Chapter 89: The Way of Genius! Arriving at Tianshan!
The cockpit of Blue Sky 9211 fell into an eerie silence. After a brief moment of shock, the captain suddenly asked with a straight face: "Do you really know how to fly?"
Although the captain still looked cold, even Xia Shuyue, who was sitting in the back, could sense his weak nature. After all, the only thing stopping the captain from bowing to Xu Cang was his little self-esteem.
Xu Cang did not answer immediately, but looked up at the APU exhaust temperature gauge. However, after waiting for a while, the APU exhaust temperature stabilized within a reasonable range, but the indicator light of the APU generator switch did not light up.
Xu Cang raised his eyebrows, looking a little surprised: "The whole circuit is burned out?"
"Hmm?" The captain was startled by Xu Cang's words. He also glanced at the exhaust temperature gauge and indicator light of the APU, and a trace of confusion appeared on his face: "Is it started well or not?"
Previously, when the start failed, the exhaust temperature of the APU would directly return to zero, which was easy to distinguish. However, judging from the current exhaust temperature value, the APU seems to have started successfully, but the indicator light of its generator is not on. How can this be distinguished?
"Can you hear the sound of an additional engine running?" Xu Cang turned and asked Xia Shuyue.
Xia Shuyue was stunned, listened carefully, and just shook his head: "Brother, I can't hear you."
"Yes, the APU is at the tail of the plane and the noise is small, so it's normal that you can't hear it." APU stands for auxiliary power unit, which is essentially a small engine. Its power is just much smaller than that of a normal engine. It will also make a rumbling sound after starting, but it is certainly not comparable to the engine mounted on the wing.
Of course, Xu Cang did not expect that the power circuit would be damaged to this extent, causing many indicator lights to stop working.
The captain couldn't help but ask: "What should we do now?"
Even though the captain wanted to eat Xu Cang alive before, but at this moment, he was just saying one thing and doing another.
"I'll connect it and try it first, you keep an eye on the plane." Xu Cang bent his head and thought for a while, but still ignored the problem with the APU generator indicator light. After waiting for a while, and confirming that the APU was stable, he connected both the left and right switches one at a time.
Under normal circumstances, most electrical equipment can resume operation after connecting to a new power source, but after Xu Cang turned on the two power switches, he could not feel any response in the cockpit.
Xu Cang's face couldn't help but show a trace of worry. He tried to connect again, but there was still no change.
"Did the APU fail to start properly, or is there something wrong with the circuit?" The captain began to get anxious again. How could he start the engine without a new power source?
"I don't know. I can't see any data right now, so I can't be sure. However, no one can tell what the cockpit situation is right now. What if the power has been connected, but it's just not displayed? In any case, we still have to try to restart the engine. Don't lower the altitude any further, just maintain six kilometers. It may be dangerous to lower the altitude any further."
The captain was stunned: "What's the danger?"
"The terrain is dangerous!" Xu Cang took a deep breath. He was actually somewhat prepared for the current situation, but when he really encountered it, he still felt a little scared. Even the battery that served as an emergency power source could not be connected, so it was possible that the APU could not be connected.
"It's an emergency now, so I just do it from memory. I'll do the engine failure or shutdown checklist first."
The captain is now controlling a single-engine aircraft and cannot expect Xia Shuyue to read the checklist. To be honest, ordinary people may not be able to understand Boeing's checklist, even if they know every word.
The engine air start check cannot be done directly. The engine failure or shutdown checklist must be completed first. This is a procedural requirement and the order cannot be messed up.
"The aircraft has no abnormal body vibration and there is no engine separation. The autothrottle is disconnected!" Xu Cang signaled the captain to press the autothrottle disconnect button on the top of the thrust handle again to verify that the autothrottle was disconnected.
The captain pressed the button several times to ensure the autothrottle was disengaged.
"Thrust handle, engine number one, confirm full power!" Xu Cang pushed the captain's right hand on the throttle with his left hand: "I'll protect the second engine, you take the first one."
The captain glanced and confirmed that he was indeed holding the throttle of Engine No. 1. He couldn't make a mistake. After confirming that it was correct, he moved the throttle of Engine No. 1 to the slow position.
"Engine No. 1 is verified to be at idle thrust, start handle of engine No. 1, confirm cutoff! You protect engine No. 2!"
"Ah? Oh!" The captain was still concentrating on controlling the aircraft, and most of his actions were completed under Xu Cang's guidance. He glanced at the position of the engine starter handle and protected his hand on the No. 2 engine starter handle.
Seeing that the captain had already secured the start handle of the No. 2 engine, Xu Cang grabbed the start handle of the No. 1 engine himself and said, "Verify and cut off the No. 1 engine."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Cang cut off the starting handle of engine No. 1, thus completing the shutdown process of one engine.
After that, Xu Cang turned off the left component switch, which would adjust the component that works when the flaps are retracted during flight to high flow.
According to the checklist, the APU needs to be started and the APU generator switch needs to be turned on. However, this step has already been done and the power connection has been completed. As for whether the power was connected, only God knows.
Then, Xu Cang did some finishing work, such as balancing the fuel and switching the transponder mode selector to TA, which was to prevent the appearance of a climb command that exceeded the single-engine performance capability. However, the transponder was not working at all, so it didn't make any difference whether it was turned on or not.
After that, verify that the isolation valve is in the automatic position to ensure that both wings are powered when the wing is anti-icing. In the current state, the wing anti-icing has always been closed, and Xu Cang did not dare to use the wing anti-icing at this time.
Because if there is insufficient bleed air, there is a slight possibility that turning on the wing anti-ice will cause the engine to stall, especially at high altitudes.
Of course, six kilometers is definitely not a high altitude, and there is basically no problem of turning on the wing anti-icing to cause the engine to shut down. But the Boeing aircraft is really not good, and in the case of a single engine and it is not certain that it can be restarted, Xu Cang dare not take the risk.
The next step is to move on to the engine air start checklist!
Just as Xu Cang was about to proceed with the engine air start checklist, he suddenly had an idea. He picked up his cell phone, turned on the flashlight on it and shone it outside the windshield.
The light from the flashlight reflected brightly on the oncoming raindrops, making it look like the plane was traveling through a time tunnel.
"The rain has become lighter?" Xu Cang murmured.
Judging from the density of the rain, it is estimated that it is only light to moderate rain outside. It is much smaller than the scene just now which seemed as if the sky was collapsing and rain was pouring down.
The captain's eyes lit up when he heard that the rain had subsided, which meant that they were gradually moving away from dangerous weather. Moreover, the less rain there was, the less impact it would have on the engine, which was completely good news.
However, Xu Cang just couldn't be happy.
…
In the Urumqi regional control room, the duty director walked back and forth countless times. However, no matter how he walked, his eyes were firmly fixed on the radar screen, always praying that the radar signal of Blue Sky 9211 would suddenly appear again.
However, as he paced for a longer time, the little hope he had became increasingly slim, and a feeling of irritability slowly rose from the duty director.
It has been too long since Blue Sky 9211 lost contact. With every passing minute, the chances of the crew and passengers surviving are getting smaller.
Suddenly, his assistant came running over and reported to the director in a low voice: "We just checked our radar, no problem!"
Even though he was prepared, the director almost rolled his eyes and fainted when he heard the news. Just now, he had a glimmer of hope in his heart, what if the problem was not with the crew, but with his own radar?
Although the assistant felt that the director was just deceiving himself when he heard the director's guess, he still followed the director's instructions and asked the technical department to do a simple inspection. The result naturally showed that the equipment was normal and there was no problem.
"Director, what should we do now?" the assistant asked casually.
This sentence directly ignited the long-suppressed anger of the duty director, and he instantly became furious: "What should I do? How do I know what to do?"
"Director, can we contact the military and borrow their radar?" At this moment, a weak voice suddenly came out.
The director looked in the direction of the voice and saw the controller who was previously responsible for communicating with Blue Sky 9211.
The director frowned: "What did you just say?"
"I mean to contact the military and ask them to use military radar to scan the airspace where Blue Sky 9211 lost contact. Their radar does not require a transponder to reply, so if Blue Sky 9211 is still in the sky, it should be possible to find it," the controller said anxiously.
To be honest, he didn't know if this method was feasible. But logically speaking, it should be possible. Although there are many types of military radars, most of them rely on electromagnetic wave reflection to determine the position of the aircraft, which is a bit like a bat's position determination by sound, and does not rely on the working status of the aircraft transponder.
Of course, the premise of all this is that Blue Sky 9211 is still flying in the sky. If even the military radar can't see it, then this matter is really out of the blue.
The duty director was stunned for five or six seconds, and then a look of ecstasy suddenly appeared on his face, as if by magic. He patted the controller's shoulder fiercely and said, "You may look silly, but you have a lot of clever ideas. It's feasible, absolutely feasible!"
The duty officer had had enough of this meaningless and long wait, which was like a slow torture, and he was eager to do something. After a brief thought, he felt that the controller's idea of borrowing military radar was feasible and not small.
But the assistant was a little worried: "Director, our civil aviation has been separated from the air force. Is this easy to do?"
The duty officer didn't take it seriously: "What's so difficult about it? The military and civilians are like one family, there's no need to be so formal."
The assistant was really at a loss for words. His boss didn't treat him as an outsider at all.
With a direction in mind, the duty chief didn't want to stay here anymore and went straight to find someone to contact the military.
…
At this moment, in the cockpit, Xu Cang began to start the engine in the air, still doing it by memory as usual.
Based on the aircraft's altitude and speed, Xu Cang decided to use cross-bleed start, and this choice was approved by the captain.
After verifying that the thrust handle of the No. 1 engine was retracted and the start handle was cut off, Xu Cang was ready to start, but before taking action, he said in advance: "It is still raining outside. As long as the N2 is rising steadily and the EGT is not exceeded, do not abort the start."
The reason why Xu Cang wanted to specifically explain this issue is that after the engine starting handle is raised to the slow position, the EGT is required to respond within thirty seconds, otherwise the start will be interrupted.
However, at high altitude and in heavy precipitation, the EGT rise may be very slow and not suitable for this limit. Xu Cang said this in advance to avoid the captain's mistaken abort start.
"I know." The captain responded, indicating that he knew what was going on.
In fact, Xu Cang said that this has no special use. Anyway, EGT cannot be seen now, so there is nothing to refer to.
"Okay, then I'll start." After confirming that the left component was shut down and the pipeline pressure exceeded 20PSI, Xu Cang turned the engine start switch to the ground position and began to wait.
As the starter rotates, the N2 rotor starts to rotate. Under normal circumstances , it has to wait until the N2 speed exceeds 11%, but at this moment the DU does not show it, so Xu Cang waited for a while, guessing that the N2 speed was high enough, and then shouted: "Slow down and block the No. 1 engine!"
The captain also paid some attention to the starting process. When Xu Cang shouted to lift the start handle, he probably felt that the N2 speed was enough. Without hesitation, he lifted the start handle of the No. 1 engine to the slow gear position.
Now comes the most important moment.
The two began to count silently in their hearts. Normally, they should both look at the EGT index, but now there is no EGT data, so they can only hold their breath and listen to the movement of the engine outside.
Xu Cang also patted Xia Shuyue who was behind him: "Listen carefully too, is there any sound of the engine starting up again!"
This girl has very good ears, we must make full use of them.
If you can hear the engine starting up again and verify it with the aircraft status, you can basically determine the condition of the engine.
Not sure if it was because of the influence of the captain and Xu Cang in front of her, but Xia Shuyue also became nervous. Her heart was beating so hard that she could hardly make out what was going on outside.
After waiting for about a full minute, none of the three heard the sound of Engine No. 1 starting up again, and they immediately looked disappointed.
"Is the plane still leaning to the left?" Xu Cang asked.
The captain eased off the steering wheel slightly, and sure enough, the plane began to turn to the left spontaneously. This confirmed that the No. 1 engine had indeed failed to start, and none of the three people had any auditory hallucinations.
The captain cursed: "The igniter still doesn't work!"
Xu Cang sighed and asked the captain to cut off the start handle of the No. 1 engine. He then disconnected the engine start switch: "Try one last time!"
However, all this was just Xu Cang's unwillingness to give up. After trying again, the result was no different at all, and he had to accept that the circuit system of this plane was completely rotten.
Even Xia Shuyue could feel the disappointment in Xu Cang's heart after two unsuccessful attempts.
"Brother, what should we do next?" Although the captain was also here, Xia Shuyue instinctively regarded Xu Cang as the backbone. In fact, even the captain looked at Xu Cang.
Even though he felt a little unhappy, a little embarrassed, and a little unreasonable, he instinctively began to feel that Xu Cang could bring him to the ground safely.
"At first, if I can start the No. 1 engine, I plan to fly heading 040." Xu Cang said softly, "The weather in this area is distributed from north to south. We can fly out completely by flying heading 040. Then, we can see the situation on the ground."
The captain was stunned: "Heading 040? Isn't that flying northeast? Isn't that the opposite direction of our destination? Besides, the water compass is unusable now. How do you determine the heading of 040?"
"We can use the slope to calculate. Although there are slight changes, we are still roughly maintaining the initial heading of 300. Then we can use the timing and slope indicator to form a heading of 040. It doesn't have to be too accurate, as long as it is close." Xu Cang said: "As for flying to the northeast, we need to find a landmark that is obvious enough to determine our position."
The captain's mind was working frantically. He suddenly remembered a place that matched what Xu Cang said. He said in a daze, "Are you talking about Pengze Lake?"
Pengze Lake, the largest freshwater lake in China, covers an area of nearly 4,000 square kilometers and can be easily distinguished even from high altitude.
"That's right! It's Pengze Lake!" Xu Cang's pupils shrank suddenly. "The starting point of our deviation from the route, P37, is not far from Pengze Lake. As long as we keep heading northeast, we will be able to see Pengze Lake when the weather is fine."
Xia Shuyue couldn't help wondering: "But even if we get to Pengze Lake, how are we going to fly afterwards?"
"That's right!" The captain didn't understand what Xu Cang meant: "Pengze Lake is not an airport, what's the point of flying to Pengze Lake?"
The captain was still being conservative. There was no airport in a large area around Pengze Lake. What was the point of finding Pengze Lake?
"Of course it will work!" Xu Cang let out a long sigh. "Urumqi Airport and Pengze Lake are exactly on the same dimension, and there is no difference at all! As long as we fly over Pengze Lake, we can use the sun to distinguish the east-west direction, and then fly due west. The high-altitude wind is basically from east to west, which will not have a big impact on our course. As long as we fly west, we will definitely be able to fly to Urumqi Airport, and there will be no error!"
hiss!
As soon as Xu Cang finished talking, the captain felt goose bumps all over his body. He looked at Xu Cang as if he was a monster. Not long ago, Xu Cang said that he could solve the navigation problem, and he was a little bit unconvinced, but now he just felt that Xu Cang was not human at all.
He had taken latitude, high-altitude winds, and reference point identification into account, and had combined them into a practical and reliable plan, a plan so perfect that the captain felt only a chill.
Such a person is terrible. His existence is to transcend common sense and rationality. He just wants to prove that people are indeed different.
Xia Shuyue, who was sitting in the back, had a bright light in her eyes. At this moment, Xu Cang seemed to be shrouded in holy light.
"Sure enough, all this is arranged by fate!" Xia Shuyue shouted in her heart. She felt that God had pointed out the direction for her future.
"Let's go!" The captain was so excited that he could hardly control himself: "Let's fly to Pengze Lake now!"
"No!" Xu Cang shook his head: "It's too far! It takes about two and a half hours to fly from here to Pengze Lake and then to Urumqi Airport. There is enough fuel, but the engine is not good enough!"
When the flight took off, due to the weather in the northwest region, a lot of fuel was released. However, the problem was not the fuel, but the fact that they only had one engine.
The captain was anxious: "We can fly over there with just one engine!"
Xu Cang stared at the captain coldly: "Let a single-engine passenger plane fly for two and a half hours. Do you think the rule that the single-engine must land within an hour after landing is made casually? Moreover, a large section of the road between Pengze Lake and Urumqi Airport is all Gobi Desert, and we don’t have any options for alternate landing. If the two engines are normal, I would make this choice, but not now!"
In the final analysis, the plane was in such a bad condition. It was operating on a single engine, and the power system was almost completely destroyed. Even Xu Cang didn't have the confidence to keep such a plane going for two and a half hours.
"This doesn't work, and that doesn't work either. So what should we do?" Just when the captain saw a glimmer of hope, Xu Cang ruthlessly rejected it. The captain couldn't help feeling a little anxious.
"Then let's descend!" Xu Cang narrowed his eyes: "We can find a chance of survival down there!"
"Down below?" The captain was stunned. "It's still covered with dark clouds. What can we see below? Besides, didn't you just say that we should pay attention to terrain threats?"
"The light is really bad now. Some things can't be seen, but some things can be seen." Xu Cang took a deep breath. It can be seen that he was also very nervous at the moment: "If we descend to an altitude of 5,100 meters, we should be able to guarantee enough terrain margin."
The captain complained, "Should? Can the word should be used for this kind of thing?"
Xu Cang glanced at the captain, then he directly gripped the control wheel with his right hand, pushed the captain's hand away from the throttle lever with his left hand, slightly reduced the thrust, and then began to push the lever down.
"If I'm not miscalculated, the highest mountain in the area below us should be Bogda Mountain. The highest peak of Bogda Mountain is 4,500 meters. Leaving a margin of 600 meters is enough." Xu Cang said calmly, but his right hand, which was holding the steering wheel and opening and closing constantly, betrayed his true mood.
The captain frowned and said, "Bogda Mountain, isn't this the mountain?"
Suddenly, the captain's eyes widened, as if he understood what Xu Cang was going to do!
The plane was already very close to 5,100 meters. As the altitude dropped, the clouds became thinner and thinner. However, the captain was getting more and more panicked: "Xu Cang, if we are still in the clouds at an altitude of 5,100 meters, can we still descend?"
Xu Cang pursed his lips and said nothing, with a trace of determination across his face.
Just as Xu Cang finished his words, Xu Cang suddenly pushed the stick forward, and when the plane was about to reach 5,100 meters, it seemed to break free from the shackles and rushed out of the clouds.
In an instant, the darkness dissipated and light came! The sky and earth suddenly became clear! Some light scattered through the gaps in the clouds, reflecting the vast earth in front of everyone's eyes.
Above the dim land, there is a pitch-black mountain range winding away, seemingly without end.
It divides the northwest land into two like a natural moat.
It is like a divine dragon descending to the earth and lying across the world.
It has existed since time immemorial!
It is Tianshan!
