Chapter 695: Astronaut Team
Above the blue sky.
Two fighter jets soared through the sky, gliding back and forth between the clouds, leaving behind the roar of their engines.
Nie Yun was closely behind the other aircraft, and the missile targeting mechanism was locked on the fighter jet in front of him. He took a deep breath and pressed the launch button on his joystick.
Right after, he heard a command from his headset.
“Target destroyed.
“Prepare for the next exercise.”
I won!
Nie Yun sighed in relief and loosened his helmet. He then replied calmly, “Roger that.”
They couldn’t fire live ammunition in training exercises obviously. Instead, optoelectronic transmitting and receiving devices were installed on the fighter jets. The light beam emitted acted as substitute missiles. If the target was hit, the optoelectronic receiving device on the target would receive the signal and notify the ground command post. The aircraft that was “hit” would then exit the exercise.
Of course, this type of fighting simulation exercise was only one section of the entire training course. They had to complete the training course before they could touch down at the airbase.
After the ground command post announced that the losing jet had been shot down, the two fighter jets changed their formation and started to fly to their next designated airspace, in preparation for their next exercise.
Just when Nie Yun was mentally preparing himself for the next exercise, he heard a command in his ears.
“Exercise terminated, return immediately.”
Exercise terminated?
Nie Yun paused for a second.
Even though he was surprised, he still replied calmly, “Roger that, exercise terminated, returning now.”
Nie Yun gave one last look to the blue sky and gave a thumbs-up to his friend in the other fighter jet. He used the joystick to control the J-20 and flew back to the airbase.
...
The silver-gray fighter jet steadily touched the runway. After a short taxi, the parachute was ejected and the fighter jet came to a stop.
The ground crew came forward and the cockpit hood was opened.
After Nie Yun handed the ground crew his helmet, he followed the flight test captain’s footsteps and walked toward the senior officer. He then performed a military salute.
The serious-faced senior officer saluted as well before turning his attention to Minister Qin.
“This is Nie Yun, the one I told you about, J-20 test pilot, and the best of our flight team.”
Minister Qin looked away from the J-20 jet and looked at the test pilot. He slowly nodded.
“Nice to meet you, Nie Yun, I’m sure training was exhausting.”
Nie Yun said, “Not at all, this type of training is very common for our flight team.”
Minister Qin looked at the energetic man standing in front of him and nodded.
After a while, he put on a more serious face and said, “Our Air Force Equipment Department has a critical mission that requires two outstanding pilots. Commander Sun recommended you to me. Now all you have to do is tell me if you want to go or not.”
Air Force Equipment Department mission?
Testing some kind of new weapon?
Nie Yun suddenly became intrigued.
“I’ll go wherever my country needs me to go.”
Minister Qin smiled and said, “Are you sure? You’re not even going to ask what it is about?”
Even if I asked, you wouldn’t tell me...
Nie Yun answered decisively.
“I am certain!”
Minister Qin nodded.
“Okay then.”
“From now on, you’ll be moved from the test flight team to the astronaut team.”
Astronaut...
Astronaut team?!
Nie Yun was dumbfounded.
...
He definitely was a little disappointed.
Nie Yun never thought that the Air Force Equipment Department would assign him to the astronaut team. The so-called mission turned out to only be a test of a space shuttle made by a private company that cooperated with the national defense team, the so-called Skyglow.
Even though the astronaut team wasn’t shabby at all, they were all elites, but whenever he remembered that he could no longer fly the J-20 through the blue sky, he couldn’t help but feel a little lost.
However, the duty of a soldier was to follow orders, so even though he was lost, he had nothing to complain about.
He threw his thoughts aside and looked at the young man standing in front of him.
Is this the legendary Professor Lu?
He’s just... a bit more handsome than I had imagined. He doesn’t seem special.
While the two pilots were secretly looking at Lu Zhou, Lu Zhou, who was holding a document, watched the pilots carefully as well.
Of course, he wasn’t concerned about their appearances. He was concerned about whether or not they had the qualities to become qualified astronauts.
[Nie Yun, male, age 32, jet model J-10, J-20...]
[Nie Yan, female, age 29, jet model Xi’an Y-20, Shaanxi Y-8...]
Lu Zhou looked up from his document and asked a question.
“You guys are siblings?”
The two said in unison, “Yes.”
Lu Zhou was curious, and he asked, “Why were you guys selected?”
The female with short hair said, “The chief asked me if I wanted to fly higher in the sky, I said yes, so he told me to come here.”
There was nothing wrong with this answer, but Lu Zhou laughed a little.
He coughed and looked at Nie Yun.
“What about you?”
Nie Yun said, “Orders from the higher-ups.”
Lu Zhou could tell something was different with this guy.
He looked at the file in his hand and turned to the next page while speaking.
“Even though Skyglow is neither a fighter jet nor a bomber jet, I promise that flying it will be more interesting than either of them... It’ll also be more meaningful. I promise that many people will be envious of you two, and your teammates will be proud of you. Therefore, it doesn’t matter what you guys think, just follow my orders.”
Honestly, if it weren’t because of the State Administration for National Defense calling him in the middle of the night asking if he was crazy, Lu Zhou would have become the test astronaut himself. His physical fitness was just as good as normal pilots.
However, this didn’t matter too much.
He could always fly after the technology was fully and safely developed. He didn’t have to be the first to fly.
Lu Zhou finished reading through the material and cleared his throat. He looked at the two and asked, “How much do you know about space shuttles?”
Nie Yun: “It’s an aircraft that can travel to and from outer space and atmosphere.”
Nie Yan’s reaction was slower, and she said, “I agree with my brother.”
Lu Zhou smiled and nodded. “Correct, but there are a lot more than that. Before boarding the space shuttle, I hope you guys can have a comprehensive understanding of the characteristics of a space shuttle.
“In the next three months, there will be dedicated people teaching you guys what exactly the space shuttle is, how to operate it, and most importantly... how to save yourself in the event of an accident.
“This mission is very crucial, and we only have three months, so I hope you guys can do your best.”
The two aviators stood up straight and answered in unison.
“Yes, sir!”
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