Chapter 6 — Before takeoff, I refused to sign the order for the plane to fly

He turned his head to look out the window. On the apron, the plane that could not continue the flight was taken by tow truck to the maintenance area.

"There's only a scratch in your eye."

He said softly.

"And in our eyes, it's a whole system."

I calmly replied:

"But in that system... it's all human."

He turned back to look at me.

"What do you mean?"

"One hundred and eighty passengers... are also in that system."

Trieu Minh Vien was silent for a long time. Finally he smiled faintly.

"This sentence of yours is very suitable to be included in the training curriculum."

"The curriculum does not receive complaints from passengers."

Rarely does he laugh. But that smile only flashed and then disappeared.

"The company will investigate the ground handling department."

He stopped for a moment.

"We'll be investigated too."

"It's the right thing to do."

"Lieu Cuong recently came to see me. He said he was willing to admit that the service vehicle approached the plane improperly, but hoped it wouldn't be recorded as 'collision but not reported'."

"If written like that, the external contractor will have points deducted from the rating, the driver will be suspended from work, and Lieu Cuong will also have difficulty keeping a management position."

"So how do they want to record it?"

"It says 'abnormality during ground service, cause awaiting verification'."

I looked at him.

"Manager Trieu, the results of the non-destructive testing are not yet available."

"That's why it says 'pending verification'."

"So why change the conclusion now?"

He picked up the coffee cup, then put it down again.

"Because once the incident was determined to be an underground collision but was deliberately hidden..."

"Everyone will immediately start looking for the person responsible."

"Who will be that person?"

He looked at me.

"Want to hear the truth?"

"I want."

"The person most likely to be ejected is the service vehicle driver."

"Next is Liao Qiang."

"Finally... it's you."

I frowned slightly.

"In the video circulating online, the person who stands out the most is you."

"In the internal records, the most unusual action is also you."

"She tore up the check slip, causing the flight to be delayed. Then she checked again and found the problem."

"If you look in one direction, people will say she is a meritorious individual."

"But if you want to tell it another way..."

"...it can also be said that the way you handled it made the situation more serious."

His voice was very calm. It is that calmness that sends chills down people's spines. From a truth... To a statement of responsibility... In between there are always countless meetings and countless people speaking up.

"What about you?"

Trieu Minh Vien looked at me.

"Of course I'm in there too."

He took two steps and then stopped.

"Don't consider everyone a bad person."

"I haven't."

"So why don't you trust anyone?"

I looked straight into his eyes.

"Because..."

"When I sign, no one will sign for me."

He didn't say another word. In the afternoon, Lieu Cuong came to find me. He waited at the back door of the maintenance building. Next to them were a few old wheel chocks piled up, and the wind blew through the door, bringing cold air.

"Engineer Lam."

I stopped walking.

"If there is an incident, follow the procedure and find an investigation team."

"I just said a few words."

He took off the access card from his chest and clasped it tightly in his hand.

"Last night there was a car approaching the plane."

I looked at him.

"Was there a crash?"

"The driver said he didn't feel the impact. When backing up, the trailer was thrown to the side. It was raining It was so big, he went down to check and saw mud on the underside of the plane. He wiped it once, didn't see any dents, so he drove away."

"Why didn't you report?"

"If reported, the plane will have to stop for inspection."

"That night of heavy rain, the entire airport was delayed. My team has been fined twice already."

"The driver just gave birth to his second child."

"I can't push my subordinates to bear it every time."

"So you told him to change the handover record?"

Lieu Cuong's face immediately changed.

"Don't talk nonsense."

"So why are you looking for me?"

He lowered his voice.

"If you sign at that time, we will silently admit a small mistake."

"It is recorded that the ground staff approached the plane at an incorrect distance, but no actual collision occurred."

"It's okay for the company to punish internally."

"Don't push things into 'hiding the collision'."

I looked at him.

"The plane has been changed."

"The passengers have also arrived."

"You've also proven that you're careful."

"There's no need to push others into a corner."

"What if I sign that day?"

He didn't answer. I looked straight at him.

"If I sign, the plane full of passengers takes off."

"During maintenance, the damage exceeded limits..."

"Do you come forward and admit that last night the trailer crashed into the plane?"