Chapter 227 Burning Wind!
When Xu Cang and Bi Lin appeared at the door of the lounge, Di Qingquan and Chen Guoli, who were waiting outside, immediately came to greet them.
"Chief Engineer Di, when can we go to Qitai?" Xu Cang asked first.
"Have you decided to go?" Di Qingquan's eyes lit up and he said immediately, "There are no commercial flights between Shule and Qitai, so we can go anytime. I'll report the time you want and it will be approved soon. However, the only thing you need to pay attention to is to communicate with Qitai Airport in advance. Although Qitai has very heavy snow and wind, and the de-icing work is not very effective, it is better than nothing. We have to notify the Qitai Airport Tower in advance so that they can prepare according to the landing time."
"Is that so? That's convenient." Xu Cang thought for a moment and said, "How about we go now?"
Bi Lin waved his hand and stopped them, saying, "There's no need to be so anxious. Although Qitai Airport is not a high plateau, the altitude of nearly 8,000 feet is still a burden on the body. Xu Cang, you've been traveling so hard today that you're probably tired. You should take a day off and go tomorrow after you've recovered enough energy. Also, you should communicate with Guoli in advance tonight to avoid any mistakes in cooperation tomorrow."
This made Chen Guoli, who was nervous, overjoyed: "Can I still go?"
"Why not?" Bi Lin asked back, "However, tomorrow's verification flight will be led by Xu Cang, and Guo Li can just assist from the side. Also, if you encounter special circumstances, you must obey Xu Cang. Got it?"
"Understood, understood!" Chen Guoli was already prepared to be kicked out of the verification team, but he didn't expect Bi Lin to agree to let him continue to participate. He was already content and nodded quickly: "I will definitely take Xu Cang as the main one!"
Bi Lin still trusted Chen Guoli's assurance. At least his words were definitely quite useful to Chen Guoli.
"When do we set off tomorrow?" Xu Cang suddenly asked.
"Maybe in the afternoon. The visibility in Qitai is often poor in the morning. It takes a while for the sun to clear the fog. Let's go in the afternoon. Besides, there will probably be a few guests."
"Guests?" Xu Cang was puzzled for a moment: "Is there anyone coming to watch?"
Bi Lin smiled: "I guess so."
After saying that, Bi Lin patted Di Qingquan and said, "Arrange a car to take them to rest."
"Well, no problem." Di Qingquan quickly agreed.
Xu Cang looked around. When he came to the airport just now, he found a hotel near the airport. He wondered if he would stay there. However, as he thought about it, he felt a burning sensation in his stomach and suddenly felt a little hungry.
I drank some water when I came here, but I didn't eat much. I had already decided not to move today, so I felt hungry the moment I relaxed.
"Chief Engineer Di, will the car have to wait for a while?" Xu Cang asked.
Di Qingquan, who had just put down his phone, hummed: "I called, it will probably take about ten minutes, it's a temporary arrangement, you have to wait."
"Ten minutes?" Xu Cang glanced into the lounge and saw a snack table through the glass door. He said to Bi Lin, "Dean, can I go in for a moment?"
"Hungry?" Bi Lin had noticed Xu Cang's gaze just now and immediately guessed what Xu Cang was thinking: "Go ahead, eat a few snacks, just to fill your stomach. When we get to the hotel, let the hotel prepare the food."
Xu Cang nodded: "Yes, I remember it."
Xu Cang didn't seem too reserved when talking to Bi Lin. After getting Bi Lin's permission, he quickly returned to the lounge.
Just after Xu Cang went back, Bi Lin suddenly heard a gurgling sound coming from beside him. He turned his head and saw Chen Guoli with a red face.
"I... I'm not hungry." Chen Guoli stammered.
Bi Lin was helpless and waved his hand: "You should go and eat something too. You are old, don't let your stomach get hungry."
Chen Guoli looked back and saw Xu Cang already feasting in the lounge. He couldn't help himself and said, "Then I'll go and fill in some."
"Go ahead!"
Now Chen Guoli no longer hesitated, and went back inside to join the group eating.
"Teacher Chen hasn't eaten since he came back from Qitai. I'm afraid he's starving." Di Qingquan turned around and glanced at the two of them: "Now that Teacher Chen is willing to eat, I'm afraid he's not as worried as before."
Bi Lin narrowed his eyes and said, "Most of the pressure is now on Xu Cang. Now that the pressure is gone, I feel relieved."
Looking at Bi Lin's uncertain profile, Di Qingquan licked his lips, hesitated for a moment, and then asked softly, "Mr. Bi, there is something I don't know whether I should ask you or not?"
"What nonsense. If you want to ask, then ask. If you don't want to ask, then don't ask. Do you want me to decide for you?" Bi Lin squinted at Di Qingquan, who seemed a little embarrassed, but finally did not scold Di Qingquan: "Speak."
Di Qingquan was as if he had been pardoned. He coughed and lowered his voice: "Mr. Bi, to be honest, I really don't understand why it is necessary to take such a big risk to verify the single-engine procedure of Qitai Airport? After all, this matter actually has little to do with our civil aviation."
"Qingquan, at the mobilization meeting a few days ago, the technician from the design institute said that the program for the military transport aircraft has been verified..."
The technician from the design institute that Bi Lin mentioned was the middle-aged man who sat with them at the meeting not long ago. Di Qingquan also remembered what Bi Lin said. It was proposed by a teacher because the teacher heard that the single-engine procedure of Qitai Airport had been verified and didn't know why it had to be verified again.
The technician replied that due to the difference in the climbing performance of military transport aircraft and civilian aircraft, the procedures for the two are different and need to be verified separately. The procedure for military transport aircraft was verified.
"Yes, I remember saying that." Di Qingquan glanced at Bi Lin's expression. He had a bad feeling: "Mr. Bi, is there any problem?"
Bi Lin sighed, "In fact, the verification of the transport aircraft is not very effective. If something happens, it is almost certain that civilian transport capacity will be used. This is almost inevitable. Xu Cang is right. He has already done it once at Yulong, and Qitai should not ask him this time. However, for single-engine verification, someone must actually fly it once. If there is no problem, it is best. If there is a problem, we can know the problem more clearly. At least it is faster and more effective than solving it on the drawing."
"Mr. Bi, everyone is developing now, so there won't be such a situation, right?"
Bi Lin suddenly turned his head and glanced at Di Qingquan: "It is precisely because of development that we need to protect it, isn't it?"
"Qitai is a very important place, so we must maintain sufficient transportation capacity for this place. I just need to trouble Xu Cang..." Bi Lin was halfway through his speech when he suddenly felt something in his heart. He turned around and found that Xu Cang had actually reached the glass door of the lounge. Bi Lin's expression changed immediately and he smiled and said, "You only ate a few bites?"
Xu Cang looked very satisfied and pushed open the glass door: "The dried fruits here are really delicious. It turns out that the fruits in our northwest are really unique."
"When things in Qitai are settled, I'll send you a planeload of fruit so you can eat as much as you want." Bi Lin said with a smile.
"A planeload of fruit, so I have to resell it. Do you mind?"
Bi Lin smiled and said, "That's up to you, of course."
As we were talking, a minibus came over from a distance. There was the Shule Airport logo on the body of the bus. It should be the car coming to pick us up. It arrived much earlier than expected.
"Is this the one?" Bi Lin asked.
Di Qingquan stretched his neck and took a few glances : "It should be, Mr. Bi."
After saying that, Di Qingquan shouted into the lounge: "Teacher Chen, the car is here, let's go!"
Soon, the car arrived. Bi Lin and Chen Guoli got on the car one after another, and Xu Cang was the third. However, just as Xu Cang was about to get on the car, Di Qingquan, who was following behind, suddenly said, "Xu Cang, you just..."
Xu Cang turned around and looked at Di Qingquan in confusion: "What's wrong?"
Seeing Xu Cang's confused expression, Di Qingquan's expression froze, and then he smiled and said, "It's okay, get in the car."
…
The Shule Airport Hotel was built on the edge of the nearby lake. As soon as you walked out of the hotel gate, you could see the sparkling lake reflecting the moonlight. On a hillside above the lake, Xu Cang sat on a stone, staring at the jade plate in the middle of the lake that was undulating with the water, lost in thought.
Suddenly, a figure appeared behind Xu Cang. It was teacher Chen Guoli.
"It's windy and cold here in Shule at night. Are you just going to sit there like this?" Chen Guoli said with a smile, and found a big rock next to Xu Cang to sit down.
Xu Cang's thoughts were interrupted by Chen Guoli, who also said with a smile: "Young man, it's okay to blow the wind if you have a bad temper. However, Teacher Chen, you have to pay attention."
Chen Guoli patted his thick down jacket and said, "We are fully equipped."
After that, Chen Guoli's smile faded a lot, and he asked solemnly, "Are you thinking about tomorrow's test flight?"
"That's the only way." Xu Cang turned his head and asked, "Teacher Chen, do you have anything else to say?"
"Well... technically I have no right to ask you for anything. But I did say something during the day." Chen Guoli said with a worried look in his eyes: "In addition to studying the single-engine program, I also studied the meteorological and geographical data around Qitai Airport..."
Xu Cang raised a smile: "Teacher Chen, you know everything about astronomy and geography."
"Alas, my talent is not top-notch, so I can only work hard." Chen Guoli laughed at himself, "But I did research some things. Let's not talk about the initial obstacle crossing. Even if the obstacle crossing margin retained in the program is very small, it is still in compliance with the regulations. What I want to talk about is another thing..."
Xu Cang showed a hint of interest: "What's wrong?"
"When I flew to Qitai during the day, I found that although there was a lot of wind and snow at Qitai Airport, the temperature was low and the surrounding area was very desolate, there was a lot of vegetation in the valley below Qitai Airport," said Chen Guoli.
The location of Qitai Airport is very special, it is located uphill at the bend of a U-shaped canyon. Therefore, the fifth side of the approach to Runway 28 is along one end of the U-shaped canyon. In the final descent stage, the aircraft almost sank into the canyon, and the mountains on both sides are higher than the aircraft.
Therefore, at a low altitude, if you look at the GPWS display, the aircraft is almost traveling in a red zone, and if it deviates slightly from the final track, the terrain warning may sound.
When making the final approach, you enter from one end of the canyon. If you make a go-around, you must first maintain one side heading, climb to an altitude of more than 4,500 feet, and then turn right and go out along the other end of the canyon.
In a sense, the go-around procedure and the single-engine procedure overlap in the initial stage. However, when both engines are normal, the aircraft's climbing performance is excellent. Although the trajectory overlaps with the other end of the canyon, in fact, the aircraft can quickly leave the canyon terrain.
However, with a single engine, the aircraft's climbing performance is severely restricted. Therefore, if it turns right after the takeoff climb, it will plunge into the canyon.
There was no way. The main range of the Tianshan Mountains was in the distance on one side of Runway 28. It was like an insurmountable chasm for a single-engine aircraft and it was impossible to cross it.
In fact, in the single-engine procedure, if you can avoid turning, it is best not to turn, and it is best to climb straight up. Because once the aircraft turns, the lift will be decomposed, and the already poor climbing rate will be reduced by a few points.
In certain extreme situations, once the aircraft turns, it may not even be able to maintain a positive climb rate, which is intolerable in a single-engine procedure.
However, the main range of the Tianshan Mountains was ahead, so the horizontal trajectory had to be changed even if it did not want to. After passing the obstacle on one side, according to the single-engine procedure, the aircraft had to turn right at an extremely large angle of more than 120 degrees.
It is almost impossible for the aircraft to maintain altitude during this turn.
However, according to the description of the single-engine procedure, there is no threatening terrain below the turning position, so as long as the aircraft can maintain level flight, there is no danger. The more troublesome problem is the problem after the turn.
After turning and leveling off, the aircraft will enter the canyon, and given the poor climbing performance of the single-engine aircraft, the flight in the middle of the canyon will be maintained for a while. However, the procedure indicates that as long as the aircraft maintains a 1.2% climb gradient at this stage, there will be no terrain danger even in the canyon.
In a smooth state, under normal circumstances, a 1.2% climb gradient can be absolutely guaranteed, but Chen Guoli discovered another problem, a possibility that might make it impossible for the aircraft to maintain even a 1.2% climb gradient.
Xu Cang was not as knowledgeable as Chen Guoli, who had studied meteorological and geographical data, so after Chen Guoli said this , Xu Cang obviously didn't understand.
"Teacher Chen, please forgive me for my lack of knowledge. I don't quite understand what you mean." Xu Cang was realistic and said that if he didn't understand, he didn't understand.
Chen Guoli thought about it for a moment, and suddenly pointed to the main range of the Tianshan Mountains in the distance, which was crawling like an ancient giant beast. "Normally, the north wind prevails in this season. However, this time of year, there is also a strong monsoon coming from the southwest, but it was eventually blocked by the Tianshan Mountains."
Xu Cang was startled, and some geographical information quickly emerged in his mind. Indeed, in winter, due to the existence of the Mongolian high pressure, there should be more northerly winds, and southerly winds are indeed rare at this time.
Chen Guoli continued, "The southwest winds are so strong that even the Tianshan Mountains cannot stop them. They will cross the entire mountain range and then rush down the slope, for example, there..."
As he spoke, Chen Guoli pointed in another direction. It was pitch black there, with only some heavy shadows, and Xu Cang could not see anything. However, Xu Cang knew what that direction represented.
If nothing goes wrong, that will be the departure side for the single-engine procedure on Runway 28 of Qitai Airport tomorrow.
"Downward rushing rapids..." Xu Cang chewed for a moment, and asked in an uncertain tone: "You mean... Burning Wind?"
