Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 44, Discussing a Private Airlines and Purchasing a Scrapped Potez 25
Although a ceasefire agreement is being signed, the troops stationed on both sides in Shanghai are still in a standoff, and it is not yet time to go back.

Fang Wen returned Yue Jinping's car, but because train service to Shanghai was not yet operational, he could not take the train back to Nanjing.

Fang Shouxin, however, came up with an idea.

Travel along the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal.

Starting from downtown Hangzhou, board a boat on the inland river next to Xiaohezhijie Street and enter the main channel of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal.

The bustling activity on the main canal showed no sign of the impact of the recent Shanghai war on the area.

The boats traveled north along the Grand Canal, passing through places like Fuyang and Tonglu, before finally returning to Jiaxing.

However, this time they did not stop in Jiaxing, but continued north along the Grand Canal, passing through Wujiang and other places, and finally arrived in Suzhou.

This section of the canal was quite congested, with many boats moored. From conversations among the boatmen, it was learned that the congestion was caused by the Japanese bombing of Suzhou Airport, which led many local merchants to suspend their waterway travel.

Then, after passing through Wuxi, Changzhou, and Danyang, we arrived in Zhenjiang.

Finally, they arrived at the Qinhuai River in Nanjing.

Finally home.

This made Fang Wen, who was used to the speed of airplanes, determined that he would never take a long-distance boat trip again.

As the ship docked, Fang Wen stretched and hailed two rickshaws at the pier, one for himself and the other for Fang Shouxin and his son, to head to the airport.

Upon arriving at the airport, I found it deserted.

The planes from all the airlines have already left, and only a few China Airlines passenger planes remain on the airport runway.

Workers are making repairs on the runway, indicating that Nanjing Airport has also been bombed.

The airport security troops were the same people as before. When they saw Fang Wen, they did not stop him and let him in directly.

After following Fang Wen into the airport, Fang Shun became more talkative.

"Young Master, is this the runway you were talking about?"

"Yes, airplanes need to accelerate from the runway to take off."

"Then where is your plane?"

"Over there, Baiyun No. 3."

Fang Wen pointed to the Detroit-type passenger plane in the second hangar and said.

A familiar figure appeared in the hangar; it was Howard, who ran straight over.

He shouted in broken Chinese.

"Fang, you're finally back. I knew you'd be alright."

Howard opened his arms to give Fang Wen a hug, forgetting that he was covered in engine oil.

"Don't come any closer." Fang Wen quickly stepped back.

Shunzi, unaware of the situation, was about to step forward to stop the young master, but Fang Shouxin held him back.

Howard, realizing he was covered in engine oil, chuckled sheepishly and withdrew his hands.

The two strolled slowly along the track, talking about what had happened after Fang Wen left.

"How's it going here after I get to Jianqiao Airport?"

"I don't know about the other air squadrons, but the Guangdong Air Squadron sent another batch of planes later and participated in two air battles. After you bombed the Izumo, they all withdrew. Fang, I heard there's going to be a ceasefire?"

"Yes, Potez 25? What's this plane doing here?"

Fang Wen stopped in his tracks as he looked at the familiar fighter jet. Wasn't this the Potez 25 fighter-reconnaissance aircraft that he had used to bomb the Izumo?

Even the modified ammunition rack in the abdomen is still there.

It was left all alone in the open air, without even any shelter from the rain.

"The plane's engine has malfunctioned. It can no longer fly back north, and the pilot has already taken the train back."

"They don't want it anymore?"

"Probably, but I'm not sure exactly. Anyway, it's just here. By the way, Fang, will you still be with the airline after the war? If you start a private airline, I'd be willing to join as a mechanic."

Fang Wen pondered.

It's time to prepare for my own affairs.

This is a complex, large-scale project that requires long-term planning.

It's not something you can just do on a whim.

After arranging accommodation for the Fang family at the airport, Fang Wen began to plan his own affairs.

Private airlines are not just businesses; they will also play a special role during future wars. They require investors, pilots, flight attendants, managers, logistics personnel, mechanics, ticket sellers, airport ground handling staff, company management, and more.

In his previous life, he had absolutely no knowledge in this area; he learned it all from China Airlines over the past year.

The most important thing to do right now is, of course, to secure the investment.

He dialed the phone number that Manager Liu had given him.

"Hello, I'm looking for Manager Liu. Is he unavailable to answer the phone? What's wrong? Oh, is Sun Debiao there? Could you ask him to answer the phone?"

In a townhouse on Avenue Joffre in the French Concession.

Several wealthy families from Northeast China live here. It's not that they can't afford to stay separately, but they feel that sticking together is safer in this critical situation.

The maid shouted loudly from the first floor, "Sun Debiao, come and answer the phone."

Sun Debiao, who was chatting idly with the other bodyguards on duty, shouted back, "Coming! Who's looking for me?"

"They said it was a call from Nanjing."

Sun Debiao was initially indifferent, but suddenly remembered something and was overjoyed. He rushed downstairs and took the microphone.

"Is this Commissioner Fang?"

"It's me. I just heard that Manager Liu had an accident. What happened?"

"Alas, during this period of war and chaos, there are also thieves eyeing our territory. The Japanese soldiers haven't been able to break into the concession, but a lot of scoundrels have come, all eyeing our family's wealth. At first, they just used the guise of protection to collect some silver dollars, but their appetites grew bigger and bigger, so we refused to pay. As a result, they blocked our purchasing personnel outside, leaving us without food or water. We bodyguards had no choice but to take turns going out to protect the purchasing personnel, and we even fought with them a few times."

"Shopkeeper Liu was beaten by them?"

"It's even more serious. These gangsters can't beat us with their fists, so they resort to dirty tricks. They even shot us in the foot. Manager Liu was shot in the foot by a gunman when we went out shopping together once. The doctor said he would have to use crutches for six months."

"Is he still able to answer the phone? I need to talk to him about the private airline."

Sun Debiao paused for a moment. Even if he had no business sense, he understood that Fang Wen's suggestion was much better than those scoundrels, thugs, gangsters, swindlers, and socialites who only wanted to swindle money.

"Commissioner Fang, please wait a moment, I'll bring him over."

Sun Debiao placed the phone aside, told the servant not to hang up, and hurriedly ran to the backyard.

Not long after, he came running over carrying Manager Liu, whose right foot was in a splint.

He didn't put it down, and just let Manager Liu answer the phone behind his back.

"Commissioner Fang, I've spoken with our main client about the airline. Because the investment is huge, he's unsure how to proceed, so he consulted with several other companies as well. They think your suggestions are all good, but they're unsure and hesitant to make a decision."

Fang Wen's voice came through the microphone: "Tell them that I will handle the approval process, and they just need to contribute their money as shareholders."

Manager Liu was overjoyed; this was exactly the promise he wanted. He quickly replied, "I'll tell them right away."

The approval document is just a pretext.

In these chaotic times, the most important thing is profit, and how to divide the pie.

Only in this way can the first private airline be established.

How to divide this cake and what percentage of the profits to be made are things that need to be carefully considered.

Fang Wen drew a table.

The airlines and the Ministry of Transport, representing the direct superiors, must have a copy.

It was impossible to bribe all the other departments of the Nationalist government, but Yue Jinping's Fuxing Society could give her a share of the profits.

As for other things that need to be dealt with, I don't need to worry about them. I believe those companies in Northeast China can handle it.

As for the airline, with Instructor Liu's connections to Nanyuan Airlines, it's quite easy to deal with them.

The same applies to the Ministry of Transportation; you can contact them through the airlines.

Meanwhile, the Fuxing Society sent Yue Jinping to scout out a possible path.

To do all this, you have to travel between several places; having a means of transportation would make things much easier.

He thought of the Potez 25 fighter-reconnaissance aircraft that had been scrapped at the airport due to engine problems.

If you buy it at the price of a scrapped aircraft and then repair it, wouldn't you have your own private aircraft?
Others may not have the same confidence, but one's own mechanical intuition can clearly understand the internal problems of the engine and perhaps solve them.

Thinking about it this way, Fang Wen was very tempted.

He managed to find a way to contact the Northeast Army and sent a telegram.

We have learned today that you have a decommissioned military aircraft parked in Nanjing. This aircraft is no longer capable of flying. Would you be willing to sell it at a low price?

After sending the telegram, Fang Wen awaited a response from the other party.

After all, a scrapped military aircraft that can't fly back is just a pile of scrap metal. If it can be exchanged for money, maybe the other party will agree?

(End of this chapter)