Legendary Captain

Xu Xian continued to meticulously perform his refueling supervision duties while passengers began boarding. Only then did Xu Xian realize that he had left the flight case and data package at the cabin door, and wondered if there was a problem.

Anxiously waiting for the fuel to be added, Xu Xian accelerated and drove back.

Just as I was going up the stairs, my phone beeped in my pocket. The sound seemed to be from a text message.

Xu Xian took out his phone and saw that it was a text message from Zhu Jia.

"I've taken the data package into the cockpit, and the tablet issue is resolved. The captain doesn't know about this, so don't say anything. Keep quiet today, and don't request any more seat practice or anything like that. Just fly today's flights discreetly. If the captain finds out about the tablet, things will get much more complicated."

Although the captain doesn't have the authority to discipline the trainees, he can still verbally abuse them from beginning to end. The tablet incident isn't a big deal. However, Zhu Jia felt that Captain Fang Ying wasn't exactly a magnanimous person.

In Fang Ying's eyes, the second co-pilot was just a menial worker, and she wouldn't focus much attention on Xu Xian. The wisest choice was to speak less, make as little noise as possible, minimize her presence, and get through these two flights peacefully.

Xu Xian knew Zhu Jia's good intentions, but it was indeed a pity to just waste a day like this without having the opportunity to practice.

After entering through the side of the jet bridge, Xu Xian discovered that the flight case at the cabin door was also missing. Zhu Jia had said she took the data package, but she hadn't mentioned helping to secure her own flight case.

"Could it be that the flight attendants helped put it away?" Xu Xian wondered.

If that's the case, it'll be even more troublesome. His headphones are still in the box! The hatch entrance is packed with people; how am I supposed to get the box out?

Generally, crew members' overnight bags or suitcases are kept in the cloakroom. If the cloakroom is too full, they are placed on the overhead luggage racks in front. Regardless of the type, the cabin aisle is so narrow and blocked by passengers that it's impossible to retrieve them.

Xu Xian pushed through the crowd to the entrance, where he found Xia Qing greeting guests.

That's a bit strange. Isn't it usually the purser who greets passengers at the cabin door? Why is it Xia Qing now? Isn't Xia Qing the purser?

Xia Qing spotted Xu Xian coming over the crowd and waved to him.

Xu Xian's mind raced; he seemed to have guessed where the flying crate had gone.

Upon reaching the cabin door, Xia Qing took two steps back, picked up an earphone from the work area counter, and handed it to Xu Xian: "I saw that it was time to board, but you hadn't come over yet. It wasn't convenient to leave your suitcase at the cabin door, so I put it on the front luggage rack. However, time was a bit tight, so I opened your suitcase without your permission."

Xu Xian took the earphones, a little embarrassed: "It's nothing, thank you for your help. But how did you know my password?"

The flight case has two locks with combination locks, which Xia Qing should not know.

"Remember to shuffle the numbers after you set your password in the future," Xia Qing said with a smile.

Xu Xian instantly understood Xia Qing's meaning, blushed deeply, and hurriedly climbed into the cockpit.

It turned out that after setting the password last night, Xu Xian forgot to scramble the numbers. Therefore, Xia Qing didn't even need to turn the combination lock; she simply opened the box.

How embarrassing! Xu Xian felt that today's debut flight was a complete disaster. It showcased his woefully inept intelligence time and time again.

Once inside the cockpit, Fang Ying conducted a follow-up inspection, while Zhu Jia greeted Xu Xian as he entered.

Xu Xian noticed that both Fang Ying's and Zhu Jia's stands had tablets mounted on them, and Fang Ying was focused on checking the panel, seemingly unaware that a tablet was missing. Zhu Jia had placed the data package in the small dressing room behind the P6 board.

Considering Fang Ying's previous actions, Xu Xian felt that Zhu Jia's decision not to let Fang Ying know about the missing tablet was a wise one.

This wasn't Xu Xian's first time in a real cockpit; he had previously piloted several takeoffs and landings while flying from Hailing Airport. However, although he had been in the cockpit and sat in the co-pilot's seat, Xu Xian had never sat in the observer's seat.

In short, he didn't know how to arrange the observers' seats.

Theoretically, a Boeing cockpit can seat four people, with one more seat behind the captain's seat. However, if this seat is used, the captain's seat cannot be pulled back too far, otherwise it would pinch the legs of the person behind, which is quite inconvenient. Therefore, the seat behind the captain is usually unoccupied. The so-called observer seat generally refers to a foldable seat that can be retracted, located in the cockpit entrance aisle.

In other words, if the observer's seat is lowered, the entrance to the cockpit will be blocked.

The observer's communication panel is located on the rear overhead panel, while the communication panels for the left and right seats are located on the central control console. Additionally, the observer's headphone jack and oxygen mask are only visible when the seat is reclined.

However, Xu Xian got stuck on the first step! There wasn't even enough room to put down a seat, let alone do the work that followed.

Therefore, trainees must be accompanied by a first officer during their first flight mission. Even if they've flown in a simulator, there are still many differences between a real flight and a real flight. What they might not know, they still won't know.

Fang Ying was working, and Xu Xian didn't want to interrupt the captain. Besides, deep down, he didn't want to have much contact with Fang Ying.

Xu Xian gently patted Zhu Jia on the shoulder, deciding it was best to seek Zhu Jia's help.

Zhu Jia turned her head and saw Xu Xian with his hands outstretched, his brows furrowed, looking helpless at the observer's seat.

"Don't know how to put it down?" Zhu Jia laughed. He then pulled out his chair, leaned forward with his left hand on the armrest, and touched the top of the observer's seat with his right hand, saying, "There's a latch here; just press it and it will go down."

Instead of lowering the seat himself, Zhu Jia pointed out the buckle location to Xu Xian and let Xu Xian try it himself.

Following Zhu Jia's directions, Xu Xian indeed found a latch. He pressed it gently, and there was a clear click as the latch loosened. With a gentle pull, the seat could be lowered!