Chapter 158: The future of wide-body aircraft!
In front of the boarding gate of the Yangcheng Airport terminal, Xu Cang hung up the phone and his eyes stayed on the TV screen hanging in the hall for a moment. Then he put the phone back in his pocket, rubbed his chin, walked back, felt the rough texture on his fingers, and wondered if he forgot to shave when he went out in the morning.
After showing his boarding pass at the boarding gate, Xu Cang passed through smoothly. When he was on the jet bridge, the road ahead was blocked by passengers. Xu Cang glanced forward and felt that there was no possibility of crossing, so he simply fell behind the line and walked slowly with the line of passengers, still thinking about the news about the Airbus 380 he had just seen.
There have been so many things going on recently that he even forgot about the Airbus 380 project being launched this year.
If the 737MAX is Boeing's Achilles' heel, then the A380 is Airbus' eternal pain, a typical case of a dispute over pride in the wide-body aircraft field that almost ruined the entire company.
Just now, Xu Cang learned that Ma Cheng was quite sensible and listened to his "request". In order to thank him for his help, Xu Cang had the idea of helping Muhua Airlines. After all, apart from Ma Cheng's help in recruiting people, he seemed to have taken advantage of the fact that he had intercepted the quota that originally belonged to Jianchuan Base Airlines. It was necessary to give some feedback.
In many ways, the Airbus 380, this terrifying giant in the sky, was a commercial failure as huge as its size. But according to Xu Cang's recollection, at least in the early and middle stages, the Airbus 380 was still favored by some airlines. But when the tide receded, it was clear whether it was swimming naked.
This is Airbus's pinnacle product, which claimed to crush the Boeing 747 in the wide-body aircraft field. This giant aircraft, which once ruthlessly mocked other models as "small planes", ended up in a miserable end after only more than ten years of life. It is really a pity.
The Boeing 747, which it was determined to defeat at the beginning of the project, is still flying in the sky after more than 30 years of ups and downs. The contrast highlights the unimaginable failure of Airbus in the A380 project. Later, if the Airbus 350 had not come out, Boeing's later Dreamliner 787 would have swept away all the monsters in the wide-body aircraft field.
If Xu Cang hadn't reminded them, Muhua Airlines would have at least made a big mistake on the Airbus 380. Of course, Xu Cang felt from the bottom of his heart that Muhua Airlines would not listen to the unfounded advice of an unknown person like him. It is basically certain that Muhua Airlines should still purchase the Airbus 380 according to historical development.
However, Xu Cang felt that he had done his best by reminding Muhua Airlines, and he would not make any other efforts. If Muhua Airlines still insisted on purchasing the Airbus 380, it would have nothing to do with Xu Cang.
Originally, Xu Cang just wanted to simply remind Ma Cheng and then end it. At most, he would sigh about the sad life of the Airbus 380 aircraft. But after calming down for a moment, a flash of inspiration suddenly appeared in Xu Cang's mind.
The rise of a new king often does not depend on his own efforts, but on the decline of the old king. The power transition is completed through the decline of one king.
At least in the field of civil aircraft, Airbus and Boeing are like two towering giants, oppressing the latecomers. Airbus also gathered the strength of the whole of Europe and opened a gap under Boeing's iron curtain, and finally developed into a situation of two giants competing for hegemony.
But where would the third force come from to change the situation from a two-way battle to a three-way battle? Xu Cang hoped that his own country would participate. However, this difficulty was too great, so great that even Xu Cang himself was a little pessimistic.
Therefore, if possible, Xu Cang feels that it is more practical to find ways to weaken Boeing and Airbus. At least in the foreseeable future, Xu Cang knows that the 737MAX will be a sword piercing the heart of Boeing, so where is the means to restrain Airbus?
Now there was a ripple in Xu Cang's heart. He seemed to have some ideas. A grand plan targeting the Airbus 380 might really be able to overthrow Airbus in one fell swoop.
As he was thinking, Xu Cang lost his focus a little, until a voice came from the front: "Brother, everyone is here!"
"Huh?" Xu Cang was startled. He looked up and found that there was no one else in the cabin. The chief steward was standing at the cabin door, waving at him.
Xu Cang finally came to his senses, trotted over, entered the cabin, glanced at the passenger cabin, and saw that it was basically full. He asked casually, "Has the manifest arrived?"
The chief flight attendant waved the small piece of paper in his hand and said, "We're here. It's almost full again. The cockpit door has been closed. We're just waiting for you, brother."
"Sorry, I was thinking about something and didn't notice it. Please close the hatch."
As he spoke, Xu Cang entered the cockpit, passed Tan Heling who was playing with his mobile phone, and as soon as he sat down on the seat, he found that the speed window on the MCP board had already been adjusted to the speed, and the automatic throttle was also connected.
"Have you calculated the speed?" Xu Cang slightly adjusted the position of the rudder pedal and used his other hand to bring up the CDU's takeoff page. Sure enough, V1, V2, and Vr had been entered, as had the center of gravity, and the calculated trim amount matched the trim amount.
It seemed that Mo Shangyun finished the remaining work after he left.
"The manifest arrived not long after you left." Mo Shangyun took out the manifest and handed it to Xu Cang: "Can you verify it?"
When Xu Cang went out to the bathroom, the manifest had not arrived yet, so some weight data, center of gravity position and take-off speed could not be checked and were left alone. It was not that Xu Cang was slacking off.
"No need!" Xu Cang took the manifest and handed it to Tan Heling in the back: "Brother Tan, just help verify it."
Tan Heling, who was playing with his phone in the back, never thought that Xu Cang would order him around. Cross-checking cockpit data was a normal operation, but ordering around a captain, Xu Cang as the co-pilot, seemed too smooth, didn't he?
After all, I am a captain. Although I was fired, at least I have a flight license. I should be a little more considerate and add a "please" for example.
Although he complained in his heart, Tan Heling still put down his phone obediently, took the manifest handed over by Xu Cang, and went to verify the data.
Seeing that Xu Cang didn't regard him as a co-pilot at all, he had the kind of attitude that only a captain with more than ten years of experience could develop. Although Xu Cang was still polite, his matter-of-fact tone and the small gesture of handing over the manifest were really very touching.
Mo Shangyun was really puzzled. Although Xu Cang had amazing talent, some things needed time to settle. How could Xu Cang be so adept at commanding the captain?
Mo Shangyun could see that Xu Cang was not intentionally humiliating Tan Heling, but was just acting like a superior commanding his subordinates.
"Just now I saw you standing on the covered bridge in a daze. What happened?"
"Hmm?" Xu Cang adjusted the steering wheel and the seat, and replied casually: "Nothing, I was just lost in thought."
Mo Shangyun did not ask any more questions, while Xu Cang briefly checked the plane to confirm that the preparations had been completed. Tan Heling, who was behind him, verified the manifest data. Xu Cang took out the checklist and said, "Instructor, can I do a pre-flight checklist and takeoff briefing?"
Mo Shangyun nodded: "Do it."
While Xu Cang was doing the checklist, Mo Shangyun contacted the release frequency: "Hello, Blue Sky 9912, parking position 331, ready."
In fact, this practice is not very compliant, because when the other pilot is doing the checklist and briefing, mutual verification and communication are required.
However, this era is not strict, and some even do not give briefings due to time constraints. Mo Shangyun and Xu Cang are both very experienced pilots, so Mo Shangyun is a little slack.
When Mo Shangyun contacted the control, Xu Cang did not stop on his own initiative, and the cooperation between the two still seemed a little casual.
"Blue Sky 9912, contact apron 121.35, goodbye."
"121.35. Goodbye."
Mo Shangyun was just adjusting the frequency, and Xu Cang, who was still giving a briefing, glanced at him and suddenly said, "Instructor, slow down! I'm a little late, the trailer is right below."
Mo Shangyun glanced under the nose of the plane and saw that the trailer was already waiting there, just waiting for them to flash their lights. If they went faster, Xu Cang would have less space to give the briefing.
"Yeah." Seeing this, Mo Shangyun adjusted the frequency slightly but did not switch immediately, but waited for a while.
Of course, this time cannot be too long, otherwise the release party will ask what happened.
In that era, the briefing was not that complicated. Unlike later generations that would have required a thousand-word long article, the takeoff briefing two thousand years ago only discussed some key items.
Originally, Xu Cang really intended to just deal with it casually, but when it came to the risk of takeoff, Xu Cang suddenly thought of the 1566 aircraft that made him very unhappy, so he added: "Instructor, this aircraft may have problems with the initial lift-off speed. Please help me take a look and I will start when I need to."
"If I take the initiative, you won't scold me, right?" Mo Shangyun said with a smile: "But, the first few takeoffs, I felt it was okay, nothing special."
The first half of Mo Shangyun's sentence was obviously a joke about Xu Cang's past attempt to seize Captain Tan Heling's authority during the emergency landing at Tianshan Mountain. As an eyewitness, Tan Heling's face darkened, but he didn't dare to say anything.
In that incident, the authorities actually did not know some details, but Mo Shangyun was a veteran of the company and knew a lot of inside information, such as the real reason why Tan Heling was fired as captain after the authorities' investigation, and the fact that Xu Cang showed extraordinary aggressiveness and dominance in the diversion incident.
Xu Cang put the brief order card back and chuckled, "I have a relatively good temper."
This is not Xu Cang flattering himself, but he really thinks he is quite kind, and is only a little bit irritable at certain times and in certain situations.
Tan Heling chuckled twice in the back, while Mo Shangyun laughed heartily, and a joyful atmosphere filled the cockpit.
"Okay, no more talking." Mo Shangyun switched the frequency to the apron frequency: "Apron, Blue Sky 9912, parking position 331, ready."
"Blue Sky 9912, you can push out and drive away, head south." The people on the apron were quite straightforward. Without any waiting, they quickly gave the permission to push out and drive away.
"You can push the car out and head south." This was Xu Cang's reply.
After replying, Xu Cang turned on the anti-collision lights and the fuel pump, shut down the A system, and turned on the engine-driven hydraulic pump of the B system. While fastening his seat belt, he said with a smile, "Let's go home."
Mo Shangyun was relieved to see Xu Cang so happy. Just now, when he saw Xu Cang in a daze on the covered bridge, he thought he had encountered something difficult to solve.
The subsequent plane was normal. After aligning with the runway, Mo Shangyun aligned with the runway, released his left hand from the retracting wheel, and placed his right hand on the throttle. After receiving the takeoff permission from the tower, Mo Shangyun asked before handing the plane to Xu Cang, "Can I give you the throttle?"
Normally, the instructor would control the throttle during a flight. However, Mo Shangyun knew that his level was not good enough to actually fly Xu Cang, so he asked Xu Cang for his opinion.
Of course, there is a reason why the instructor holds the throttle.
As expected, Xu Cang said very naturally: "No need, instructor, you take control so that it will be convenient for you to perform the aborted takeoff action."
This is one of the reasons why the instructor usually controls the throttle, because the action of rejecting the takeoff should be completed by the left seat. And the instructor who guides the flight is mostly in the left seat, so that it is convenient to complete the action in one go when the takeoff is rejected at a critical moment.
"It's up to you." It didn't matter who controlled the throttle. Mo Shangyun pressed the timing button: "Then I'll leave the plane to you."
Xu Cang put his feet on the rudder and held the wheel with both hands: "Take over the controls."
"Hand over controls, connect communications!" After saying that, Mo Shangyun pressed the TO/GA button, and the aircraft's engine began to continuously increase thrust under the action of the automatic throttle until it reached the takeoff N1 set when the cockpit was prepared.
As the plane gradually accelerated, Mo Shangyun kept making standard calls, and all the data were very normal. The wind at Yangcheng Airport was also very light, and Xu Cang didn't even need to adjust the rudder to correct the direction of the plane's taxiing, which was very relaxed.
"V1!"
After Mo Shangyun reported the V1 speed, he let go of his right hand from the thrust handle.
"Vr!"
As Mo Shangyun reported the rotation speed, Xu Cang gently pushed the plane up without any pause. It can only be said that the takeoff performance analysis given by Boeing is really something. When the rotation speed is reached, the plane can be lifted up smoothly.
As soon as the main wheels of the aircraft left the ground, Mo Shangyun reported that it was ascending and retracted the landing gear. But at the same time when Mo Shangyun retracted the landing gear, the aircraft suddenly began to have a clear upward posture.
Xu Cang was startled. He clearly didn't pull the lever. He was already worried about the plane, so he wanted to let it go. But the moment he relaxed his grip, the nose of the plane started to drop again, and the speed started to soar.
"Huh? Xu Cang, what are you doing? Aren't you going to take it with you?" Mo Shangyun raised his eyebrows, noticing Xu Cang's unusual behavior, and subconsciously reminded him.
Xu Cang let out a light exclamation, and then he held the plane again, thus stabilizing the speed. After that, Xu Cang did not feel any other abnormalities.
With a hint of hesitation, Xu Cang glanced at the altitude, connected the autopilot B channel, then pressed the N1 button, and the aircraft began to operate with reduced thrust.
After waiting for a while, Xu Cang saw that the plane seemed to be fine, and he was obviously relieved. Mo Shangyun next to him asked curiously: "What happened just now? Didn't you bring the pole?"
Xu Cang began to adjust the UP speed while expressing his doubts: "Just now the plane suddenly raised its head for a moment, did you notice it, instructor?"
"I know, you didn't bring it?"
People are not machines, and it is quite normal to carry the plane more if the hands shake slightly during the initial climb. Mo Shangyun did feel it, but he didn't think much about it. He simply thought it was some minor occasional mistake made by Xu Cang.
"No!" Xu Cang shook his head.
If it was a normal flight, Xu Cang might have encountered this problem. After all, he couldn't always stay highly focused. However, knowing that the plane was abnormally lifted, Xu Cang at least paid enough attention during the takeoff phase.
Xu Cang was confident that when he concentrated, he could precisely control every muscle in his hand, and it was impossible for him to make any movement that went against his thoughts. Xu Cang was certain of this.
Xu Cang recalled it again, and felt that something was not right. He saw that the speed had increased and said, "Retract the flaps."
Mo Shangyun didn't even look at the speedometer. He retracted the flaps to flap one and said, "Could it be the wind? I didn't notice the change in wind direction and speed just now."
Since Xu Cang was manipulating everything, Mo Shangyun couldn't help but relax a little.
"I was just focusing on the plane's pitch rate." Xu Cang turned his head and glanced at Tan Heling: "Did you see it?"
Tan Heling's expression froze. He just had the mentality of not paying attention to the wind direction and speed, and he didn't even look at the PFD.
Seeing Tan Heling's embarrassed look, Xu Cang knew what was going on. However, he didn't say anything. He said he was helping to keep an eye on the aircraft's status while sitting in the back, but it was really easy for him to slack off. He was the same when he went up to sit.
"Don't think about it. I'll ask the quality center for the QAR data and we'll know." Mo Shangyun looked at the aircraft data: "At least there is no problem so far, and the aircraft's head rise only lasted for a moment. It should be the wind."
Xu Cang nodded: "Maybe I'm too sensitive. In two days, I will go to Jianchuan to upgrade to level 2. Then I will take a look at the data of the takeoff just now and I will know."
"Yeah." Seeing that the speed had reached the flap one maneuvering speed, Mo Shangyun retracted all the flaps, then turned the autothrottle to the OFF position, put the landing gear handle to the neutral position, and turned off all lights except the fixed landing lights.
After the flaps were fully retracted, he pulled out the checklist: "Post-takeoff checklist?"
At this time, Xu Cang, who had relaxed a little, put down the armrest, opened the lower DU, confirmed that there was nothing abnormal, lay back on the chair, and nodded: "Let's do it."
Xu Cang's tense muscles gradually relaxed. He was really scared just now.
"Fortunately, nothing happened."
…
After the plane landed, Xu Cang and his group left the scene. As soon as they arrived at the base courtyard, they got out of the car and found Li Rongxian talking to Qin Xin at the door.
Li Rongxian saw Xu Cang approaching in uniform and hurried over to him: "Mr. Xu, are you done?"
Xu Cang casually handed the flight box to Qin Xin, and Qin Xin took it very obediently, and walked away with the box in a very bossy manner.
When Mo Shangyun was returning to his dormitory, he glanced at Xu Cang. He seemed to recognize Li Rongxian, who seemed to be from Airbus and had been to Blue Sky Airlines to discuss orders before.
However, although he didn't know why the Airbus people came here, Mo Shangyun was not that curious. He curled his lips and went back to his dormitory.
"What's the matter? An Airbus executive comes to our little temple?" Xu Cang said with a smile.
Li Rongxian smiled awkwardly and said, "I know an old saying: A mountain is not high, but it is magical if there are immortals; a river is not deep, but it is magical if there are dragons."
"Wow, I didn't expect you knew all that. I thought you just studied ."
Xu Cang did not feel any benefit from Li Rongxian's flattery, and he himself was not a person who liked to be flattered.
"Mr. Xu, we are partners now. There is no need to be so hostile."
Xu Cang hummed: "Tell me, what's the matter?"
"Some time ago, didn't Mr. Xu mention the conditions of the Tianjin Assembly Plant to explain the cause of the accident of Flight 9451? Our superiors have agreed to it and have sent people to restart negotiations with AVIC. I wonder if Mr. Xu has received the news?"
Xu Cang did not hide anything about this: "I just heard that you guys are very quick."
"Time is money now, and we can't afford to waste it." Li Rongxian took out a copy and handed it to Xu Cang: "This is a preliminary agreement we signed with AVIC, and it is legally binding. After all, there are still many details to discuss for this project, and we can't complete them in such a short time. However, since we have signed a preliminary agreement, we must complete the project within three years as required by Mr. Xu."
Xu Cang took the copy, which was indeed the agreement between Airbus and AVIC, and at the end there were signatures of the two parties. Xu Cang read it carefully for more than ten minutes, while Li Rongxian just waited beside him, not daring to speak or urge him.
After looking at it for a while, Xu Cang felt that there was no problem and closed the file.
When Xu Cang finished reading, Li Rongxian asked impatiently, "Mr. Xu, is everything ok?"
Xu Cang nodded: "So far, it's OK, no problem."
Li Rongxian suddenly became a little excited: "We have already done what Mr. Xu wanted. We are sincere. What about you, Mr. Xu?"
"I know!" Xu Cang did not tell Li Rongxian the cause of the accident immediately, but suddenly asked: "Have you discussed the Airbus 380 project with Boeing?"
If a layman heard Xu Cang's question, he would definitely think that Xu Cang was a guy who knew nothing. Isn't it ridiculous that Airbus should discuss its own aircraft project with its rival Boeing?
However, when Li Rongxian heard Xu Cang's words, he did not show any contempt, but laughed dryly: "Mr. Xu, you should still listen to all sides."
"Your aviation hub plan is nothing new. The wide-body aircraft market, which is expected to have a scale of 1,400 aircraft and a total market value of over 400 billion US dollars, is enough to feed you and Boeing, and you need to share the R&D costs with Boeing." Xu Cang's smile was mixed with some meaning that Li Rongxian could not figure out: "You Airbus are not sure about the future of wide-body aircraft!"
Airbus's aviation hub plan is to roughly divide all future aircraft into regional narrow-body aircraft and wide-body aircraft. Wide-body aircraft are responsible for transporting passengers from one hub to another, and then regional narrow-body aircraft such as Airbus 320 will take people from the hub to their respective destinations.
Moreover, Airbus and Boeing have a huge difference in their understanding of wide-body aircraft. They believe that wide-body aircraft are divided into three levels: 600 seats, 800 seats, and 1,000 seats.
However, Boeing has absolutely no interest in Airbus' so-called aviation hub plan and strongly disagrees with it.
Perhaps due to Boeing's long-standing reputation as the leader in the wide-body aircraft market, Airbus was somewhat unconfident in its own judgment, so it initially hoped to cooperate with Boeing.
Li Rongxian's face froze. "Mr. Xu, we at Airbus have countless experienced think tanks. How could we not be able to analyze the future clearly?"
Xu Cang sneered: "Why does the Airbus 380 still have four engines? Why did you start with the A380-800? If you are so confident, why don't you start directly with the A380-1000?"
The Airbus 380 has three models: 800, 900 and 1000. However, Airbus first started developing the simplest Airbus 380-800 model.
"It starts from easy and then becomes difficult. That's normal." Li Rongxian laughed dryly.
Xu Cang glanced at Li Rongxian with a half-smile, which made Li Rongxian feel uncomfortable. He asked again: "Why does the Airbus 380 still have four engines? I'm just curious and simply asking."
Li Rongxian was speechless for a moment, not knowing how to answer, and finally said helplessly: "Mr. Xu, this question is beyond the scope of our discussion."
"Xu Cang, let me tell you why!" At this moment, a powerful voice came from not far away. Xu Cang turned his head and saw that it was Li Rongcheng, head of Boeing Asia Pacific.
Li Rongxian was very surprised to see his half-brother, obviously not expecting Li Rongcheng to appear here.
Li Rongcheng came over to Li Rongxian with a swift step and sneered, "Because they are not confident about the ETOPS expansion standard!"
