Legendary Captain

Chapter 360 Save the mother? Save the child?

The pilot wasn't blind. The Chimelong Airlines plane was waiting at the runway tip, its attention constantly focused on the planes on the fifth leg of the runway. It knew that once that plane landed, it could then proceed onto the runway for takeoff.

When the Kunlong Airlines plane entered the airspace above the runway, the Chimelong flight crew couldn't actually detect the horizontal deviation due to the viewing angle. However, as the Kunlong plane passed directly in front of the Chimelong crew and the distance gradually increased, the horizontal deviation of the Kunlong Airlines plane became particularly noticeable.

"Where are they flying? It doesn't look like the center line, it's way off." The captain of the Chimelong Airlines plane looked out the left window, and the deviation became easier to spot when the distance was increased. It's the same principle as when you need to extend your line of sight during takeoff and landing.

The co-pilot couldn't see clearly at first either, but the Kunlong Airlines plane was veering so far off course that anyone who wasn't blind could see it.

"Is he flying towards the left side of the runway? Could he be mistaking the runway edge lights for the runway centerline lights?" the co-pilot asked doubtfully.

Under normal circumstances, the passenger in the front seat would never even dare to imagine mistaking the runway edge lights for the runway centerline lights.

Pilots aren't blind. Vision is a crucial criterion during the pilot recruitment medical examination. If you can't even see the runway lights clearly, what kind of pilot are you?

In all my years of flying, I've never heard of a pilot mistaking runway edge lights for runway centerline lights.

However, this situation indicates that the Kunlong aircraft was flying towards the left side of the runway. The only plausible explanation for this is that it mistook the runway edge lights for the runway centerline lights.

Of course, precipitation can indeed affect a pilot's visual conditions, and there is a very small possibility that such an absurd situation could occur.

The crew made a misjudgment due to the precipitation. Even so, mistaking the runway edge lights for the runway centerline lights is utterly ridiculous.

The Chimelong Airlines captain watched the Kunlong Airlines plane gradually disappear into the distance. It seemed that, just as the co-pilot had said, the Kunlong plane was flying towards the left side of the runway. Finally, the Chimelong captain couldn't hold back any longer and gave a warning over the control tower.

However, just as the Chimelong Airlines captain finished speaking, the Kunlong Airlines plane had already touched down.

The moment the aircraft touched down, all the lights in the area that Kunlong Aviation had passed through went out. It is highly likely that the landing gear crushed the runway edge lights.

"Something really happened!" As soon as the lights went out, the Chimelong Airlines captain knew something terrible had happened.

On the control tower, the controllers were still communicating with the meteorological department and simultaneously discussing the takeover of the aircraft after takeoff with the approach team.

Just as they were busy with their work, the voice of the Chimelong Airlines captain came through the control tower.

Upon hearing this, the tower controller was stunned for a moment, then suddenly felt as if he had been electrocuted. He immediately put down all his work and stood up to look in the direction of runway 22.

However, the rain was too heavy, and the entire airport looked foggy, making it difficult to see clearly. So I grabbed the binoculars next to me and looked towards the runway again.

Upon closer inspection, they saw the plane touch down. Just as the Chimelong Airlines captain had observed, all the lights went out wherever the Kunlong Airlines plane passed. The air traffic controllers immediately broke out in a cold sweat; this was a clear violation of the runway edge lights.

Seemingly realizing there was a problem, Kunlong Airlines' plane, after crashing through more than a dozen runway edge lights, made a right turn and returned to the runway centerline area.

Before the air traffic controllers could even ask, the Kunlong Airlines crew, realizing the problem, spoke over the radio: "Tower, I think I've crossed the left runway edge light!"

The air traffic controller nearly fainted from anger: "Kunlong 9432, stop where you are! Do not taxi any further!"

Then the tower controller turned to Chimelong Flight 5441 at the runway tip and said, "Chimelong Flight 5441, there is an inspection to be conducted behind Runway 22, so it is temporarily unavailable. Please wait here. I will direct you to Runway 23 for takeoff in a moment."

Because the Kunlong Airlines plane crushed a large number of runway lights, debris from the lights is flying everywhere. Now, nobody knows where the debris might be on the runway. If it's temporarily sucked into the engine, that will undoubtedly create even more problems.

Therefore, the air traffic controllers ordered the Kunlong aircraft to stop in place, occupying the runway.

As for Chimelong's planes, Runway 22 is currently unusable, so they need to be diverted to another runway. However, Chimelong's planes are currently stuck at the runway terminus and cannot turn around on the spot. Since the runway condition is unclear, the control tower is hesitant to allow Chimelong's planes to turn back via the runway and will only allow them to proceed after the ground handling vehicles have inspected the runway. Until then, Chimelong's planes must remain in place.

The Chimelong Airlines plane simply said, "Tower, you don't need to direct me to change runways later. I've decided not to take off yet. Just direct me back to the apron in a bit!"

The captain of Chimelong Airlines was terrified when a Kunlong Airlines plane crashed into and destroyed the runway edge lights. While there might have been pilot error, it cannot be denied that obstructed visibility due to precipitation was also a contributing factor.

Although the current rainfall meets the standards for takeoff and landing, based on past experience, the Chimelong Airlines captain decided to wait a little longer, just to be on the safe side, until the rain subsided further. Only then could they be absolutely certain of success.

"Not taking off?" The air traffic controller was surprised that the Chimelong Airlines crew was so frightened that they abandoned takeoff immediately: "Please wait a moment, I will communicate with the apron to find your parking spot."

"Okay." The captain of Chimelong Airlines could vaguely see a large number of lamp fragments scattered on the runway by the light of the runway lights, and was immediately filled with fear.

The aircraft that took off was startled, and the other approaching aircraft following behind the Kunlong also changed their minds.

"Star Travel 6721, we have halted our approach. Control tower, please provide me with a heading and altitude."

"Chimelong 5732, we will not approach any further. We will make an emergency landing in Jiangcheng. Please contact the control tower for me."

……

Pilots are all like this. In marginal weather, once the first plane lands, all the others have to land as well. If the first plane manages to go around, the others won't even try; they'll just divert to an emergency landing. Everyone's on a case-by-case basis. Now that Kunlong Airlines has such a big problem, it's hard to say that precipitation wasn't a factor. Even though the current report says moderate showers, which meets the standards, and even though there's still one runway available, no crew is willing to try again.

Kunlong Airlines made a very "deep" impression on the crews that followed, successfully scaring them all away. Not a single crew was willing to take any more risks. Suddenly, the control tower was filled with requests to abort approaches and make emergency landings, making the tower extremely noisy.

It wasn't just the control tower; the incident of an aircraft breaking through the runway edge lights on Runway 22 was broadcast to all waiting aircraft crews via the clearance frequency. The crews, who had been constantly inquiring about the rain, suddenly became unusually quiet, barely paying attention to the rain anymore. One crew from Xingfei Airlines, who was already prepared and could switch to the apron frequency, even requested to remain on the clearance frequency indefinitely, needing time to discuss with operations control before deciding whether to postpone it.

In the cockpit, the crew of Kunlong 9432 had already applied the stop brakes. The captain, however, was covered in cold sweat and still felt lingering fear.

Immediately after the grounding, they heard more than a dozen loud bangs, instantly snapping them out of their daze. They realized they had likely hit the runway edge lights.

Just now, during the fifth approach, intense fatigue impaired the crew's thinking ability. Even though they vaguely sensed something was wrong, they couldn't figure out what the problem was. After touching down, the loud noise immediately woke the crew, and they reacted instantly. Otherwise, the crew wouldn't have immediately turned right back to the runway centerline after noticing the anomaly.

Once the aircraft returned to the center of the runway, it decelerated sharply. After receiving instructions from the control tower that it could occupy the runway, the aircraft did not turn into the exit lane quickly and eventually came to a stop on the runway.

The captain, greatly shaken, opened the side window and looked behind the plane. He could clearly see that a section of the runway edge light strip on the left was missing.

The captain's heart sank immediately. Wasn't this solid proof that their plane had run over and destroyed the runway edge lights?

Such near-runway overruns are practically considered accident symptoms. If it is an accident symptom, he'll lose his captaincy.

The co-pilot on the right was completely terrified, as the radio kept ringing with requests from other aircraft crews to abort their approach and make an emergency landing. The reason was simple: they had set a bad precedent.

For unsafe incidents at the symptom level, the captain will be demoted to a Level 7 first officer, which is the lowest rank, i.e., a Level 1 first officer.

He was so tired just now that he was somewhat delirious, just like the captain.

In the Star Trek cockpit, both the senior co-pilot and the right-seat co-pilot were visibly shaken. The right-seat co-pilot asked anxiously, "Brother, should we continue taking off?"

The senior co-pilot was also alarmed. With so many crews aborting takeoff and approach, it seemed unlikely that they could continue their flight. After some thought, the senior co-pilot decided to speak with Instructor Wang Lingkun, since he was the captain in charge.

As soon as the senior co-pilot stepped out of the cockpit, he saw Wang Lingkun talking to Xu Xian and greeted Xu Xian very politely: "Brother Xian."

Although Xu Xian's commercial flight qualification was suspended, his seniority was undeniable. Even senior co-pilots with flight licenses were juniors in front of Xu Xian.

Xu Xian hummed in response, without saying anything more. He knew this person hadn't come to see him.

Sure enough, after greeting Xu Xian, the senior co-pilot turned to Instructor Wang Lingkun and said, "Instructor, a Kunlong Airlines plane just touched down on the runway edge. Runway 22 is unusable now. Should we... continue with the takeoff? Or should we ask home?"

"Touched the runway edge? Did he not overshoot?" A hint of surprise flashed across Wang Lingkun's face; such a thing was indeed quite rare.

"It seems not. The crew has turned back, but they broke a lot of runway edge lights, so it looks like a serious incident." The senior co-pilot said, "All the planes that followed the Kunlong approach have now aborted their approaches and diverted to other airports. I was just listening to the departure frequencies, and some flight operators are sticking to their departure frequencies and not switching to other frequencies on the apron. It looks like they're not preparing for takeoff."

"Who would dare to take off now?" Wang Lingkun pondered for a moment. "Tell the dispatch... no, tell the control center to monitor our duty period. Also... tell the operations control to wait until the rain stops lightly before taking off."

With past examples as a warning, even the audacious Wang Lingkun had to become cautious. He certainly wouldn't take off again during a moderate downpour; he'd have to wait until it became light rain.

"Okay, instructor, I'll make the call." The senior co-pilot nodded.

"Okay, I said so, go ahead." Wang Lingkun waved his hand: "By the way, urge the crew on site, your brother Xian is getting impatient."

"Okay, okay, Brother Xian, please wait a moment while I talk to the people on site again," the senior co-pilot said politely.

"It's alright, it's alright, you go ahead with your work, I'm not in a hurry," Xu Xian said with a smile. Then, he asked Wang Lingkun, "Instructor, if things continue like this, you might not be able to leave today. Perhaps we should let him start thinking about what good food is available here. If you can't leave today, the make-up class will be tomorrow afternoon."

"I'm speechless. I have another high-altitude flight tomorrow, that route is so profitable. If I have to make up for it tomorrow, how much will I lose?" Wang Lingkun pounded his chest in frustration. He didn't care about today's shift, he was worried about tomorrow's.

"Instructor, you're not young anymore, and you have a lot of old ailments. Don't fly high-altitude routes anymore. Is money more important or your life?" Wang Lingkun was actually only a few years younger than Xu Xian's mentor, Qin Zongyang. Qin Zongyang stopped flying high-altitude routes a few years ago, not because his skills had declined, but because high-altitude routes were too damaging to his cardiovascular system, and his body couldn't handle it.

Wang Lingkun rolled his eyes: "Of course money is more important! I retired from the army late and haven't earned much money in years. Shouldn't I take advantage of my still-active body to earn as much money as possible for my grandson?"

Wang Lingkun also came from the military, but he retired relatively late and didn't actually earn much money. Like many of the older generation, he wanted to earn as much money as possible while he could still fly, to leave for his descendants.

Xu Xian knew their thinking was very stubborn: "Forget it, I won't try to persuade you anymore. Just be careful."

"I'm perfectly healthy, I'll be fine," Wang Lingkun laughed heartily, his face full of confidence.

……

The following morning, at the Wen family ancestral home.

"What did you say? You...you're...pregnant?" Even the usually composed Wen Changxing's hand, which was gripping his cane, was trembling, showing the shock he was experiencing. "Really...really?"

Wen Jingshu smiled, her eyes crinkling: "Really? You wouldn't joke about something like that, would you?"

"This...this...wait a minute, wait a minute! Let me catch my breath..." Wen Changxing was almost unsteady on his feet, his heart pounding wildly. He looked Wen Jingshu up and down: "Girl, is it that kid Xu Xian?"

Wen Jingshu blushed slightly, but still nodded.

"Wait a minute... like this... let Dr. Zhang come and take a look, okay?" Wen Changxing still didn't want to believe this stroke of good luck; he needed to get a definite answer from the Wen family's private doctor.

The Wen family started in the pharmaceutical industry, so their private doctors are naturally highly skilled. Moreover, the Wen family has access to almost a complete set of medical equipment, so checking for pregnancy shouldn't be a problem.

"Okay, sure." Wen Jingshu didn't refuse; it was time for her routine check-up. The results of the previous check-ups hadn't been good, and she wanted to hear Dr. Zhang's opinion.

After obtaining Wen Jingshu's consent, Wen Changxing quickly called Dr. Zhang to conduct an examination.

The prenatal checkups were few, and the results came back quickly. However, Dr. Zhang didn't speak to Wen Jingshu first, but instead came out and whispered to Wen Changxing, "Chairman, is there some problem with Miss?"

"Huh?" Wen Changxing exclaimed in surprise, "What's wrong?"

"Miss Zhang has a mild congenital blood clotting disorder, and her pelvic condition is not good, with excessive amniotic fluid. If she gives birth, she may experience... severe bleeding," Dr. Zhang said with a grave expression.

"Major bleeding?" Wen Changxing asked quickly, "Is there anything we can do?"

"Well..." Dr. Zhang hesitated for a moment, "Chairman, the best solution is to... terminate the pregnancy as soon as possible!"

(End of this chapter)