.

Tang Jian kept controlling the aircraft's direction, and when the speed was low enough, he began to operate it using the handwheel. However, he soon discovered that due to the detachment of the number one engine, the A hydraulic system had failed, rendering the connected nose wheel steering mechanism ineffective.

When Tang Jian discovered that the handwheel couldn't be turned at all, he realized that the handwheel was powered by the A hydraulic system, and since they had lost the A hydraulic system, the handwheel was no longer usable.

"Damn it!" Tang Jian cursed, and had no choice but to rely on his feet to repeatedly adjust the direction of the plane's runway.

Although the aircraft's taxiing direction wasn't very stable, it was roughly on the center line before.

As the braking distance increased, Lian Shanxue could even clearly see the barrier netting. At that moment, Lian Shanxue almost stopped breathing with tension.

On the control tower, Xu Xian clenched his fists tightly, his eyes fixed almost unblinkingly on the runway. After the plane slowed visibly, it finally came to a stop just before reaching the arresting net.

In the cockpit, Lian Shanxue looked at the barrier net so close at hand, and a huge weight lifted from her shoulders. She let out a long sigh of relief: "It's finally over!"

……

When the Xingyou Operations Control Center received the news from Binjiang Airport that there were no casualties among the crew and passengers, everyone was overjoyed.

However, amidst this atmosphere almost entirely filled with joy, one person was deeply worried. That person was Chief Pilot Ning Sheng!

It's certainly good that no one was injured, but after enjoying the joy for a short time, shouldn't we think about why their spaceship experienced such an absurd situation as its engine detaching?

All the problems encountered by flight 6334 today stemmed from the detachment of engine number one, including the overheating of engine number two, which were all caused by attempts to cover up the detachment of engine number one.

If... if it is discovered that the engine detachment was due to poor maintenance by Star Travel, then it can be said that Star Travel is doomed, no one can save it, and there is no other possible outcome.

To be honest, given the precedent of the previous investigation by the authorities finding errors in Xingyou Airlines' maintenance documents, Ning Sheng was genuinely worried about Xingyou Airlines' aircraft maintenance department.

With this incident escalating to such a degree, it's no surprise that the authorities will definitely take over the investigation. If it truly is a maintenance issue with Star Travel, then it will be exposed.

At that moment, the operations control center welcomed three new guests: Wen Jingshu, Yang Ning, and Lu Xinyu.

Wen Jingshu's face was still somewhat pale, and her features had become slightly thinner. The fetus in her womb was causing her almost unbearable suffering. Fortunately, all of the fetus's indicators were normal, which was undoubtedly the greatest comfort to Wen Jingshu. As long as she could get through the most uncomfortable period of early pregnancy, the relatively comfortable second trimester would follow. However, even the first trimester, which lasted for several months, was enough to make Wen Jingshu endure.

"How is the situation?" Wen Jingshu looked directly at Ning Sheng, her voice not loud, but carrying an unquestionable aura, which was a result of being in a high position for a long time.

With Wen Jingshu's arrival, the excitement in the operations control center gradually cooled down and eventually calmed down.

Ning Sheng said, "What we can confirm about the aircraft's damage so far is... both engines are likely totaled. The plane is currently parked at Huining Airport, not far from Binjiang Airport. The only good news is that, according to reports from Binjiang Airport, there were no casualties..."

"No casualties? That's the best news." Wen Jingshu said calmly, "I heard an engine detached? Who's in charge of that? The maintenance and support department?"

"Chairman, it's me!" At that moment, Qi Fengyang rushed in, panting, from the entrance of the operations control center. "Chairman, I'm now the acting Vice President of Maintenance!"

Since the authorities unexpectedly discovered problems with Xingyou Airlines' aircraft maintenance records during their investigation of Xu Xian's runway overrun incident, someone had to take the blame. Unfortunately, Wang Xian, the top leader of the maintenance support system and Qi Fengyang's mentor, resigned to take responsibility. Subsequently, the position of Vice President of Maintenance was temporarily filled by Qi Fengyang, the former Chief Engineer.

After that, Qi Fengyang became the youngest senior management leader in the history of Xingyou Aviation.

However, as if cursed, this incident occurred shortly after Qi Fengyang took over as acting vice president of maintenance.

"Was the engine detachment a pilot's technical problem or a maintenance issue with the aircraft itself?" Wen Jingshu turned her gaze to Qi Fengyang.

Qi Fengyang's heart pounded: "It's a maintenance issue."

No matter how the pilot flies, the engine should not detach. This is not a situation that can be caused by problems with the pilot's handling skills; it can only be due to a structural defect in the aircraft itself. Therefore, it naturally falls under the jurisdiction of the maintenance department.

"Since it's your problem, what exactly is your explanation?" Wen Jingshu's voice was soft, but it contained a hint of anger: "You're the ones who've made a mistake?"

"Impossible!" Qi Fengyang immediately retorted, "In the past two years, our company's maintenance department has never been involved in any operation of the engine nacelle. We would never disassemble the nacelle for any routine engine maintenance, I can say that with certainty."

He had just been notified that one of the company's planes had experienced an extremely rare engine detachment incident, so he immediately rushed over from home.

On the way here, he had wondered if there was a problem with their maintenance. But the more he thought about it, the less sense it made. They generally don't touch the pod when maintaining or repairing the engine.

Disassembling the engine nacelle is extremely complicated. Apart from the scheduled periodic inspections, who would touch the engine nacelle for no reason?

"You mean you didn't touch the pod? Then why did such a big incident happen this time?" Wen Jingshu questioned, "Are you sure none of your subordinates broke the rules?"

With so many people in the maintenance department, who knows if some of them might be dishonest or not follow the rules? What can a vice president of maintenance guarantee?

"Chairman, you don't know, disassembling the engine nacelle is extremely complicated. It's not something one or two people can do casually; it's time-consuming and labor-intensive. If it's done against regulations, it's impossible to go undetected," Qi Fengyang explained. There are hundreds of interfaces between the engine and the nacelle; it's simply impossible for someone to disassemble the engine nacelle without everyone's knowledge.

Wen Jingshu lowered her eyes slightly: "You mean no one touched the engine nacelle? So it just broke down on its own?"

Qi Fengyang paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered something, a possibility: "We probably didn't touch the engine nacelle, but someone else has indeed touched it recently?"

A glint of light flashed in Wen Jingshu's eyes: "Who?"

Qi Fengyang paused for a moment: "Not long ago, this aircraft underwent a D-check (D-maintenance), during which the engine nacelles were also removed..."

Wen Jingshu's gaze sharpened slightly: "Where was the D test done?"

Qi Fengyang slowly lowered his head and said in a deep voice, "Abroad!"

(End of this chapter)