In the cockpit of Blue Sky 9811, Xu Cang sat silently in the observer's seat. At this moment, the plane had descended below 14,000 feet. Although it was still above 10,000 feet, it was physiologically tolerable. Xu Cang no longer needed to keep the portable oxygen cylinder over his mouth and nose.
According to the previous plan, when the plane descends below 10,000 feet, the crew will organize people to carry the captain and first co-pilot out to free up seats for Xu Cang's operation.
Moreover, the first-class seats were full, and the crew had to persuade some first-class passengers to move to the economy class at the back. To be honest, the portable oxygen cylinder did save lives this time. Without it, the entire plane would have been in danger.
Just now, the flight attendant and the aviation safety officer went to patrol the cabin to check if there were any passengers who were unconscious due to lack of oxygen. Fortunately, as Xu Cang took over the plane, the plane finally turned from a death climb to a rapid descent. As a result, as the air pressure altitude decreased, the people in the cabin gradually felt relieved from the extreme discomfort.
Everything seemed to be changing for the better, but Xu Cang's face was not happy at all. He originally expected that he only had to worry about the problem of the damage to the machine, but now the machine had no new faults, but he himself had problems.
Before this, Xu Cang touched his ear and it started bleeding, but he was not worried. This was probably just bleeding from the eardrum, because there were a lot of capillaries in the eardrum, and bleeding was predictable when the air pressure changed dramatically.
Although there will be some impact, if it is just bleeding in the eardrum, it will not affect hearing too much, and there will be no obvious sequelae after recovery.
But now it’s different. The yellowish liquid mixed in the blood just now is most likely the tissue fluid in the inner ear organs. This is a very bad sign.
Maybe... the eardrum is perforated!
Judging from the conversation with the flight attendant just now, his hearing has been severely impaired. I wonder if it will have a negative impact on the rest of the flight.
Of course, rationally speaking, if Xu Cang was given enough freedom, he could have completed a normal landing according to standard procedures. However, flying has never been an act with absolute freedom. Even if the freedom is greatly increased under the premise of declaring a state of emergency, it is not infinite.
However, this is indeed far from being a desperate situation. But if it is compounded with other faults, it will undoubtedly cast a shadow on the subsequent return flight.
I hope there won't be any other problems later. He can try his best to deal with the problem with the plane, but his own physical problems are beyond his ability.
Moreover, compared to the problem with his ears, Xu Cang was more concerned about another thing. After all, hearing was not so important in flying that it could not be absent, but vision was different.
The only popular precision approach method in the world is the Instrument Landing System (ILS), also known as the blind landing system. Although there is a "blind" in it, it does not mean that you can really approach with your eyes closed. The "blind" it represents is that the pilot can ignore the outside, but cannot ignore the instruments in the cabin.
Instrument landing system, it must rely on instruments!
Xu Cang lowered his head and subconsciously wanted to rub his eyes, but he finally held back. Ever since the pressure relief, his eyes had felt very swollen, and after the plane began to descend, this symptom still did not get any relief.
It is understandable that the eyes are swollen because of the existence of intraocular pressure. Although he did not understand why the symptoms did not ease after the plane descended, but became more severe, Xu Cang was actually worried about another possibility, that is, retinal hemorrhage.
He raised his right arm slightly, and a small amount of tiny red blood spots appeared on his right arm. These were formed after the capillaries broke. Xu Cang was sure that there were no such things on his right arm skin before, and they just appeared.
The boiling of body fluids starts at the point where capillaries are concentrated, and the retina is a perfect match for this. If there is retinal bleeding, Xu Cang really dare not even think about it. It may not cause particularly serious sequelae, after all, the highest altitude does not exceed 40,000 feet, but just a short-term visual impact will be Xu Cang's nightmare.
No pilot can complete a landing without seeing the plane, not even Xu Cang! The problem is that he is the only pilot on the plane who can be relied on. If he fails, it will be a disaster.
"I hope everything is fine!"
Just when Xu Cang was worrying alone, he suddenly felt someone coming to his side. He looked up and saw that it was the chief flight attendant who had arranged the cabin.
The flight attendant didn't say anything, but pointed into the cockpit and made a phone call gesture. Xu Cang was startled, and immediately picked up the captain's headset and put it on his head.
"Damn it, I can't even hear the sound from the speaker." Xu Cang became even more worried.
In the cockpit, even without headphones, the speakers would play the sound of the radio channel, and it was audible under normal circumstances. The main problem was that if Xu Cang wore headphones to listen to something, the pressure of the headphones would make his ears very painful, so painful that it affected Xu Cang's normal work.
Therefore, Xu Cang had been using the loudspeaker to listen to the radio conversation, and was using the captain's headset microphone to communicate with the controller. In order to ensure that he could hear it, he turned the volume of the loudspeaker to almost the maximum.
I could still distinguish it at first, but in less than ten minutes I couldn't hear it even at the highest volume.
"Blue Sky 9811, continue descending to 2,700 meters, corrected sea pressure 1011!"
He didn't feel it when he usually wore headphones, but now the headphones are like a golden hoop embedded in his flesh and blood. With every word the controller said in the headphones, the subtle vibration of the headphones could be felt keenly by Xu Cang.
Enduring the severe pain, Xu Cang replied: "Descending altitude 2,700 meters, corrected sea pressure 1011, blue sky 9811!"
Just as Xu Cang was about to take off his headphones, the Qianzhou controller continued, "Blue Sky 9811, Jianchuan Airport has agreed to accept you. Now you fly heading 265, direct to Anshun, then fly to Xishan along route X92, W133, A599, and approach from the direction of Xishan."
Xu Cang had an unbearable headache, and he was alone, so he didn't have the energy to look through the navigation chart, so he said, "Just give me the waypoints..."
"ASH, P554, NOBIN, DJT, and finally Xishan SXS." Qianzhou controller asked, "Blue Sky 9811, please find out the details of the aircraft failure."
Xu Cang silently recited the waypoints. There weren't many of them, but he was familiar with them and remembered them all at once. This controller was quite sensible. Just now at a high altitude, he only thought about how to make room for them, and didn't catch the crew to ask what happened. He knew the priorities. The most feared thing was the kind of controller who was constantly calling on the radio even though the crew was too busy.
It would be fine if it happened once or twice, but it keeps calling like a fly, as if it is afraid of not disturbing the crew's attention.
"The instrument shows that the left front cargo door of the aircraft opened abnormally, which should be the cause of the decompression." Xu Cang said: "For the time being, we don't know whether the accidental opening of the cargo door has caused chain reactions and caused damage to the aircraft structure."
There was a moment of silence on the controller's end, apparently taking notes, and then he quickly asked, "Any other questions, or how can we help?"
At this time, Xu Cang was already holding his forehead, beginning to feel overwhelmed. He quickly stated his needs: "Arrange for medical personnel to wait. The captain and co-pilot are already unconscious, probably due to the sudden change in air pressure and lack of oxygen."
"What?" The controller didn't expect that the crew would become incapacitated as the cabin was depressurized. "Who are you?"
"I'm the crew member on duty." Xu Cang took a long breath. At this moment, the plane's altitude was below 10,000 and he could breathe with the help of oxygen tanks. "Also, ask Jianchuan Airport to adjust the lighting system to the highest brightness. After my plane joins the approach procedure, merge the approach and tower frequencies. At the same time, other aircraft will keep their radios silent."
Xu Cang had to take precautions for possible problems later. If he really had temporary vision loss, it would be beneficial for him to have the highest light brightness during the visual stage. He was alone, and if there were other problems, he might not be able to handle it. Xu Cang didn't want to spend his remaining energy on switching frequencies and distinguishing whether a call was coming from a bunch of radios. Moreover, if the radio channel was too noisy, it would be too much for Xu Cang's current hearing.
To be honest, Xu Cang's request was not excessive. Generally speaking, an airport of Jianchuan's size must have backup frequencies, and it would not be difficult to use a separate one to communicate with Xu Cang.
This was already Xu Cang's plan for the worst-case scenario, and he didn't want it to develop to that point.
"Blue Sky 9811, could you tell me the reason so that I can coordinate with Jianchuan?" said the controller.
It was normal to turn on the lights, but it was rare to merge the frequencies and keep the radio silent at the same time. The controller thought that if Jianchuan Airport asked the reason, he would have to answer.
However, what greeted him was Xu Cang's roar: "From now on, I will explain to you everything I say. Is that what you mean?"
The controller didn't expect Xu Cang's reaction to be so intense, and quickly apologized: "Sorry, sorry, I'll go talk to Jianchuan right away."
However, Xu Cang could no longer hear what the controller said. After he finished speaking, he took off his headphones, and the muscles on half of his face were tense.
People rely on the vibration of the eardrum to distinguish sounds. Once the eardrum is injured, the vibrating eardrum will cause great pain to Xu Cang when receiving sound .
However, if it was just like this, Xu Cang could barely bear it. However, once he put on the headphones, the pain became more sensitive under the pressure, which had exceeded Xu Cang's endurance limit. He felt as if his temple was pierced by an awl, and he really couldn't say a word.
The controller didn't say anything else. Xu Cang let out a long breath and hugged his head. His eyes were bloodshot, just like his increasingly confused heart.
He slowly stretched out his hand, trying to see the lines on his palm clearly, but what he saw was blurry.
He said what he worried about finally happened.
However, he quickly gathered his thoughts, glanced at the altitude of the plane, and quietly said to the flight attendant outside the door, "Is there a vacant seat in the first-class cabin?"
The chief steward saw that Xu Cang's expression was not right, but he still didn't say anything. He nodded and said, "The seats have been vacated. Do you want to move people? I'll ask the security officer to come over!"
"Let him come over." Xu Cangshu breathed a sigh of relief and was about to take his seat.
…
At this moment, in the small parking lot in front of the main entrance of the Blue Sky Aviation Base building, Luo Yong, Li Rongcheng and Ye Xian were waiting for Yu Fengtian who was about to go to the tower.
Soon, Yu Fengtian came down in a hurry. He was not surprised to see Luo Yong there, but he was a little confused by the presence of Li Rongcheng and Ye Xian.
Luo Yong was already getting impatient waiting, and when he saw Yu Fengtian finally arrived, he grabbed Yu Fengtian and went to the crew car.
Yu Fengtian also knew that the situation was urgent, so he decided to get in the car first. Following Luo Yong and the others, Li Rongcheng and Ye Xian also got in the car.
"Master, let's go quickly!" Luo Yong called out.
As the vehicle started, it hurried out of the base and headed towards the No. 2 security checkpoint.
Not long after driving out, Yu Fengtian pointed at Li Rongcheng and Ye Xian, and asked Luo Yong, "Who are they? Why haven't I seen them before? Will they go with us?"
"They are employees of Boeing's Asia Pacific Office. The problem this time is with the 747, and we are not sure exactly. Bringing them along may help."
While Luo Yong was explaining, Li Rongcheng nodded politely to Yu Fengtian, but Ye Xian, who was sitting next to Li Rongcheng, kept looking out the window and ignored Yu Fengtian.
Yu Fengtian did not suspect anything and just nodded. He did not care much because there were other things that concerned him more.
"Luo Yong, I heard that something happened to 4724?" Yu Fengtian asked anxiously.
Luo Yong said solemnly: "The pressure is relieved!"
"How did you release the pressure?" Yu Fengtian knew that his question was a bit stupid, so he changed the question: "Is there something wrong with the boost system?"
If the decompression was caused only by crew error or aging of some components, Yu Fengtian would not be so nervous. Decompression incidents happen every year in domestic civil aviation, and they are usually handled in a low-key manner without causing any major public opinion.
Even if the authorities want to impose penalties, as long as the human factors are not too outrageous, most of the time they will not be too harsh. Under normal circumstances, if an aircraft decompression occurs, the control department will usually notify the relevant company and will not ask the company representative to go to the tower for help. Because aircraft decompression usually does not cause control problems.
When the plane descended to 10,000 feet, apart from a little discomfort in breathing, the rest was basically the same as a normal flight.
Yu Fengtian was worried about something else. Ever since his secretary informed him that 4724 had an accident and the tower asked them to go over to help, he couldn't help but recall the reason why Xu Cang confronted him yesterday... S2 switch!
“Could there really be something wrong with that thing?” Whenever Yu Fengtian thought of this possibility, he felt extremely shocked and couldn’t calm down at all.
If it was really caused by the S2 switch, he would basically lose his position as vice president of maintenance!
Luo Yong was about to speak when his cell phone rang. He saw that the number was from his secretary and thought there was some new news. He answered the call immediately: "What's going on?"
"The Qianzhou District Dispatching Office just called and confirmed that 9811 will return via the Xishan direction. At the same time, according to the crew, it is strongly suspected that the front cargo door of the aircraft opened abnormally, causing the aircraft to depressurize. It is not yet clear whether there is any collateral damage."
After the secretary finished speaking, Luo Yong looked at Yu Fengtian beside him in disbelief, his lips trembling: "The cargo hold... the hatch is open!"
"What!" Yu Fengtian almost jumped up, his eyes almost popping out: "How did you open it? How did you open the cargo door?"
However, the secretary had not finished speaking yet, and continued: "Luo Yong, and Qianzhou Control received news from the crew that the captain and co-pilot on duty are already in a coma, and the crew is now controlling the plane. I checked, there are only two people in the crew of Flight 9811, one is a flight attendant, and the other is...Xu Cang! I think the one who is operating the plane is..."
Luo Yong didn't even listen to the secretary's words. He just turned his head and looked at Yu Fengtian, who looked at a loss, and laughed mockingly. This laugh was for both Yu Fengtian and himself.
"Yu Fengtian, it looks like you're going to be finished!" Luo Yong suddenly said.
"The crew is incapacitated. The captain and co-pilot are both unconscious. Xu Cang is now flying the plane back." Luo Yong's chest rose and fell sharply. "You should write your own resignation letter later. It will be more respectable at least."
Regardless of whether Flight 9811 can return safely, as long as it is proved that the abnormal opening of the cargo door was caused by the S2 switch, Yu Fengtian will no longer be able to sit in the position of vice president of maintenance.
Of course, the abnormal opening of the hatch door is not limited to the S2 switch, there may be other factors. However, Xu Cang left a deep impression on Luo Yong. Xu Cang even explained the principle of abnormal opening of the hatch door, which made people think that it was the S2 switch.
"Impossible!" Yu Fengtian shouted decisively, "How can he fly a 747? This is all nonsense!"
"Why can't he fly a 747? You don't really think he's an ordinary pilot, do you?" Luo Yong was also anxious at this time. Xu Cang was indeed a little ignorant before, and his behavior was not in line with his previous habits. However, Yu Fengtian definitely had an unshirkable responsibility for the current situation where Xu Cang and Blue Sky Airlines had torn their faces apart.
In Yu Fengtian's eyes, Xu Cang was just a pilot. He was just a pilot. There were many pilots in the aviation school and the company. Was it necessary to accommodate him? As a result, he handled Xu Cang's affairs with disgusting arrogance, which would make anyone with a little temper dissatisfied.
Luo Yong gritted his teeth and said, "Some time ago, my master asked me to transfer Xu Cang from the Boeing fleet to the Airbus fleet. Do you know why?"
Yu Fengtian certainly knew that the master Luo Yong was talking about was Airbus captain Jin Fuli, but Jin Fuli did not like Luo Yong and was not willing to acknowledge him as his disciple.
Yu Fengtian kept silent and just stared at Luo Yong.
"My master told me that during the simulator training, this guy calculated the best glide path more than 20 nautical miles away in the presence of high-altitude variable winds, and it was accurate to the millimeter!" Luo Yong snorted, "He can even fly an Airbus, so why can't he fly a Boeing 747?"
Before Yu Fengtian could react, Ye Xian, who had been sitting in the back and not paying attention, suddenly shouted, "Even if the wind speed of the simulator changes linearly, it takes too much calculation to always correct the optimal speed. It is impossible to complete it with mental arithmetic."
"How could it not be completed? My master saw it with his own eyes." Luo Yong said confidently: "The training video of that time may still be placed on the shelf in the fleet monitoring room!"
Hearing this, Li Rongcheng 's right hand clenched tightly involuntarily. If what Luo Yong said was true, then Xu Cang's value would be even greater than he expected. Because the problem with the Boeing 777 verification a few days ago was because the crew at that time made a mistake in calculating the glide path mentally when the engine failed.
However, even though Luo Yong was so sure, Ye Xian still didn't believe it: "It's impossible for humans to have such mental arithmetic ability!"
Luo Yong snorted: "Then go ask him yourself, if he can come back!"
After saying that, Luo Yong looked at Yu Fengtian, whose face was as gloomy as water: "You'd better pray that there is nothing wrong with the S2 switch, otherwise, you will be in big trouble!"
When he said this, Luo Yong glanced at Li Rongcheng behind him. Li Rongcheng naturally caught a hint of ferocity in Luo Yong's eyes, and couldn't help cursing in his heart: "Damn it!"
If there is really a problem with the S2 switch of the 747, then the notice issued by Boeing will be controversial. They are aware of the problem, but they issued a specious technical notice, which will definitely cause trouble later.
Now, the Boeing 777 is already causing great trouble to the headquarters. If it is involved in a lawsuit, it will be difficult to deal with.
For a moment, Li Rongcheng had a terrible headache!
The only hope now is that Xu Cang can return safely. As long as he is fine, everything can be discussed.
…
In the cockpit of Blue Sky 9811, the chief flight attendant called the aviation safety officer and a male flight attendant in the rear cabin to carry the captain and the first co-pilot out.
Before carrying the captain, the chief flight attendant found a blanket and wrapped it around his upper body, covering his shirt which was stained with mostly blood. He also wiped the blood off the captain's face with a wet towel to avoid causing another commotion in the first class cabin when he went outside.
After the cockpit was cleared, Xu Cang hurriedly sat in the left seat, which was the place he was most accustomed to.
As soon as he sat down, Xu Cang began to input the subsequent route. Just now, because the captain and co-pilot were both in the seat, it was inconvenient for him to input the CDU, so he only temporarily input the first waypoint and let the plane fly first.
"P554, NOBIN..." Xu Cang muttered while modifying the parameter settings on the CDU.
He not only had to key in the route thereafter, but also had to select the subsequent approach procedure and make preparations for the approach. It wouldn't even take half an hour for them to land.
There are some differences between the CDU of the Boeing 747 and the (M) CDU of the Boeing 737. Xu Cang hadn't flown a 747 for a long time, so he was a little unfamiliar with the input at the beginning. However, the basic principle of this thing is the same, and after a little thinking, he can almost understand it.
Soon, Xu Cang entered the subsequent route and was about to type in the approach procedure when he heard footsteps behind him. Then a person stepped in from the right seat. It was Xia Shuyue.
Previously, Xu Cang had instructed that once the altitude dropped below 10,000 feet, Xia Shuyue could be called over depending on the situation, and the chief flight attendant still kept it in mind.
After Xia Shuyue sat down, the flight attendant asked from behind: "Then shall I close the door?"
Xu Cang didn't say anything, but just gave the flight attendant a thumbs up.
"Is everything okay in the cabin?" Xu Cang still kept his head down while speaking, without even glancing at Xia Shuyue.
Xia Shuyue was about to answer when she heard Xu Cang say, "Speak louder..."
Xia Shuyue glanced at Xu Cang's ear. There was already some blood scab on the outside of the ear canal, which looked very hideous. However, she still collected her thoughts and knew that she didn't need to ask or say anything extra at this moment. She just needed to listen to Xu Cang.
"The chief flight attendant and the safety officer just inspected the cabin. It shouldn't be a big deal. Several unconscious people have put on oxygen masks." Xia Shuyue asked cautiously, "Brother, what do you need me to do?"
Xu Cang pointed at the co-pilot's headset and said, "You are responsible for talking to the control. If I need anything, you can pass it on to me. Then, if necessary, I will tell the control what I want to say. Don't worry about aviation terms, just communicate like normal."
"Oh!" Xia Shuyue was obedient and hurriedly put on the co-pilot's headphones. However, just as she put them on, Xu Cang gently knocked her head: "Don't wear it so tightly, loosen your left ear, otherwise you can't hear me clearly!"
Pilots never wear headphones on both ears, usually leaving one ear exposed to facilitate communication in the cockpit. Only amateurs would cover their ears tightly.
"Is that so!" He hurriedly exposed his left ear, and then asked Xu Cang: "Brother, is that so?"
"Hmm!" Xu Cang still lowered his head and input the CDU, but he kept saying: "Don't be nervous, you..."
As soon as he finished saying the word "you", Xu Cang's fingers that were typing suddenly stopped, and his whole body seemed to be frozen, staring blankly at the CDU screen.
Soon, Xu Cang went crazy and increased his input speed to an infinitely high speed, as if something was chasing him.
However, previously, the methodical speed was the best, fast enough and able to ensure accuracy. But now, we only care about speed, but often make mistakes.
Standing next to her, Xia Shuyue really couldn't understand the operations on the CDU, but she could see that Xu Cang often made repeated changes in the same input field, which was a manifestation of making mistakes in a hurry.
Originally, Xia Shuyue didn't want to disturb Xu Cang, but after seeing Xu Cang make mistakes again and again, Xia Shuyue still reminded him: "Brother..."
However, just when Xu Cang wanted to type a location point, he suddenly stopped at Xia Shuyue's voice. At this moment, it seemed that the air had frozen.
Suddenly, a round drop of blood fell down, hit the LCD screen of the CDU, and exploded in all directions.
Xia Shuyue shuddered, she clearly saw the drop of blood. At this moment, Xu Cang slowly raised his head and finally turned his face towards Xia Shuyue.
But when Xia Shuyue saw Xu Cang's face clearly, she couldn't help but cover her mouth with both hands. She saw that the white part of Xu Cang's eyes had been replaced by a glaring blood color, and the blood and tears flowing from the corners of his eyes were even more shocking.
Xu Cang was sure that he was facing Xia Shuyue now, but he... couldn't see!