Chapter 2 — Before takeoff, I refused to sign the order for the plane to fly

"Found a new scratch under the plane's belly, the cause has not yet been determined, the location is near the rear cargo door frame. I suggest re-checking."

"You think the plane can't take off?"

"I just think it's not possible to sign right now."

"Those two concepts are not the same."

"I know."

He turned to look at Trieu Minh Vien. Trieu Minh Vien says:

"Captain Co, she discovered a fairly shallow scratch. We temporarily assess that it will not affect this flight. We plan to fix it after the plane returns. But she refused to sign."

Co Thua Trach did not respond immediately. He squatted down, looked at the scratches, then looked at the photo taken after the flight on my phone.

"Can you give a clear reason?"

"I can prove that this is a new scratch."

"Can it still be proven that it affects airworthiness?"

"Not yet."

Trieu Minh Vien immediately chimed in:

"Do you hear me? She herself said she couldn't prove it yet."

I put my phone away.

"I still can't prove it's dangerous, but I can prove this scratch didn't exist last night."

Co Thua Trach stood up. He looked at the plane. Then looked at me again.

"Do you mean stop flying or check again?"

"Check again."

"Before completing the inspection, won't you sign?"

He pressed the radio button.

"The cockpit has been received. Temporarily, the cabin door has not been closed. We request the passenger service department to maintain the status quo, waiting for the re-inspection conclusion from the technical department."

Trieu Minh Vien immediately turned his head.

"Captain Co!"

Co Thua Trach never looked at him.

"Manager Trieu, if new damage appears on the surface of the aircraft without a clear cause, the flight crew cannot pretend they have never heard of it."

Then he bowed his head and asked me:

"How long do you need?"

"MCC requires measurements. At least fifteen minutes."

Duong Nghien has not hung up the phone yet. On the other end of the line, he asked:

"Lam Ha, what is the distance from the scratch to the edge of the rear cargo door frame?"

I put the measuring tape up again. Rainwater flowed down the sleeves to the wrists.

"Twelve centimeters."

The other end of the line was silent for half a second.

"Repeat."

"The closest point of the scratch is twelve centimeters from the edge of the rear cargo door frame."

Duong Nghien asked me to stay where I was.

"Do not clean the scratches, and do not let others access the damaged area. Take panoramic photos, close-ups, photos with a scale measure. Report the distance to the rivet rows and aircraft skin joints."

I changed the phone to my left hand. The right hand holds the measuring tape tightly. Trieu Minh Vien stood next to him, his voice became tougher.

"Engineer Duong, the scene is under great pressure. This scratch does not look deep to the naked eye. It can be considered damage within the allowable limit. Can the plane take off first and return to base for treatment later?"

Duong Nghien completely ignored the pressure he mentioned.

"Manager Trieu, right now I just need the measurements."

I report in turn:

"The scratch has an irregular arc shape, about nineteen centimeters long at the longest, one point two centimeters wide at the widest."

"The paint layer has been peeled off, no exposed metal parts have been observed."

"The closest point is twelve centimeters from the rear cargo door frame."

"About six miles from the lower shell joint centimeter."

"About four centimeters from the nearest row of rivets."

Duong Nghien asked:

"Is it dented?"

Han Ve Dong used a flashlight to shine sideways.

"It's not clear to the naked eye."

Duong Nghien says:

"Use a straight ruler to apply diagonally, check the gap with light."

Han Weidong did not say more. He took a steel ruler from his tool bag and held it close to the edge of the scratch. When the flashlight shines, a very thin shadow appears below the ruler. But it is true. Han Ve Dong cursed softly.

"There's a shallow depression."

Trieu Minh Vien looked at him. Han Weidong still did not raise his head.

"A little."

"How deep?"

"You can't tell by looking at it."

Duong Nghien said on the phone:

"Use the depth gauge."

I went to the tool cart to get a depth gauge. The passenger service manager followed me a few steps.

"Engineer Lam, the passengers are starting to react. Some people brought young children, some elderly people, and some connecting passengers. Finally, can you give me an accurate answer?

"Not yet."

"So how can I explain it?"

"Let's just say the plane needs an extra safety check."

"Saying that only makes passengers more confused."

"It's better than saying we're about to take off."

She bit her lip.

"Do you know who they will scold?"

I took out the depth gauge.

"They won't scold her for her expertise."

I stopped. She continued:

"They just scolded her for delaying the flight."

I didn't reply. Because she's right. Passengers cannot stand on the apron to watch me measure the distance to the row of rivets. What they saw was just that the time on the screen at the departure gate kept moving back. The flight was six hours late. The technician was still crawling under the plane's belly, looking over and over again. Everyone is upset. Me too. But frustration cannot become a reason for me to sign. When he returned to the belly of the plane, Co Thua Trach was still standing there. He didn't urge me at all, just asked:

"What does the crew need to do to assist?"

"Please don't close the compartment door. Just keep the status quo, waiting for the conclusion from MCC."

He nodded. But Trieu Minh Vien said:

"Captain Co, if it continues any longer, the flight crew's on-duty time may exceed the limit."