Chapter 29: Maiden Flight of the Japanese Trainer Aircraft
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Chapter 29: First Flight in a Japanese Trainer
It was Zhou Zhihan’s first time sitting in an aircraft cockpit and becoming so intimately acquainted with it, and he could barely contain his excitement. Compared with the modern star fighters he had once dreamed of, such as the J-20 and the F-35, this Japanese military primary trainer stirred his blood even more.
Although the trainer carried no weapons, its very bloodline embodied an instinctive, primitive urge to kill.
Unlike modern fighter aircraft, which could launch military strikes from hundreds of kilometers away, every fighter plane during the Second World War carried out aerial combat, ground attacks, and close support within the range of the enemy’s naked eyes. It was therefore far bloodier and more brutal. The combatants could even see the hot blood spurting from their opponents’ veins and smell the pervasive stench of blood hanging over the battlefield.
In the future war against Japan, many Japanese pilots would undergo training on this very aircraft before taking control of Type 96 fighters and embarking on their wicked campaigns.
The instrument panel of the Tachikawa Ki-95C trainer was crowded with gauges. At first glance, the sheer number of them was almost overwhelming, and it was difficult to know where to look first.
The system’s mechanical voice sounded.
“Please adjust your posture, Host, and fasten your seat belt.”
Zhou Zhihan did as instructed. Although he had never driven any particularly fine cars before crossing over, a seat belt was standard equipment for every veteran driver.
How cool!
How impressive!
His sense of novelty was overflowing!
So was his anticipation!
“Please operate according to the voice prompts. First, locate the ignition switch and turn it on. The ignition switch is marked with the number nineteen.”
Zhou Zhihan looked left and right. Sure enough, on the lower-left side of the instrument panel was an ignition switch, with the number nineteen flashing brightly on it.
How meticulous!
This really was teaching him every step by hand!
Zhou Zhihan reached out and turned on the ignition switch.
The system was truly high-end. Even as a teacher, it was so thorough that he could locate every required switch at a glance.
“Please turn on the cockpit power switch marked with the number twenty-three.”
Without moving his body, Zhou Zhihan twisted his neck around and found the switch marked twenty-three.
He turned it on.
In an instant, every instrument panel and control system in the cockpit lit up with operating lights.
“Directly above your right leg is an item marked with the number thirty-seven. This is the engine-start button. Start the engine first, then locate the fuel-drain switch marked with the number fifty-four.”
Zhou Zhihan looked upward along his right leg and, sure enough, found a red button flashing above him. The number fifty-four was marked on it.
He reached out and pressed it.
“Roar!”
The engine thundered to life. The entire aircraft began to vibrate, and Zhou Zhihan happily opened the fuel-drain switch.
This system of ours—how was it merely a teacher? It was obviously a mother.
Teachers were strict, especially homeroom teachers, who made every student feel nervous and apprehensive in their presence. Only a mother would fuss over her son like this, taking care of every detail with such painstaking thoroughness.
“Please locate the throttle marked with the number seventeen on your left. Slowly push it forward at the speed of a leisurely crawling ant. At the same time, release the brake switch marked with the number twenty-seven, located below and to the right of the control stick.”
Zhou Zhihan shook his head a few times and found the throttle marked seventeen. He eased it forward at an ant’s crawling pace. At once, he could feel that the Ki-95C trainer was like a warhorse held back by the reins, wildness filling its heart as it waited only for the reins to be released so that it could charge forward at full gallop.
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Zhou Zhihan continued twisting his waist, craning his neck, and peering around until he found the brake switch marked twenty-seven. He lifted it upward and released it. The brake automatically sprang loose and fell back into place.
“Eee-eee-eee…”
The tires on the landing gear screeched against the ground.
Whoosh!
The aircraft began to roll forward.
Zhou Zhihan was delighted. Truly, a renowned teacher produced outstanding students. With a teacher like Skyborne Overlord, he felt profoundly fortunate as a pupil.
“The aircraft is now taxiing forward. Please open the flight manual and operate according to the steps provided.”
In an instant, a book appeared in the upper-right corner of Zhou Zhihan’s helmet: the aircraft’s operating manual.
Overjoyed, Zhou Zhihan opened the first page with a thought.
He was instantly dumbfounded.
The first page of the aircraft’s operating manual was completely blank.
What was going on?
Zhou Zhihan hurriedly turned to the second page, then the third and fourth. He quickly flipped through the entire manual, yet not a single word appeared.
He was utterly baffled.
This…
Had the system given him the wrong book?
How was this an aircraft operating manual?
It was clearly blank from beginning to end. It was obviously a flight diary waiting for him to write in it!
The Tachikawa Ki-95C trainer had already overcome the resistance caused by the brakes and was gradually accelerating forward. Its power delivery was smooth, steady, and exhilarating.
With the aircraft manual still completely blank, Zhou Zhihan began to panic. Where were the speedometer, fuel gauge, pressure gauges, and all the rest on the instrument panel?
System big brother?
Uncle?
Grandfather?
Fortunately, there was nothing around them. There were no airport buildings and no control tower, only a broad, lengthy runway that seemed to have no end.
“Within the next ten seconds, memorize every instrument and control system in the cockpit, along with their positions. You must be able to reach each designated control with your hands and feet the moment the thought arises, without searching for it with your eyes.
“Countdown begins. Ten…”
All right, all right, all right. This was not a loving mother. This was the strictest teacher in history.
Zhou Zhihan drew a deep breath and focused his attention inside the gradually accelerating cockpit. His eyes moved from left to right and from top to bottom, committing every inch of the cockpit’s layout to memory.
Ding!
“Task complete. The Host’s memory is indeed extraordinary. Please fly the aircraft according to the flight manual.”
The moment the system’s voice faded, the pages of the aircraft manual changed.
The pages that had been entirely blank now displayed the numbers representing every instrument and control lever in the cockpit.
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Zhou Zhihan was nearly driven mad.
“Teachers don’t teach students like this! The order is backward. Why does it feel as though the student has to write the textbook on the blackboard before teaching the teacher?”
“Different students require different teaching methods. For a super-intelligent student like the Host, a super method of education is naturally required. Only by making you operate in reverse can the lessons leave a deep impression. Otherwise, how could the Skyborne Overlord secret manual enable you to achieve, after only one hour of flight, what others require fifty hours—or even longer—to accomplish?”
The system’s praise of him as “super-intelligent” made Zhou Zhihan feel quite pleased.
All right, all right. You’re always right!
Numbers began flashing on the flight manual. Then a line of small text suddenly enlarged until it floated twenty centimeters in front of Zhou Zhihan’s eyes. It was easy to read:
Slowly push the throttle forward until the aircraft reaches takeoff position.
Zhou Zhihan did as instructed, concentrating completely. At that moment, he felt as though he had become one with the aircraft. He could even sense that the plane was alive. Through his hand, he could feel exactly how much fuel to feed in as he pushed the throttle forward, allowing the engine to reach the proper revolutions for that stage and produce maximum power.
The numbers on the flight manual shifted, and another line of small text enlarged twenty centimeters in front of his eyes:
Open the flaps switch.
Without looking, Zhou Zhihan’s hand reached the flaps switch with absolute precision. He turned it clockwise and locked it into position.
His gaze was no longer flustered. His eyes followed his thoughts, locating each instrument panel with perfect accuracy:
Lubricating-oil dilution normal.
Carburetor control rod normal.
Brake-pressure gauge released and normal.
Supercharger adjustment knob normal.
Oil pressure normal.
Oil temperature rising normally.
Engine speed normal.
“Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Roar, roar, roar!”
Wind rushed past alongside the thunder of the engine.
The speed reached thirty-two, then thirty-seven, then forty. Green indicator lights came on.
Zhou Zhihan pushed the throttle forward. He felt the nose lift briefly before settling level again. The speed reached forty-three.
Zhou Zhihan pulled back on the control stick. The transmission mechanism deep inside the fuselage carried the force through, raising the elevators. The aircraft’s horizontal wings tilted upward at an angle of twenty-five degrees. As they cut through the air, they generated downward force.
The nose rose sharply.
Zhou Zhihan pulled the control stick back farther.
The wings tilted upward, and the nose reached a thirty-five-degree climb angle.
The nose wheel left the ground.
Whoosh!
The Tachikawa Ki-95C trainer spread its wings like a great bird, raised its head, and soared into the sky.
The author spent a full four hours writing this chapter, researching all kinds of material, trying to capture the sensation of actually sitting inside the cockpit, and revising it again and again.
Dear readers, please give me your recommendation votes as encouragement!
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