Return to 2000: Captain of the Great Powers

Chapter 153 The Beginning of the Empire (please subscribe!)

"Xu Cang, what do you mean! The hush money was 1000 million before, now let me tell you the reason for the engine explosion, it is also 1000 million, it's all a matter of lip service, there is still such a good job in the world? "

Even Li Rongxian, an insatiable businessman, felt that Xu Cang's eating was too ugly.This time and again, he got a total of 2000 million without breaking a sweat. This is simply stealing money, and Xu Cang is not satisfied yet.

However, Xu Cang could clearly see the weight of the things he held in his hand, and he did not refute Li Rongxian's question, but smiled lightly: "Do you want to ask your boss, now Airbus grounded for one day, is the loss enough 1000 million?"

In the domestic market alone, due to the suspension of the airworthiness certificate, there are hundreds of Airbus 320 lying on the apron to bask in the sun, and the subsequent type approval certificate is also temporarily used, and the new aircraft that should be delivered later will not be able to survive. Customs are all backlogged at Jinmen Airport.

Not to mention the parking fee at the airport, if you wait for a while, if the delivery time is missed, a large number of orders will be breached, and the liquidated damages will be a huge expense.

Don't look at the airlines that are losing now, and the compensation with Airbus seems to be still in dispute.The premise of all that is based on the premise that the conclusion of the incident investigation has not come out. Once it is finally proved that the problem is the aircraft itself, then Airbus will undoubtedly lose in the arbitration.

Although the progress of the investigation is currently hindered, the bureau has retrieved all the previous maintenance records of the plane involved in the accident.Records show that there were no problems with the maintenance procedures during the service period of China National Airlines and the short period of service of Shandong Airlines.

Of course, the records were written by humans, and the possibility of artificial falsification cannot be ruled out.But after all, it is related to the safety of the aircraft. Few airlines will tamper with the maintenance of the aircraft. If something happens, they will have to pay a heavy price.

Therefore, judging from the document records, no maintenance problems have been found for the time being, so it has to be considered that the aircraft itself has defects.Moreover, according to the inference of the technical department of Airbus headquarters after learning some details of the incident, they also tend to believe that the explosion of the No. [-] engine is not a maintenance problem, and it may really be a problem with the engine itself.

A possibility exists, and the probability is not low, which makes the Airbus headquarters quite uncomfortable.Now the losses derived from the grounding of each Airbus 320 may be borne by Airbus itself in the end.

If it really happened, the loss of 1000 million a day that Xu Cang just said may still be a relatively conservative estimate.

Li Rongxian clenched his teeth. He carefully looked at Xu Cang's face. Based on his experience in seeing people, unless Xu Cang is really the kind of veteran who is well-versed in the world and extremely proficient in controlling emotions, from the current expression and tone of Xu Cang. Judging from it, what Xu Cang said is very likely to be true.

He really knew why the engine exploded!
"Why do you know the cause of the accident? You obviously didn't participate in the investigation, so you rely on what you think is the sound of the engine drive shaft breaking?"

Although judging from his intuition, he felt that Xu Cang should not be lying.Witnessing Xu Cang's shocking methods on the sea dam, Li Rongxian no longer has any psychological advantage in front of Xu Cang.He himself didn't know why, even if he said a few words, his momentum was a little weaker.

However, Xu Cang was too lazy to explain to Li Rongxian, and just said jokingly: "If you don't want to do this, we'll wait later. Anyway, I have plenty of time to wait and see who can spend it. However, there are other There is one thing I want to ask you about."

Li Rongxian was very vigilant. At this moment, the sun was casting shadows on Xu Cang's face. Such Xu Cang's appearance always made him feel a sense of discomfort that he was like a prey.

However, Li Rongxian still asked, "What do you want to inquire about?"

Xu Cang's smile became brighter, just like the warm sun above his head, he clicked his lips, and approached expectantly: "Is the relationship between your Airbus headquarters and EASA good?"

"Huh?" Li Rongxian didn't really understand Xu Cang's intention to ask this question, but he answered it quite quickly, because it was not a secret worth hiding: "Not bad. The main business of JAA, the predecessor of EASA One is to coordinate the research and development of aircraft in various countries, that is, we Airbus."

"I know, I don't mean the part related to aircraft development, but personnel management, such as the qualifications of aircrew."

EASA is an extremely large organization whose responsibilities include drafting relevant aviation regulations, issuing operating certificates for aircraft, and also including the formulation of operating specifications for civil aviation operators and pilot license standards.Of course, it will also coordinate the relationship between countries in aircraft development, among which Airbus is an important object of service.

Therefore, it is logical that Airbus has close contacts with certain departments of EASA.However, Xu Cang does not care about the aircraft development department of EASA, but cares more about the personnel management department.

Li Rongxian became more and more confused: "Why do you ask this, you don't have an EASA license, what do you mean?"

To be honest, Li Rongxian really couldn't figure out what was going on in Xu Cang's mind, as if he was unconstrained and unrestrained.

"Don't worry about why I am, just talk about if it involves the granting or review of personnel qualifications, do you have any influence in this type of department?"

"It's hard to say." Li Rongxian did not hide it: "We don't have much contact with the management departments of operators and flight personnel."

Xu Cang hurriedly asked: "In those departments of EASA, British Airways and Air France have a strong voice, right?"

"That's true." Seeing Xu Cang's expression, Li Rongxian became more and more puzzled: "Xu Cang, what exactly do you want to do?"

"I want to apply for the qualification of ICAO commissioner. I heard that this year, EASA will review the personnel recommended by CAAC. Therefore, I hope to ensure that there is nothing wrong with it and eliminate all the risks of EASA's review."

Only then did Li Rongxian understand Xu Cang's thoughts: "It seems that you are bound to win."

Then, Li Rongxian said with a little temptation: "Xu Cang, if you are willing to tell us the reason for the engine explosion. In addition to the 1000 million reward, we will also help you with the ICAO commissioner. How about it?"

"Hahahaha!" Hearing this, Xu Cang laughed so hard that he turned forward and backward. He opened his arms and put his hands on the back of the chair, looking very relaxed: "Li Rongxian, I just find it troublesome. Without you, I will be the same If you can obtain the qualification of ICAO commissioner, are you worthy of threatening me with this thing?"

Seeing Xu Cang's sarcasm, Li Rongxian knew that he had miscalculated, so he could only laugh dryly: "British Airways and Air France do have a strong say in EASA. difficult."

"Your Airbus headquarters should have a good relationship with Air France, right?" Xu Cang asked casually, "How about the relationship with British Airways?"

Li Rongxian nodded: "That's right!"

There are some geographical and some historical reasons for this.Airbus is the European aerospace and defense group EADS holds the largest stake, close to a wholly-owned subsidiary.EADS is a joint venture between Aerospace France, DASA of Germany and CASA of Spain.Among them, DASA is Daimler Aerospace Corporation, and its civilian industry involves the field of commercial vehicles, that is, the famous Mercedes-Benz brand.

It can be seen that the European Aerospace Defense Group is led by France, Germany, and Spain, and has nothing to do with the UK.Although the British side also participated in the follow-up, it is a latecomer after all.Therefore, Airbus is headquartered in Toulouse, France, which means that France has stronger control over Airbus.

What's more, the relationship between Britain and France is not so good. Except for the last few decades, they are either fighting each other or on the way to fighting each other. From the official to the private people, they hate each other.

It's not easy to get British Airways and Air France to work together on the same thing without a little effort.Just like the Concorde developed by Britain and France, its name should be written as Concorde in French or Concord in English.Just one letter e has caused the two countries to argue for a long time, which shows the complexity of the relationship between the two countries.

This is consistent with Xu Cang's initial cognition, Air France is easier to handle, and British Airways has to come by itself.

"Mr. Xu, if it's just for the ICAO commissioner's review, we can help Mr. Xu with Air France, free of charge. But if it's British Airways, even we have to work hard, and it's impossible to agree casually. "Li Rongxian also put away this matter at this time, Xu Cang's idea of ​​making a deal.

The qualification of an ICAO commissioner can only be used as a gift in this transaction.However, this is limited to affecting Air France, and any effort related to British Airways is definitely not defined as a gift.

Seeing Li Rongxian's nervous and serious look, Xu Cang laughed.Airbus can indeed exert influence on Air France relatively easily, but its influence extends across the English Channel, which is really minimal.

"I see! British Airways will take care of it."

Then it seems that I really want to solve the Great Britain Air Disaster.To be reasonable, it should be reasonable for British Airways to be grateful to me for taking the little bit of danger to my life to solve an air crash.

Of course, all of this is based on the premise that Xu Cang knows the cause of the Great Britain Air Disaster.It is not to say that all air accidents can find a clear cause, but it just so happens that the cause of the British Air Disaster is relatively clear, and it is relatively easy to deal with. If Xu Cang solves it, the risk he will bear is relatively small.

Although he doesn't know what relationship Xu Cang has to influence British Airways' decision-making, Li Rongxian has no desire to find out, but he is concerned about another matter: "Mr. Xu, if you are not satisfied with the 1000 million reward, Then what is your ideal condition? If possible, you might as well speak out and listen to it, and I can discuss it with the higher-ups when I go back."

"That's it." Xu Cang straightened up all of a sudden, and finally got into the topic: "You are the person in charge of the Airbus Asia Pacific region, so you must know about the project of the Airbus General Assembly Plant in Jinmen, right?"

"Jinmen Airbus General Assembly Factory?" Li Rongxian searched his brains and finally remembered the name of the project in the corner of his memory: "Mr. Xu, why are you bringing up this shelved project?"

Xu Cang's eyes suddenly became solid: "Please explain to me, how long do you plan to delay this project?"

Li Rongxian was startled by Xu Cang's sudden change of temperament. He said in a little panic: "When your domestic market share grows to the top three among our customers, then you will be qualified to undertake our assembly business." Xu Cang, you also know that this project is a high-quality project even if it is placed in some developed countries. Without sufficient benefits, we cannot release it to you. This is the reality."

Li Rongxian had explained it more tactfully, but it was still quite harsh to Xu Cang's ears.However, Xu Cang is not that brave person anymore, and the Western countries have not blocked their own technology for a day or two. Even the transfer of relatively low-end assembly technology in the aircraft manufacturing industry is cautious.

Because they know that the country under their feet has only fallen asleep in the past 100 years, but the lion will not sleep forever, and he will eventually regain his former status.

It is not uncommon for disciples to starve to death of their master, especially for a former king. They would never agree to technology transfer without a huge profit drive.

Until it develops into the top three markets in the world, the profits generated will be enough to make the possibility of technology transfer achievable.

Xu Cang understood this internal logic, and his mood didn't change much. He just asked, "Based on your estimates, how long will this time be?"

"Based on previous estimates, it will take at least ten years. However, your country plans to liberalize civil aviation controls in the near future. We expect your civil aviation to experience an explosive growth, probably in five to six years."

Hearing this, Xu Cang's eyelids twitched.Although the liberalization of domestic civil aviation control is not top secret, it is only spread in a relatively small circle. It seems that Airbus knows it well.

As for the prediction of Airbus, it is quite accurate. It is consistent with Xu Cang's memory and the time prediction obtained by Chen Jinwu.

"Five or six years." Xu Cang laughed, but the smile was full of insidiousness: "Three years, the completion of the project within three years is my condition!"

Li Rongxian was shocked: "Xu Cang, do you know what you are talking about? You want to promote a huge project with one sentence, do you think it is possible?"

"So I didn't ask you to complete it immediately, but there is a buffer period of three years." Xu Cang's smile faded away, appearing extremely indifferent: "I know you can't make the decision, so report it. You don't have to answer me right away, we have plenty time consuming."

Li Rongxian was so angry that he couldn't help shaking: "Your condition is too exaggerated. Even if I report it, the higher-ups will never agree."

Xu Cang shook his head: "After a month has passed, you will reconsider this issue. Of course, you can also pray for the cause of the accident to be found out as soon as possible. However, as a reward for your willingness to help Air France, I will give you a thorough explanation. News. Have no illusions, prepare to lose money!"

Li Rongxian gasped. Xu Cang clearly believed that the cause of the 9451 incident was a problem with the plane itself.Li Rongxian couldn't figure out why Xu Cang knew such a secret thing. It was clear that the technicians of CAAC and Airbus still had no clue.

"By the way, there is something that may be good news for you."

Li Rongxian was startled: "What?"

Xu Cang shrugged: "There should be another company that will jointly bear the compensation share with you."

"How is this possible?" Li Rongxian felt that what Xu Cang said was unbelievable, but he asked casually, "Who is it?"

Xu Cang raised his eyebrows: "Of course it is CFM, one of your Airbus engine suppliers."

A week later, a small meeting room of Hanking Civil Aviation Administration was full of people.These people are representatives of airlines who own the Airbus 320 and are affected by the Airbus 320 no-fly order.

It has been almost half a month since the Airbus 320 no-flying order was issued by the General Administration. The "leisure" time will continue.

Sheng Gaoliang, who presided over the meeting, didn't even need to ask how the airlines were doing. He could tell what was going on just by looking at the black faces of these people.

"Let me tell you, everyone, although I know you are in a bad mood, there is no need to shame me." Sheng Gaoliang is still interesting, and he doesn't look like a director at all when he speaks.

"You issued the no-fly order, and we paid for it. Is it possible that you still have a smile on your face?" Representatives of other airlines did not dare to talk nonsense, and Ma Cheng of Muhua Airlines didn't care much.Not only did he dare to speak, but what he said was also quite offensive.

However, although Ma Cheng was speaking to Sheng Gaoliang, his eyes were on Leo, the Airbus representative sitting next to Sheng Gaoliang.

With Ma Cheng at the beginning, the scruples of the representatives of other airlines are less, and the representative of Rongcheng Airlines, who suffered the worst loss, is about to cry: "Director Sheng, you should also know that our Rongcheng Airlines is now an all-Airbus aircraft. In operation, more than 320% of them are 320, and now the [-] can’t fly. Our company just doesn’t get in, and burns the profit of the previous quarter in half a month. If we continue like this, we really can’t support it.”

"That's right, Director Sheng, it's a pity that the plane lays down outside every day."

Following the beginning of Chengdu Airlines, representatives of other airlines followed suit one after another, nothing less than selling badly.However, it's no wonder that these airline representatives couldn't stand it anymore.

Among these people, there is only one person who is very calm, and that is Deng Wenjia, the representative of Shandong Airlines.Anyway, China National Airlines has promised to provide compensation for Shandong Airlines, so Shandong Airlines is naturally not under so much pressure.

Sheng Gaoliang looked around the crowd, and waited for the voice to subside before he pressed his hand: "This time I am calling you all over, it is of course to discuss the issue of the Airbus 320 flight ban. The issue of the Airbus 320 is still under investigation Among them, the no-fly order must not be lifted. This is the responsibility of the people. However, during this period, the losses incurred by various airlines and possible derivative losses can be submitted to us regularly, and we will collect them and hand them over to Airbus company's, then up to them"

As soon as Sheng Gaoliang said this, Airbus representative Leo's expression changed, and he hurriedly stopped him: "Director Sheng, we at Airbus just want to count the losses of each division, that's all."

What Sheng Gaoliang said just now seems to be that Airbus is already willing to bear the loss of an airline company.On this point, Leo wants to make it clear.

Ma Cheng patted the table: "Leo, we also met in France. Just give me a letter, what is the attitude of Airbus headquarters to our loss?"

In recent years, Muhua Airlines has been a major customer of Airbus. When negotiating orders, Ma Cheng met Leo, so Ma Cheng spoke very straightforwardly.

"Mr. Ma, I also know that this flight ban has brought huge losses to Muhua, but the results of the investigation of the incident have not yet come out. It is impossible for us to bear such a huge liability for compensation for an incident that has not yet been determined." Leo said: "Everyone, please believe that our Airbus aircraft must be fine."

Ma Cheng snorted coldly: "If your plane is fine, then there is a problem with us."

If the final result is that the Airbus 320 aircraft itself is fine, then these losses will basically have to be borne by the airline itself.Therefore, Ma Cheng would rather have a problem with the Airbus 320 itself, so that he can get compensation later.

When Ma Cheng choked, Leo was so embarrassed that he couldn't get off the stage.The current situation is really difficult to ride a tiger.

If there is a problem with the Airbus 320 itself, then Airbus will be liable for compensation in the future.This also means that with each passing day, the amount of compensation in the future will continue to increase. Even Airbus is rich and powerful, and it cannot turn a blind eye to such a huge amount of compensation that is still increasing.

But if there is no problem with the Airbus 320 itself, Airbus does not have to bear the liability for compensation, so it seems that Airbus has no loss.In fact, this concept is quite wrong.

Once these airlines have suffered such a big loss on Airbus aircraft, it will be a great blow to the confidence in the subsequent introduction of Airbus aircraft.In the long run, Airbus will still lose a huge amount of orders.

Therefore, whether there is a problem with the Airbus 320 or not is not important. This matter is a knot, and the only solution to get the best of both worlds is to end this matter as soon as possible.

As long as the speed is fast enough, even if there is a problem with the Airbus 320 aircraft itself, the amount of compensation will not accumulate to the point where Airbus feels troublesome.If the Airbus 320 has no problem, then so far, the airlines are only complaining, which is tolerable.

In this way, this knot, which can be called a knot, was untied!
But the question is how to end this investigation as soon as possible?
"Director Sheng, what is the progress of the investigation now? Is there really no progress as rumored?" One of the airline company representatives asked.

When asked, all airline representatives, including Deng Wenjia, who has been paddling, pricked up their ears.

"Ahem." Sheng Gaoliang's face was a little ugly: "I think everyone knows that the main body of the plane was salvaged a long time ago, but there are still many parts of the plane, especially the part of the No. [-] engine that went wrong. Analyzing the cause of the engine explosion has brought many difficulties, and the progress may be slower."

Although he was somewhat prepared, when Sheng Gaoliang said it himself, the representatives of the various airlines were still gloomy. Among them, Ma Cheng of Muhua Airlines reacted most violently, and his face was almost gloomy to the extreme.

"I can't lose money, and I can't speed up the progress. Then I don't know what it means." Ma Cheng was furious, and he became unscrupulous when speaking.

The airline representative in this room is the one who is the most angry. There is no way, Muhua Airlines has lost the most money. Looking at the reports sent by the marketing department and the finance department every day, Ma Cheng's blood pressure is going up and down day by day. Pulling up, it's strange that you don't have a lot of anger.

Sheng Gaoliang: "How does this affect the flight ban? We will try our best to coordinate the wet lease business between airlines in order to minimize the loss."

The authority's intention is very simple. Now only the Airbus 320 is not allowed to fly. Boeing aircraft are not affected, nor are other Airbus models.

Then the remaining capacity of Boeing-based airlines can be wet-leased to airlines that are more affected by the flight ban.However, this is limited to airlines that have their own Boeing system. Airlines like Chengdu Airlines that have been completely Airbus cannot operate in this way.

So this measure is to alleviate it a little bit, and it cannot completely solve the problem.But the bureau couldn't take the risk and let the Airbus 320 go around. At least Sheng Gaoliang didn't have the guts to issue a go-around order before the investigation results came out.

At this time, the representative of Rongcheng Airlines said: "However, our Rongcheng Airlines does not operate Boeing at all now. If we want to wet lease, it is also a wet lease of Airbus 319. However, basically all 319s in China are in our company. , even if we want to rent, we can’t rent 319. Why can’t we just place a special order with the aircraft leasing company?”

Generally speaking, the wet lease only needs to be more than half a year.However, this time, the bureau will come forward to coordinate, and it is expected that the wet lease operation can be more flexible.However, Chengdu Airlines can only accept Airbus 319, and there are no 319 aircraft in China, so the only option is to place a lease order with an aircraft leasing company.

However, aircraft leasing companies are not fools. Short-term leases for a few months are simply impossible, and they are basically for more than a few years.But Chengdu Airlines doesn’t need so many planes at all. When the Airbus 320 ban is lifted, these newly leased 319 planes will lose their value.Chengdu Airlines does not have enough routes to support them, so it will slowly become a money-losing product.

In any case, Rongcheng Airlines, a rare domestic airline that is completely Airbus, is the most troublesome.

Sheng Gaoliang also knew that Rongcheng Airlines and Muhua Airlines were in the most trouble in this incident. To be honest, Muhua Airlines might be a little bit better. Passenger 320 is missing the route.However, he really didn't know how to help Chengdu Airlines.

Seeing Sheng Gaoliang's appearance, the representative of Chengdu Airlines could only sigh helplessly, full of sadness.

An hour later, this extremely depressing meeting finally came to an end. Airbus representative Leo left the meeting room as if fleeing for his life. He felt that if he stayed in there for a while longer, the uncontrollable airline representatives could not say anything. It's going to tear him apart.

Not long after he came out, he bumped into Li Rongxian head-on.Li Rongxian asked with a worried face: "How much will the calculated loss be?"

This meeting was also proposed by Airbus. The purpose is to count the losses of various airlines so far, so that Airbus headquarters can have a psychological expectation.

"Forget it, you still don't know, you will have insomnia tonight after hearing it." Leo said helplessly: "Although that Xu Cang received a hush money, we can't take it lightly. You should pay more attention to public opinion in the future." In terms of problems, we can save trouble."

"I know that." Li Rongxian hesitated for a while: "The more this matter drags on, the more troublesome it becomes. Is it necessary to think about the matter of the Jinmen Assembly Plant I told you earlier?"

"Impossible!" As a result, Leo directly rejected Li Rongxian's proposal.

Now Li Rongxian became a little anxious: "But, if it continues like this, it will not benefit anyone. This will be the largest market in the entire Asia-Pacific region. We can't lose this place because of this incident, right? Xu Cang knows the reason for the explosion. , we can at least have a good talk with him."

Li Rongxian is the person in charge of the Asia Pacific region. If he loses this market, his role as the person in charge of the Asia Pacific region will be greatly reduced.Even for his own benefit, Li Rongxian was unwilling to continue this stalemate.

Just when Leo was thinking, they said a surprised voice came from behind: "Who do you think knows the reason for the engine explosion?"

Li Rongxian turned his head and found that Ma Cheng and the representatives of Rongcheng Airlines were looking at them in disbelief.

On the grass at the head of the runway at Erhai Airport, Xu Cang and Qin Xin stood side by side. The strong wind made their clothes rattle, and their eyes were full of brilliance.

After planning for a long time, now that he actually set foot on the land of Erhai Airport, Xu Cang felt agitated.This time he came to Erhai from Qizhou, and that was the starting point of his future aviation empire.

Erhai Airport is a result of a flat hill.Looking down from the runway today, it is almost a cliff.Qin Xin pointed to an open space not far below and said, "That is the place approved for us to build a base in the future."

"Even the foundation has been approved, is it so easy?" Xu Cang asked in surprise.

Qin Xin explained: "Where did the Erhai Municipal Government approve a piece of land for us? It was originally planned to be used as the airport office area. It's just that you also know later that the airlines at the Erhai Airport have not been developed. Naturally, it will be discarded, and it will be easier for us to approve it."

Xu Cang smiled and said, "Can it be bigger?"

"Well, what do you mean, you think it's not big enough? That piece of land is definitely enough to build a base!" Qin Xin was puzzled.

"Whether he has enough or not, ask the city government later, if you want to give us all, we just need to pay enough money." Xu Cang's mouth was about to smile crookedly.Coming from a later life, he was born with such an unusual obsession with buying land, almost engraved in his genes.Anyway, the land price is very cheap now, the more the better, and when it develops later, it will be a huge profit.

Qin Xin didn't quite understand what Xu Cang meant, but she didn't ask any further questions, and just kept this matter in her heart.

Facing the wind, Xu Cang felt refreshed. For a long time to come, this is where he will work hard.

Suddenly, the mobile phone in his trouser pocket rang, and Xu Cang saw that it was Ma Cheng's number, and he got on the phone with a slight twitch: "What's the matter?"

"Xu Cang, do you know the reason why No. 9451's No. [-] engine exploded?" Ma Cheng asked impatiently.

Xu Cang didn't hide it at all: "Yes, I know."

"Then don't tell me!" Ma Cheng almost yelled, "Do you know how much money we have lost recently?"

"What does it have to do with me?" Xu Cang asked rhetorically.

"What did you say?" Ma Cheng was stunned for a moment: "Do you know what you are talking about?"

"I know!" Xu Cang laughed: "Didn't you think that I was a pilot if I was as good as the sky? Anyway, I can't make any big waves, so do you still think so now? Let's put it this way, I want to know the reason Is it? Then exchange it with a quota for forming an airline company in Southwest!"

(End of this chapter)