Chapter 11

The left-behind Liu Xiaotian… was a bit awkward.

: none new.

Because, he discovered he had become an animal in the zoo, and moreover an endangered, extremely rare species.

Starting with Chi Hao, everyone at the parachute training field gradually gathered around.

To be honest, this feeling of being observed is really not good.

Especially under the current circumstances.

That pilot and several mechanics.

Even that first-class master sergeant was the same; he had apparently just come out of the repair shop, his hands covered in black grease, he reached out to shake Liu Xiaotian's hand, but upon seeing his own hand, he hastily withdrew it, rubbed it on his clothes a few times, then extended it again.

That gaze—needless to say, was extremely devout.

Zhou Tianzuo, just call me Lao Zhou.

Engineer Liu, Old Class Monitor.

Squad Leader.

Line 【11】: none new.

When that first-class sergeant said these words, the onlooking crowd immediately erupted in an uproar.

Zhou Tianzuo enlisted at eighteen and is now forty-two years old.

Over twenty-four years, he has always been repairing aircraft.

It is said that this veteran mechanic once completely overhauled a World War II-era aircraft that had been left unused for many years, its engine already rusted.

That old aircraft, which had lain in the warehouse for over sixty years, actually flew once under his hands, letting him feel the joy of soaring through the heavens in his youth.

Everyone who has heard of him knows that this man, without even needing to look, can tell whether an aircraft has faults or hidden dangers simply by walking around it while its engine is running.

With such ability, what more needs to be said? Yet now he is being extraordinarily courteous to Liu Xiaotian, and it is absolutely not sarcasm in reverse, but complete sincerity.

If it weren't for everyone present knowing that Liu Xiaotian had just saved an aircraft, they would likely think this first-class master sergeant was mocking Liu Xiaotian.

Liu Xiaotian was somewhat embarrassed, but he showed no fear.

They say having money in your pocket gives you confidence, but actually having genuine skill also gives you confidence.

At this moment, Liu Xiaotian belongs to the latter.

After getting off the aircraft, Liu Xiaotian merely glanced over this somewhat aged plane from head to tail and found the crux of the problem.

The oil seal at the propeller tip had loosened, allowing moisture to seep in during high-altitude flight; combined with aging wiring, this ultimately caused a malfunction in the starter function, resulting in an engine misfire.

Though it sounds complicated, the problem is actually easy to diagnose.

That first-class master sergeant.

But Liu Xiaotian shut down the engine and performed maintenance at an altitude of 1,800 meters—a maneuver that even the national-treasure-level first-class master sergeant dared not even imagine!

One must say, what Liu Xiaotian did today is even more shocking than his stunning performance the previous day.

This… damn, it's practically a monster!

The pilot's face still bore a trace of lingering fright; as he walked, he whispered to the first-class master sergeant: "Old Class Monitor, you have no idea—just a little bit more, just a little bit more, and I wouldn't have made it back this time..."

Zhou Tianzuo didn't pick up the thread at all; his attention remained fixed on Liu Xiaotian, and his questions came one after another: "Liu Engineer, when you separated the starter, exactly how did you operate?" "Liu Engineer, when reconnecting the starter, how do you ensure the engine can start successfully this way?"

Engineer Liu.

Faced with these questions, Liu Xiaotian at this moment couldn't answer not because he didn't know, but because he truly didn't know where to begin.

He… was simply following the prompts! If one had to attribute any merit to him, perhaps it was only his boldness, meticulousness, and strong hands-on ability.

The rest, he merely followed the textbook.

Walking up to the aircraft, Zhou Tianzuo gestured for the pilot to start the plane.

The engine's roar sounded again; Zhou Tianzuo entered the cabin first, listened carefully for a while, then jumped down and walked straight up to Liu Xiaotian, asking loudly:

"Liu Engineer, the engine indeed has some noise; do you think we need to test the starter connection?"

At this moment, Liu Xiaotian was not particularly nervous.

He could sense that Zhou Tianzuo was not teasing him, but sincerely seeking his advice.

For such a conscientious and sincere veteran, Liu Xiaotian respected him from the heart and had no qualms about telling him everything he had just learned.

Old Class Monitor, Engineer Liu.

That's right; just now, at a distance of one kilometer, the aircraft vibrated, accompanied by a faint, dull sound, brief, and then it disappeared.

However, the engine power subsequently dropped, clearly indicating a problem with the engine's power output structure.

Based on the different sounds from the engine over time, I judged that it was not a problem with the cylinder liner and piston, but rather a misfire caused by a brief short circuit in the wiring.

In this old-model transport helicopter, the engine is located directly beneath the propeller; over time, once the top seal ring and oil seal age, the relatively dense moisture at high altitude can seep in, thereby affecting or even causing an electrical short.

After confirming that critical components such as the cylinder liner, piston, and valves were fine, the only possibility left was a fault in the starter.

Moreover, at that point the aircraft was already in flight; even if the starter were damaged, it would not affect flight, nor would it affect the already-operating engine.

Therefore I concluded that there must have been a short circuit at the connection between the starter and the engine, causing this phenomenon.

If it were on the ground, one wouldn't even need to fix it.

But at the time we were at a kilometer altitude, where an emergency landing would be extremely difficult, so I could only dare to attempt this most direct and effective—yet also most dangerous—emergency repair method!"

Liu Xiaotian finished speaking in one breath, and Zhou Tianzuo's look of astonishment grew ever stronger.

This kid… is incredibly talented! If such ability weren't used to repair aircraft, wouldn't it be wasting a talent who could very well become the chief aircraft mechanic of the military region or even the entire army? Thinking this, Zhou Tianzuo formed an idea…

He Zhijun served as the maintenance squad leader in the fighter regiment of the military region and attended the military academy.

"Whoa..." the onlooking crowd murmured again.

First-class master sergeant of the Wolf Fang Special Forces Brigade.

But unexpectedly, the saying "there's always a higher mountain" proved true—who would have thought a young person could possess such skill!

(End of chapter)