In the office of the president of Pratt & Whitney Power, Clark is listening to the secretary's report on the ban on the sale of Bombardier PW6000 engines.
Not long ago, at the request of Airbus Americas representatives, Pratt & Whitney Power will not renew its contract with Bombardier for power components for the CS300 aircraft. This decision was not announced publicly, so there has been no major media coverage so far.
In Pratt & Whitney's view, this is the best effort they can make to save Bombardier. But the reality is that Bombardier is obviously not very grateful. At least after issuing a private notice to ban the sale of engines, Bombardier responded with a very harsh letter of protest.
"After learning that we had banned the sale of PW6000 engines, Boeing, Embraer and Gulfstream sent us letters asking why."
Clark's face looked a little unhappy: "They are worried about their supply source, really..."
Although there has been no official announcement about Pratt & Whitney's ban on the sale of PW6000 engines to Bombardier, it has not been kept secret too deliberately and anyone with an eye can find out, especially aircraft manufacturers that will use Pratt & Whitney engines.
Today Pratt & Whitney may cut off Bombardier's engine supply, but tomorrow it may be the one whose supply is cut off.
So, after learning about this situation, Boeing, Embraer and Gulfstream all came to ask for an explanation.
These three companies are quite representative, representing the leading positions in the fields of trunk aircraft, regional aircraft and large business aircraft respectively. Therefore, even Pratt & Whitney has to be cautious.
In fact, Clark did not want to get involved in this matter. After all, such an unreasonable ban on sales would greatly damage the reputation of Pratt & Whitney. However, the conditions offered by Airbus were quite tempting. In addition, from the perspective of Airbus's European representative, Airbus was really anxious about Bombardier's CS300 aircraft.
The move to ban the sale of engines to Bombardier will certainly cause resentment among some other aircraft manufacturers, but what he knows is that if he does not cooperate with Airbus, what he will get is not the resentment from Airbus, but his real interests will be affected.
Airbus aircraft are powered by more than just Pratt & Whitney!
"You reply to them and say... PW6000 is considering not renewing the engine order with Bombardier due to... capacity structure adjustment." Clark rubbed his temple and said, "Emphasize to them that we are not unilaterally banning sales, we are just not renewing the contract."
The secretary hesitated and said, "How about not saying the second half of the sentence?"
Engines are very important to aircraft manufacturers, so generally aircraft manufacturers and engine manufacturers will reach a consensus on long-term supply intentions.
That is, if neither party actively raises an objection, the supply agreement will continue and even be renewed after a certain contract ends.
In a literal sense, Clark's statement is indeed impeccable. However, those companies are all veterans of civil aviation. Don't they know the operating rules of civil aviation supply relations?
In the absence of obvious fault on the part of Bombardier, Pratt & Whitney's unilateral breaking of the long-term supply cooperation intention is basically equivalent to a breach of contract.
The secretary suggested not to add the second half of the sentence because if such words were told to the three companies, they would feel that they were being treated as fools, which would cause resentment.
"No, just add it." Clark shook his head: "We still have to say what is on the table. Also, help me make an appointment with the president of Boeing. I need to meet with him alone."
Among the three companies, Boeing's position is undoubtedly the most important, so Clark felt that he had to explain it to the president of Boeing in person. In addition, he also talked about the improved model of the PW4000-112 power system of the future Boeing 787.
Pratt & Whitney certainly will not supply the PW4000-112 engine originally used for the Boeing 777 to the Boeing 787 intactly, as this would easily make it seem that Pratt & Whitney is too perfunctory about the Boeing 787 project.
However, with the experience of PW6000, Pratt & Whitney Power is still relatively confident in improving the P W4000-112 engine, and the power department has already submitted a draft for the improvement of PW4000-112, and it is a good opportunity to discuss it with the president of Boeing.
This also shows that Pratt & Whitney is very concerned about the Boeing 787 project.
The secretary nodded: "I'll arrange it."
"If I remember correctly, the Boeing president prefers sea fishing, so let's arrange the meeting place on Cape Cod."
Cape Cod in Massachusetts, USA is a world-famous deep-sea fishing spot. In addition to the most basic sea fishing services, there are also scuba diving and fishing activities that are highly experiential. Cape Cod is indeed a good place to cater to your tastes.
"I will notify the Massachusetts branch and ask them to prepare for the reception in advance."
Clark hummed, touched the wall of the coffee cup he had just brewed, and thought it was almost ready, so he picked it up and took a few sips.
Speaking of meetings, Clark naturally thought of the business negotiation invitation he had recently sent to Spring Airlines.
"Any news about the negotiation invitation sent to Spring Airlines?"
"Got it!" The secretary said hurriedly, "Spring Airlines has agreed to conduct formal business negotiations, but the specific location and level of the negotiations have not yet been determined. We will continue to contact them and finalize the details as soon as possible."
Clark was not surprised by this result. He took another sip of coffee and said, "Not bad. Keep an eye on it."
"In addition, there is one more thing." The secretary added: "Spring Airlines also asked us whether it is interested in conducting flight tests of the PW8000 in its reply."
Upon hearing this, the president of Pratt & Whitney Power, who had been calm and composed before, almost spilled his coffee with his right hand shaking.
"He said he wanted to participate in the flight test of PW8000?" Clark asked excitedly.
"Him?" The secretary was a little puzzled. "Spring Airlines' reply simply asked about the PW8000 flight test, and there was no other relevant information."
"No more?" Clark was stunned: "Didn't you mention Xu Cang?"
The secretary shook her head firmly: "No, it's just a simple additional inquiry."
Clark put down his coffee cup and paced around the office, feeling very uncomfortable. Not long ago, Rolls-Royce completed the flight test of the Trent 1000 at an extraordinary speed, greatly advancing the commercialization time of this engine. Clark would be lying if he said he was not envious.
With the booming development of the East Asian market, the world's civil aviation market has transformed from a stock market to an incremental market. Moreover, after the issuance of the euro, the European market, which had originally slowed down its growth momentum, has begun to regain its second spring. It is almost certain that the world's civil aviation market will usher in at least another ten years of golden years in the future.
In the field of aviation engines, first-mover advantage is extremely important. Once the market is occupied, it will not be easy for other engines to enter later.
Because aircraft and engines are adaptable, once the power system is determined in the initial stage, it will most likely not be changed later, which means that the company can continue to reap the profits of related models.
Although the initial power intention of the Boeing 787 project has been decided and made public, with the release of the Trent 1000, this initial intention is obviously unstable.
However, if the PW8000 engine is successfully developed, this variable-speed engine may become a groundbreaking aviation engine, and it is not impossible for it to be comparable to the CFM56.
However, because the speed shifting concept of PW8000 was too advanced, even Pratt & Whitney itself was unsure, so it always put PW8000 on the shelf.
But if Xu Cang is willing to help, Pratt & Whitney can test the PW8000 at a relatively low cost, and the room for trial and error can be greatly increased.
Clark dreamed of owning an engine like the CFM56, and all his thoughts were invested in the PW8000. However, the Pratt & Whitney headquarters did not have much confidence in this revolutionary engine, but if Xu Cang was there, Clark would be confident that he could convince the headquarters to allocate a large amount of funds for the PW8000.
In fact, the so-called business negotiation itself did not exist. Clark also wanted to get in touch with Xu Cang and test Xu Cang's thoughts.
There was actually no danger in the test flights of either the Boeing 777 or the Trent 1000. With this result, perhaps Xu Cang would be less resistant to the test flights.
After all, anyone would be willing to get extremely high returns without taking too much risk.
"No rush, no rush. Spring Airlines dared to reply like this, they must have consulted Xu Cang's opinion, or more likely it was Xu Cang's instruction. At least Xu Cang should have some ideas about PW8000." Clark pondered for a moment, and soon remembered that when he first met Xu Cang at the World Civil Aviation Congress in Hanjing, Xu Cang mentioned that there would be room for cooperation between the two parties in the future. He didn't expect it to come so soon.
The secretary considered for a moment and asked, "Do you need me to go and test Spring Airlines?"
Clark was silent for a moment, and just as he was about to speak, the office door was roughly pushed open with a loud noise, and a man in his thirties rushed in.
"Don't you know you need to knock before coming in?" Clark shouted coldly.
This man is from the president's secretarial office. Clark has more than one secretary, and this man is quite hardworking and usually does things steadily. Why is he so reckless today?
"Something happened!" The male secretary took a breath and said, "The European branch sent a message that a British Airways Boeing 777 encountered an emergency and has now made an emergency landing in Munich."
Clark frowned: "Boeing 777?"
To be honest, Clark felt a little uneasy at this point. Many early Boeing 777 models were equipped with the optional PW4000-112 engine.
"That's right! The power system of that 777 is our PW4000-112 engine."
Although he had already guessed it, Clark couldn't help but look gloomy when he heard the news.
"What was the cause of the accident?"
"We haven't found anything yet." The male secretary took a deep breath, hoping to keep his tone as steady as possible. "However, preliminary visual observation after landing showed that the outer shell of one of the Boeing 777's engines had almost completely fallen off, and the core engine was exposed."
"What!" Clark's face suddenly changed: "The wall of the machine fell off!"
"That's right!" The male secretary was very sure: "When I first heard the news, I also found it incredible. Later, after cross-verification from various channels, I found that the news was basically confirmed. Now the plane is parked at Munich Airport, Boss, what should we do?"
Clark clenched his right hand into a fist. Although the cause of the accident has not yet been investigated, no matter what the reason is, it is absolutely impossible to allow such a huge fall off of the outer wall of an aircraft engine.
All engines must undergo restrictive testing of the casing. Otherwise, if there is a problem with the engine, various parts will fly around, and wouldn't that magnify the damage?
Therefore, no matter what problems occur inside the engine, even if it explodes, the casing must limit the danger to the inside of the engine. From this perspective, the PW4000-112 engine of the Boeing 777 is considered to have a big problem.
Clark's face looked quite unhappy. The timing of this incident was too unfortunate. It happened shortly after Boeing 787 announced its power system selection, and the engine with problems was the PW4000-112 engine.
Although Pratt & Whitney will make improvements to the PW4000-112 engine to adapt it to the Boeing 787, with such a big incident happening, Boeing will definitely have some other ideas.
What Clark is most worried about now is that Boeing will remove the PW4000-112 engine from the optional power of the Boeing 787.
"Notify the Public Relations Department, at all costs..."
No matter what, it is necessary to suppress the news first. However, as soon as Clark said this, the male secretary said with a sad face: "I'm afraid it won't work this time."
Clark was puzzled: "What do you mean?"
"According to what I have learned, the right wing of the Boeing 777, from the engine suspension bracket outward, was completely broken."
Clark could hardly believe his ears: "The big wing broke off, and then the plane flew back?"
"That's right! It should be like this." The male secretary frowned. To be honest, he didn't believe it either. But after combining various information channels, this was the result he got.
"Boss, this incident is destined to go down in the history of civil aviation. All media outlets are aware of the news value of this flight accident. I don't think our public relations department can suppress it anymore."
"The main wing is broken, the main wing is broken, how can it still fall down?" Clark understood what the male secretary meant. Even Clark himself felt that it was impossible for the ship to fall down with a broken main wing, but this impossible thing happened. Whether it is ordinary people or professionals, they must have a strong interest in this matter.
I believe that it won't be long before this matter spreads like wildfire and cannot be suppressed at all.
The male secretary was the first to realize the seriousness of the matter, which is why he lost his composure in a very rare way.
"The European branch is asking us what to do?"
With such a big thing happening, Pratt & Whitney's European branch has been thrown into disarray and can only ask the headquarters for help.
Clark thought for a while and said, "Let's talk to Boeing. The accident happened with a 777, so they must want to suppress the incident. If we work together, we can keep the impact to an acceptable level, even if we don't completely suppress it."
The male secretary nodded: "I'll do it right away."
In this matter, at least for now, Boeing and Pratt & Whitney are in the same boat, and it can even be said that Boeing is probably not much more relaxed than Pratt & Whitney.
The Boeing 777, a model that was highly anticipated but had a troubled fate, has just been fully commercialized. If this incident is exaggerated, it will be very harmful to the Boeing 777.
Pratt & Whitney alone cannot suppress public opinion, but if Boeing is included, things will be easier. However, Clark also knows that such a big thing cannot be completely suppressed. Now the only thing he hopes for is to buy more time so that they can come up with a corresponding strategy.
"Wait a minute!" Clark called the male secretary: "Help me book a flight to Germany."
"You're going there in person?"
"This is such a big deal that the European branch can't handle it at all. I have to go there."
"What about the meeting with the president of Boeing?"
"Postpone it!" Clark said softly, "With such a big incident, the Boeing president probably doesn't have the heart to fish anymore. By the way, how long will it take to fly to Germany?"
"Seven hours?" the male secretary asked uncertainly.
“Seven hours, so slow?” Clark complained. “If Concorde was still running, it would only take half the time, damn it.”
Clark felt sorry for a while, and suddenly thought of something: "By the way, who is the captain of that plane?"
Although Clark was quite annoyed by various things, curiosity is human nature. To be honest, he really wanted to know who could complete such an inhumane operation.
"I checked. There are two teams on that 777. The first captain is Schneider, an ordinary captain of British Airways. The second captain is David, a flight specialist for the European region of ICAO."
"Flight Specialist for Europe?" Clark was stunned. There were relatively few of these flight specialists, and each of them was a top talent. "So, the one who landed was the flight specialist named David?"
"No, I don't think so."
"Oh?" Clark raised his voice: "Any other guesses?"
The male secretary paused and said, "There is another flight specialist for the Asia-Pacific region on the plane."
Clark narrowed his eyes: "Asia Pacific, who?"
"Xu Cang!"
…
Munich Airport has not been so busy . Although it is also a well-known airport in Germany, it has been stagnant due to the huge siphon effect of Berlin.
However, at this moment, a large number of vehicles and personnel gathered near Runway 17/35 at Munich Airport, including many pilots wearing reflective vests.
Due to excessive wind at Munich Airport, many flights were delayed and could not take off. Many pilots had been waiting on the plane for several hours, and they were bored. Now that they saw something interesting, how could they not get involved?
Runway 17/35 at Munich Airport is an old runway, and the corresponding Terminal 1 terminal is also old. The apron is very close to the runway and can be reached in a few steps. The newly built Runway 16/34 is a new runway, and the supporting Terminal 2 is also brand new. The apron is very large, so it is very troublesome to move around.
Some pilots who were really bored and uncomfortable put on reflective vests and walked towards the runway along the grass along the edge of the apron.
Munich Airport was already in chaos due to the landing of British Airways Flight 531, and no one cared about the pilots who were approaching.
However, these pilots are also sensible. They will never go on the taxiway, even if there is no plane around and other people are walking on the taxiway without any scruples, but they insist on not walking on the smooth taxiway and choose to walk on the slightly rugged grass next to it.
Moreover, these people all wore reflective vests and did not do anything out of line, so the airport turned a blind eye. Otherwise, they would have driven them all away even if it was a little troublesome.
The pilots walked together, and when they arrived at the plane, most of the people on board had already been evacuated.
Among them, someone saw David at a glance.
After all, among all the people, wearing a pilot uniform and carrying four stripes is quite eye-catching. Especially since Captain David is the European Commissioner of the International Civil Aviation Organization, he still has a great reputation.
Many pilots gathered around, and the leader was an old man with white hair and beard, who seemed to be close to retirement. The old man walked up to David and excitedly grabbed David's hand and said, "We all saw your landing just now. It was amazing, amazing. I had objected to your appointment as ICAO's European flight commissioner before, and I sincerely apologize to you here."
Like Xu Cang, David was also questioned when he served as the regional flight commissioner of ICAO, mainly because he was too young. Among the opponents was the old man in front of him. This man was very experienced and gave David a headache for a long time.
Even though David later became the flight specialist for Europe as he wished, the old man still did not take him seriously.
However, today he was completely convinced by David. Landing with a broken wing was something that no pilot would dare to think about, but David achieved it.
When this operation that only exists in dreams actually becomes a reality, the impact is unparalleled.
A group of younger pilots at the back wanted to kneel down and kiss David's shoes. The operation just now was simply a miracle. They had no idea how it was done.
Looking at his colleagues who were all looking at him with admiration, David sighed dejectedly, "Just now... it wasn't me who dropped it."
"You didn't drop it?" The old man was stunned and looked at the crew member Schneider who was standing not far away and looked a little confused: "Is that him? Who is he?"
Obviously, compared to David, who was promoted to ICAO flight commissioner at a young age, Captain Schneider is much less famous.
"His name is Schneider, and I've had dinner with him." One of the pilots said, "But is he really that powerful?"
In his impression, Schneider's skills are indeed good, but definitely not amazing.
Or is it that you can’t judge a book by its cover?
But the difference is too great.
"It's not him!" David said helplessly.
“Who is that!?”
A powerful voice rang out from the noisy crowd. The old man who had spoken earlier was startled, turned around, and saw Richard approaching with a swift and powerful stride.
Many people knew Richard, and the pilots showed enough respect to the president of the International Federation of Air Line Pilots Association and made way for him.
Richard walked slowly to David and asked, "Who dropped that?"
David didn't expect Richard to appear here, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he shifted his gaze to a young figure in the corner of the crowd of passengers evacuating nearby.
Richard followed David's gaze and shuddered when he saw the man's back. He murmured softly, "Sure enough, only he can do it."
So Richard left David behind and walked towards the isolated figure.
In the noisy environment, Xu Cang just stood there quietly. He was so different, as if all the disturbances would calm down consciously when they approached him.
With his hands behind his back, Xu Cang looked into the distance at the Alps. At this moment, the Alps were actually not very visible, but how could he not see them when the huge air mass hovering over the mountains blocked out the sun?
"Xu Cang!"
Suddenly, a man's voice came from behind. Xu Cang felt something and turned slightly to the side, looking back at the man standing behind him: "Richard?"
Richard covered his chest and felt like his heart was about to jump out of his chest.
It turned out to be the person he had his eyes on!
Only he can accomplish miracles that are beyond human power!
"It was you who landed just now..." Richard asked tremblingly, very carefully, even seeming a little humble.
However, Xu Cang did not let him finish, nor did he give him any answer.
"Richard!" Xu Cang said indifferently, "Please do me a favor!"
…
British Airways headquarters building.
"What did you say? We're organizing a new round of rescue operations in the Alps?" Vice President Jerry was listening to his subordinates' reports in the office. He felt incredible. "Didn't they say that the snowstorm in the Alps has intensified? We didn't succeed before, but we can succeed now?"
Whether it is from the weather department or the air traffic department, the wind and snow in the Alps are getting stronger and stronger. When the wind and snow were relatively weak before, the rescue operation was attempted several times but to no avail, and almost lost his life during the process. Now the wind and snow are getting stronger and stronger. Isn't this crazy?
"What's going on with the rescue team?"
The subordinate corrected Jerry's statement: "This rescue was not organized by the rescue team, but by a man named Xu Cang."
"Xu Cang?" Jerry, the vice president of British Airways, was stunned: "This name sounds familiar, have you heard it somewhere before?"
"It was this Xu Cang who was with us in Jakarta before."
"It's him!" Jerry stood up slowly, a trace of anxiety passing through his heart.
He didn't know much about flying, but he had heard the report of the British Airways Jakarta volcanic ash incident. The experienced captains in the company were very impressed with Xu Cang's performance in the Jakarta volcanic ash incident, especially the captain of Flight 1009, who exaggerated Xu Cang's miraculousness to everyone he met.
Would it be possible that the man who created a miracle in Jakarta would do it again in the Alps?
Some people have upper limits that need to be considered!
"Not long ago, Mr. Richard telegraphed the families or lawyers of all the trapped vacationers. At dawn tomorrow, a plane will take off from Munich. This plane will be fully loaded with supplies and its destination will be the Manor Airport. These supplies are enough for the people in the manor to safely survive the dangerous period of the snowstorm." The subordinate said calmly: "However, as a price, one-tenth of the assets of all the trapped vacationers will be used as the reward for this rescue."
These agreements involving huge amounts of money must be signed in person, but those people are all tied up in the Alps and cannot come to sign the agreements. Then they need to be signed by their immediate family members with their consent.
For those who are alone, their private lawyers will sign on their behalf.
"That leaves about twelve hours." Jerry sat in his chair and thought for a long time: "What do you think the chances are that he will succeed?"
"I don't know." The subordinate said, "But the information about Flight 531 just came back. He landed the plane safely at Munich Airport even though the right wing was broken."
"What?" Jerry's right hand trembled violently: "A plane with a broken wing can still land, are you kidding me?"
The subordinate didn't say anything, but his attitude already said a lot.
"The wing is broken, the wing is broken..." Jerry felt cold all over. Is this person named Xu Cang really a human? Even a plane with a broken wing can fall.
If that were the case, he might actually be able to get the supplies to the Alps.
If this really happened, wouldn't British Airways CEO Asiris be able to survive? Wouldn't his hope of climbing up the career ladder be ruined?
"The president has no family, and his personal lawyer is in the company's legal department. Should we allow him to go to Germany?"
The agreement needs to be signed in person, and cannot be agreed upon verbally or signed remotely. Therefore, the private lawyer of British Airways President Ashley Reese must go to Munich, Germany.
"What if someone disagrees?" Jerry asked suddenly.
"According to the information conveyed by Mr. Richard, the rescue will not proceed unless everyone agrees and signs the agreement." The subordinate said, "Also, the deadline is dawn tomorrow."
"I see..." At this point, Jerry began to have other thoughts in his mind.
At this moment, the office door was pushed open a little, and the secretary's voice came out: "Mr. Parikh, Representative Luo Luo wants to see you."
Jerry's full name is Jerry Parikh. If you are familiar with someone, you usually call him Jerry. If you are not so familiar with him or want to show respect, you call him by his last name, Parikh.
"Luoluo?" Jerry was startled: "Why do they want me?"
He really couldn't think of any connection between himself and Luo Luo's people.
Jerry thought for a moment and said, "Just say I have plans."
As a result, just as he finished speaking, the office door, which was originally only opened a crack, was completely pushed open, revealing the figure of Rolls-Royce's chief engineer Jonathan.
Jonathan walked in slowly with a strange smile on his face. "Mr. Parikh, you don't look very busy."
"Jonathan Meyers?" Jerry frowned. "What's the matter?"
Jonathan chuckled and said, "Nothing special, just picking someone up."
"Huh?" Jerry was even more confused: "Who?"
Jonathan laughed: "Your president Asiris's personal lawyer."
…
In a hotel in Munich, Germany, all the passengers of British Airways Flight 531 were accommodated here. It can only be said that British Airways is still very wealthy and directly booked a four-star hotel to accommodate the passengers on board.
The girl who had reminded Xu Cang on the plane checked in, packed up a little, and left. Her target was none other than Xu Cang.
On the plane before, Xu Cang obviously knew her, but she couldn't remember it no matter what. In order to answer this question, she had to ask Xu Cang in person.
Moreover, after evacuating the plane, she saw that the right wing of the plane was almost broken in half. Under such circumstances, it was incredible that Xu Cang could land the plane.
No matter what the purpose was, she felt it necessary to find Xu Cang.
Although this hotel is a four-star hotel, it does not cover a large area, but the environment is quite beautiful. It is more like an exquisite holiday estate than a hotel.
The main part of the hotel is built on a hillside, with endless grassland as far as the eye can see. Moreover, it is obvious that the hotel staff must have trimmed the grassland periodically, so that from a distance, the endless grassland looks neat and tidy without any unevenness.
Xu Cang was not difficult to find. In the dim sun that was almost setting, Xu Cang stood quietly on the grass, like a sculpture.
The girl slowly walked behind Xu Cang, and seemed to sense something. Xu Cang spoke first: "I should be the one to find you."
"It's all the same!" The girl had no special expression on her face: "Don't you want to rest? You should be very tired."
"I can't rest. If I do, my energy will be drained." Xu Cang carried her on his back and said calmly, "At least until dawn tomorrow."
The girl hesitated for a while: "You are maintaining your state, do you have anything else to do?"
"Articles are naturally formed, and they are created by chance. Now I am in the best condition ever, and I must do something in this short time."
"Like rescuing the hundred or so trapped rich people?"
Xu Cang chuckled and said, "You know?"
"When we were evacuating just now, I saw you were looking towards the Alps, or the air mass above them." The girl snorted coldly, "At the most intense moment of your life, are you still going to do something that is tainted with money?"
Xu Cang was not angry at all: "Then what do you care about? Personal feelings? Family, friendship, or... love?"
The girl seemed a little uneasy. She felt as if she was being dragged into the rhythm of Xu Cang's conversation, but she still answered.
“Although these are illusory, they are unforgettable, aren’t they?”
"So, if it is necessary, you are even willing to give up your life for it?" Xu Cang turned around slowly, and the last ray of sunlight shone on his profile, reflecting soft yet firm lines.
His eyes fell on the girl, and he said something soft but heart-piercing: "Is that so? Lianshan!"