Chapter 17 Casting a Wide Net? Captain, are you fishing?
"KLM789, Shanghai Approach, radio check. How do you read me?"
Xu Songning released the headphone button, her hair neatly pulled back, the black rose silk flower hair clip resembling a blooming flower in her hair.
"Shanghai Approach, KLM789. Read you 5, strength strong."
"KLM789, Roger, test complete. Maintain this frequency."
"Maintain this frequency, KLM789."
"Shandong 7612, radar detected, dropped to 4800."
"Good afternoon, Shanghai is approaching, down to 4800, Shandong is at 7612."
"East 5128, continue approaching runway 36R, descend to 3000 and maintain, establish a flight path."
"Down to 3000, report after establishment, Dongfang 5128."
"Spring and Autumn 8888, down to 3300 waiting time."
"Placement has dropped to 3300, Spring and Autumn 8888."
"Shanghai Approach, East 5162, localizer established, runway 36R."
"Eastern 5162, received. Contact tower 118.1. Goodbye."
"Contact tower 118.1, goodbye."
"Southern 6523, heavy aircraft B777 8 nautical miles ahead, turn right onto heading 090, yaw 3 nautical miles, maintain altitude 4200, avoid wake turbulence, report after resuming course."
"Turn right onto course 090, yaw 3 nautical miles, maintain altitude 3000, report after resuming course, South 6523."
"Good afternoon, Shanghai Approach, VFS 6370, altitude 6000. May I speak English?"
"..." Xu Songning's forehead vein throbbed. "China Eastern 6370, descend and maintain 5400 feet."
"Descend and maintain 4500 feet, China Eastern 6370."
Xu Songning's blood pressure rose. "Negative! China Eastern 6370, descend and maintain 5400 feet. Read back!"
"Descend and maintain 4500 feet, China Eastern 6370. Did I...did I repeat it correctly?" (Descend to 5400 and maintain, East 6370.)
“Repeated correctly, Dongfang 6370.” Xu Songning rubbed his temples hard, the veins on his forehead throbbing.
Flying to the wrong altitude is a serious mistake; if it were to collide with another aircraft, it would be a nightmare for civil aviation. She couldn't even imagine such a terrifying thing happening, and her tone was completely out of control, sounding very fierce.
The sector channels were busy, and no one interrupted the discussion, but as soon as the captains got off the plane, they started joking about it in the group chat.
"Who was practicing English in Sister Xu's channel today?"
"I... I just misheard." The English-speaking captain immediately stepped forward to take responsibility, giving a bitter smile. He usually speaks English perfectly well, but today was strange. When he heard Xu Songning's voice announcing the numbers in English, he suddenly paused for a second and misheard the numbers.
"Sister Xu must be incredibly busy today. Let me find a corner to wander around in by myself. Go somewhere cool and stay there."
"Of course she's busy. If she doesn't realize the error is coming from the higher-level staff, she's doomed."
"I was so nervous. Xu Songning's cold and unapproachable voice made me tense up as soon as I heard it. After I made a mistake, the passenger in the passenger seat immediately reminded me. At that moment, I thought, 'Oh no, I'm going to get scolded.'"
Xiang Yun wasn't flying, but he was in the group chat. When he saw someone mention Xu Songning, he clicked into the group chat to take a look. The messages were jumping around quickly, and after scrolling up a few times, he understood what had happened.
"Sister Xu didn't scold you, haha."
"Wow, didn't you guys hear her cold English?! Isn't that an insult? It's so offensive!"
The indifferent English made Xiang Yun smile; he had indeed never heard of it before.
Group members suggested that he shouldn't practice his English during approach busy times, as it would be too much of a hassle for the control tower.
The captain, who was practicing his English, thought for a moment and then sent a message to Xu Songning: "I'm sorry, Sister Xu, I misheard when I was nervous."
Air traffic controllers and captains are jointly responsible for safeguarding the safety of the skies. Such unexpected and unpredictable events can also put psychological pressure on her command work. She has to pay extra attention to the high-altitude calls of subsequent international flights.
“It’s alright, we can practice English again when the sector is less busy next time. There were a lot of flights today, and I spoke a bit too quickly, so please be understanding,” Xu Songning replied.
"Okay, okay! I definitely won't mishear next time," the captain replied.
After putting down his phone, Xu Songning sighed. The food in front of him no longer tasted good. He rubbed his forehead and said, "My head hurts a little."
"What's wrong, Sister Xu? Is it something about work?" Lu Xiaomeng forked a piece of eel covered in sauce and handed it to Xu Songning's bowl.
Xu Songning picked up the eel, took a bite, and slowly told Lu Xiaomeng about it.
"Hahahaha! I've been in that situation before. Take it easy, Sister Xu. Look, at least it's domestic English. If it were Korean or ANA, that would be a real headache. What kind of English are they speaking? I can't understand a word!" Lu Xiaomeng laughed so hard she could barely hold her fork.
The two sat in a Japanese restaurant having dinner. Xu Songning sighed and looked up at the sky. She had encountered the same situation that Lu Xiaomeng described. She could only lament, "Listening to accented English makes me feel like I deserve some compensation for my mental distress."
"Your salary this month is three thousand five hundred. Here you go." Lu Xiaomeng held a non-existent card in her fingers and slapped it into her palm.
"Take it away quickly!" Xu Songning waved his hand.
Lu Xiaomeng caught the air with both hands, nodded, and said, "Thank you for the reward, Sister Xu!"
"Hey!" Lu Xiaomeng suddenly remembered something, "Speaking of tipping..."
"Um?"
Lu Xiaomeng leaned closer mysteriously, her expression indignant, and whispered, "It's a good thing you didn't accept Song Qing'an's transfer, otherwise you might really be in trouble later!"
"You're not calling him Captain Song anymore?" Xu Songning asked with a smile. Lu Xiaomeng had supported him before, but now she's changed her tune a bit too quickly.
"Hmph, he doesn't get that kind of treatment anymore, you wouldn't believe it! He's been casting a wide net by transferring money! Besides you, he even sent it to a flight attendant. He probably didn't expect that I'm friends with that flight attendant too. I was scrolling through my WeChat Moments out of boredom when I saw her posting a screenshot. Although she cropped out most of the profile picture, a corner of it was still showing. I recognized the profile picture as Song Qing'an the moment I saw it!" Lu Xiaomeng pouted.
"It must have been sent to more than just one flight attendant. Do they have too much money to spend? Going fishing everywhere." Xu Songning pondered. She had never been interested in Song Qing'an, and now that she knew about this, she didn't react much, at least not as much as Lu Xiaomeng, the middleman.
"I bet he sent it to more than just the two of you. It just so happens that I know both of you. I really don't understand men. Does being ambiguous mean you can develop multiple relationships?"
"He really is..."
Before Lu Xiaomeng could say anything, she saw someone push open the door and walk in. Oh wow, it was an acquaintance.
"Scumbag!" Lu Xiaomeng gritted her teeth as she looked at the man. She regretted introducing him to Sister Xu; his private life was indeed a mess!
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