"If the Pure Light Sparrow Xiao Jiu could evolve, it might help you a lot, but you need to take good care of it."
The Neanderthal tribe elder, Old Master Barut, pursed his lips at Chen Fei's playful remark, but unexpectedly nodded in agreement.
The statement sounded like a joke, yet the direction of thought was correct.
The Body Refining Secret Method of the Neanderthal tribe can inevitably cause some damage to the body, and having a Magical Beast proficient in Light-based Healing Arts nearby could really save on medical bills. As long as the nutrition was sufficient, there was no need to worry about potential hidden issues.
For Chen Fei, who was unlucky with the elemental metal, it really seemed like a twist of fate.
However, such an obedient and clever Magical Beast like the Pure Light Sparrow was not something just anyone could possess, especially since it had Light-based Healing Arts, even the most rudimentary Light-based Spells could still attract covetous looks.
Old Master Barut's reminder was absolutely prudent—if he couldn't strengthen himself quickly to protect Pure Light Sparrow Xiao Jiu, he was bound to encounter such troubles sooner or later.
"Let's have breakfast first! Come over early tonight!"
The Neanderthal tribe elder handed over the breakfast he had prepared for Chen Fei.
Devouring his breakfast voraciously and washing up hastily, and with a little bit of time left, Chen Fei spent five-star yuan to get himself an old phone with a cracked screen through connections left by Pu Aihua. He re-registered his personal phone number, then dashed off, barely catching up on time with the start of the mechanics team's workday.
The old phone had been lost at Teacher Shen Fei's Patan Elementary School, and he had no idea who might have picked it up. There was definitely no chance of getting it back, and since the Aircrew Base was almost isolated from the outside world, and they had just had a heavy resupply, the transport planes that usually came monthly might now only come once a quarter or even every six months.
Finding a second-hand phone for emergencies was a lucky break, so he couldn't be too choosy.
Chen Fei was counting on using it to keep in touch with his family and assure them of his safety.
Dying twice in a month was certainly not something he dared mention. If he was dead, at least there would be insurance and compensation to claim, but darn it, being repeatedly rejected by King Yama, was it disdain or what?
Chief Mechanic Xiao Ming led Chen Fei to a light turboprop attack aircraft, the A-39B "Big Mouth Monster" in the work area and, glancing at the little bird hopping on his shoulder, said, "First thing, keep an eye on your bird!"
For any kind of aircraft, the most feared scenario isn't an engine failure or aerodynamic surface damage, but a bird strike!
According to Heinrich's Law, mechanical malfunctions often have precursors, whereas bird strikes are always sudden and unexpected attacks that catch people off guard.
Especially during takeoff and landing, man-made aircraft are most susceptible to collisions with birds.
Even the weakest bird could cause the most fatal damage to an aircraft, which is why incidents of bird strikes are not uncommon in aviation safety events.
Chen Fei immediately patted Xiao Jiu's head and said, "No flying or running about, got it?"
Pure Light Sparrow Xiao Jiu, although a Magical Beast and unable to speak human language, could understand what Chen Fei said.
In response, it playfully pecked at his earlobe and hopped around on his shoulder without any intention of flying away.
Chief Mechanic Xiao's face was skeptical.
Although he didn't object to Chen Fei keeping a bird as a pet, he thought it should be kept in a cage, not just casually expecting it to behave with a simple command.
Seeing Xiao Ming's doubt, Chen Fei said, "Don't worry, Chief Mechanic, Xiao Jiu will be well behaved."
Xiao Ming nodded, if you're happy, that's fine, and he returned to business.
"Second thing, ready the tool cabinets and workbenches."
Under Xiao Ming's direction, Chen Fei pushed over two mobile tool cabinets and several workbenches for different purposes, placing the little bird on one of the tool cabinet shelves.
The paint number "216" Big Mouth Monster: I'm freaking out!
This was an old aircraft that had clocked over 1,000 hours of flight, and Chief Mechanic Xiao certainly wouldn't let Chen Fei practice on a brand-new machine that had just arrived.
"The third thing, check if the Big Mouth Monster's self-diagnostic system and various sensors are working properly… The fourth thing… The fifth thing…"
At first glance, Xiao Ming, the chief mechanic, looked like a rough and burly man, but he was especially meticulous when giving hands-on guidance to Chen Fei on disassembling the A-39B "Big Mouth Monster" light turboprop attack aircraft. He not only explained but also demonstrated by himself before letting Chen Fei try it hands-on, first putting it together, then taking it apart, always patient.
Even without having read the seven ABCDEFG technical manuals before, Chen Fei could now clearly understand this light turboprop aircraft.
Now, having thoroughly read all the technical manuals, just one practical exercise gave Chen Fei the confidence to operate independently. He was naturally very quick to learn, and although his movements were still a bit stiff, they had already subtly embodied the three essences of being stable, accurate, and fierce.
With a rapid assault, in less than half an hour, he managed to successfully crack open the practice machine, number 216 Big Mouth Monster, as easily as maxing out levels in a newbie village and straight out defeating a boss with ease.
The "Big Mouth Monster," as a cheap attack aircraft that was extremely popular at various aircrew bases, had an active power assembly, the PT6A series turboprop engine, which was not as huge as many would imagine—just a tad bigger than a 40L bucket and weighing around 200 kilograms; small but mighty.
In fact, this series of engines was not only used in various types of aircraft but also in agricultural machinery, ships, aviation auxiliary power (APU), and small generators as a power source, truly a brick-like general-purpose powerhouse, moved wherever needed, with applications only limited by imagination, never by necessity, produced in large quantities to ensure abundance.
The cost of industrial products is inversely proportional to the output; the greater the demand, the larger the output, and thus, the lower the cost, naturally cheaper.
The A-39B "Big Mouth Monster," a mass-produced cheap product, was not cheap without a reason; the engine itself was not expensive. Including avionics and the body itself, the overall complexity of the hardware and software system was not much higher than a four-wheeled car.
Starting with the turboprop engine, then moving on to disassemble various avionics modules along an orderly, dense circuit, besides the cockpit, the "Big Mouth Monster" used for the disassembly demonstration was practically gutted.
By midday, Xiao Jixiu and Chen Fei had successfully reduced the light turboprop attack aircraft to pieces, several workbenches piled high yet orderly, even making a list on the spot, planning to spend the same amount of time reassembling it the next day.
This disassembly operation, apart from serving as a demonstration, also conveniently included maintenance and the replacement of consumables, serving multiple purposes at once.
In operations , the biggest fear was not failing to reassemble, nor was it not finding the parts; the real worry was having one or two extra pieces left over when done, which would be a real trouble.
Xiao Ming, wiping his hands stained with multicolored oil on a rag, said, "That's enough for today. Once you're proficient in disassembly and assembly, I'll teach you how to diagnose and repair faulty parts; repair work isn't always just about swapping for new parts."
Such hands-on and verbal field training was quite draining, fortunately, Chen Fei was with the maintenance crew in the morning and belonged to the "Genuine Fragrance" Combat Flight Squadron in the afternoon, giving him a break, and they would continue tomorrow.
"Chief mechanic, you've worked hard."
Practical experience runs shallow on paper, this matter must be experienced personally; having disassembled and reassembled it once, then listening to the chief mechanic's detailed explanation, Chen Fei's gains were substantial.
Many things not covered in the seven technical manuals only became clear once you physically worked on them.
"Your Little Bird is quite well-behaved."
Seeing Xiao Jiu, who had stayed close to the mobile tool cabinet racks in the work area the whole time, Chief Mechanic Xiao Ming finally smiled.
He had worried that this little bird's curiosity might drive it to wriggle into every nook and cranny of the Big Mouth Monster.
Aircraft in flight feared birds, and those on the ground were no different.
"Xiao Jiu is one of a kind."
There might be more than one Pure Light Sparrow in the world, but for Chen Fei personally, Xiao Jiu was unique and irreplaceable.
During the lunch break, just as Chen Fei swallowed his last bite of bread, a yellow light silently illuminated atop Hangar One.
The pilots on routine standby in a corner of the hangar immediately reacted, and the voice of Chen Fei's flying instructor, Irinei Rusios, rang out.
"'Genuine Fragrance' Squadron, assemble! Rookie, come on over, we've got a mission!"