Somewhere in the northwest, a mysterious airport.

An air force jet transport plane slowly landed on the runway.

"Skybird Base, arrived."

A middle-aged man with a deep look and firm face looked at the yellow desert road outside the machine window.

"Captain, you have been to the Skybird Base before." Holding a suitcase in your hand, he walked off the gangway of the plane. A young and handsome man next to him said to the middle-aged man.

"Yes, I've been here three times, but in my dream, I've been here countless times."

The young man was slightly stunned and then said, "Captain, you will definitely be selected this time!"

The middle-aged man smiled bitterly on his face. He is 57 years old this year. He has participated in all the opportunities he can be selected, but three opportunities, every time he missed the opportunity at the last moment. Is it possible this time?

The middle-aged man was named Zhang Tiancong. He was the first batch of astronauts trained during the implementation of the "Shenzhou Plan" by the China Space Administration in the late 1990s. He was one of the 14 astronauts who entered the China Pilot Astronauts Battalion at the same time as Yang Tianwei, the first astronaut in the country.

Twenty-one years have passed, and the Shenzhou project has long been over, and it has entered the era of asking questions when someone enters the space station. The collective of astronauts in China has developed to the third generation and fourth generation of astronauts. They are younger, more energetic and have more opportunities to enter space.

Zhang Tiancong is the only active astronaut captain among the first 14 astronauts in H country who remained at H country's Aerospace Training Center for training.

After more than 20 years of training, at the age of 57, there has never been a astronaut who has not entered space before. The reason for this situation is not because the country does not give Zhang Tiancong the chance, but because of three opportunities in the past twenty years, all of them have been flowing away in front of you because of one or another.

Zhang Tiancong clearly remembers that for the first time, although he trained hard and had excellent professional qualities in the assessment, he still failed in the selection of Shenzhou 7. At that time, the H-country aviation industry was still in its infancy, and there was an opportunity for spacecraft to launch once every two or three years. Once the selection failed, it meant that his career reached an important turning point. Due to age issues, most astronauts would have to choose to retire.

Faced with heavy pressure, Zhang Tiancong did not give up his dream of flying, and resolutely chose to stay in the Astronauts Team and became the training instructor of the second generation of astronauts. While teaching these disciples who are both disciples and competitors aerospace knowledge, they train hard, waiting for the next round of selection opportunities to arrive.

After several years of training, with extraordinary persistence and tenacity, Zhang Tiancong really got the second chance to select Feitian and became a favorable competitor on the Shenzhou 10 spacecraft. His superiors were moved by his persistent spirit. The successful election of the new round of selection was just a cruel joke on him. In the last few days before Feitian, Zhang Tiancong suffered from a viral cold and missed the opportunity to fly.

This failure caused a great blow to Zhang Tiancong. Many colleagues and comrades advised him to change careers and leave the aerospace training center. He started a new job and life, but Zhang Tiancong was not defeated by this failure and remained in the aerospace training center and continued to serve as the instructor for training new astronauts.

A few more years have passed, and the aerospace industry of H country has entered a glorious period of rapid development. Since 2016, there have been more than two to three manned spacecraft launch missions almost every year. In 2018, due to the successful construction of the Tiangong-3 space station, there were as many as 9 astronauts stationed in the Tiangong Palace, with a rotation period of four to six months. In other words, there will be at least more than 20 astronauts entering space in the future.

Logically, with so many opportunities to perform flying missions, as Zhang Tiancong, who has been persisting in the flying dream for twenty years and trained hard, it should not be difficult to get a flying place, right?

Of course, the Space Administration gave him a chance. Zhang Tiancong will take Wentian 2 and become the second group of astronauts stationed at Tiangong 3 of the space station.

However, in the last three days before the spacecraft took off, fate once again made a big joke to Zhang Tiancong. During this day's training, Zhang Tiancong suddenly suffered a myocardial infarction and fainted in the training room. The doctor in the hospital rescued him and said: "Because of years of high-intensity aerospace training, your heart has become fatigued and has a small area of ​​myocardial necrosis. You are no longer suitable to be an astronaut."

Zhang Tiancong, who was lying on the hospital bed, suddenly hit his head on the bed frame: "Why? Why is the heart not sick for a few days but is sick today, just to make me die of illness in space, why does something go wrong at this time? God, why are you always targeting me?!"

No matter how unwilling Zhang Tiancong was, he could only accept the cruel reality and lie in the hospital to recuperate and undergo cardiac rehabilitation treatment.

...

Including Zhang Tiancong, there were a total of 18 astronauts who walked off the plane.

"Captain Zhang, please come with me."

The receptionist at the base came over in an electric car, called Zhang Tiancong and others to get on the electric car, and pulled them to a building similar to a large hangar.

In the building, what awaits Zhang Tiancong and others are the main leaders and technical experts of Tianniao Base.

"Comrade Zhang Tiancong, I really didn't expect that I would see you again!" The base leader was Wei. He has been working for more than ten years in charge of the Tianniao Base. This is the third time he has seen Zhang Tiancong, but he has a deep impression of him and admires him.

"Comrade Kang Ping, I didn't expect to have the chance to come here." Zhang Tiancong smiled bitterly, and the two shook hands.

Wei Kangping asked with concern: "Comrade Tiancong, I didn't see you flying on a spaceship on TV last time. I was very puzzled. Later I realized that there was something wrong with your heart. What a pity. How about it? Is your heart better now?"

"It's much better, but at most I can only guarantee that I'm the same as an ordinary person. I don't know if there will be any problems?"

Zhang Tiancong has no idea about his heart. After all, he is old and almost sixty years old. Even if his will is as strong as steel, his heart will tell him that he is really old and can no longer exercise vigorously.

"What kind of space mission is the country carrying out this time?"

Zhang Tiancong expressed his questions.

The Skybird Base is a mysterious base built by the state and an important astronaut training base. Before every space launch mission carried out by H Country, it will bring astronauts to this base for a period of simulation training. In other words, astronauts who come to this base are all astronauts who are about to enter space.

For Zhang Tiancong, he was very familiar with this place, but he also hated it because he was the only person who had been to this base three times but had never entered space once.

To be honest, after knowing that there was something wrong with his heart, Zhang Tiancong no longer had hope for entering space. However, after being discharged from the hospital, he was about to go through the procedures to leave the aerospace training center. Suddenly, he was summoned by the director of the Space Administration and told him that the country had a top-secret space plan that was about to be implemented, but the number of astronauts was not enough. He hoped that he would stay and lead a group of astronauts to complete this mission.

“What is the mission?”

"You will know when you go to the Skybird Base."

"It's just my heart... the doctor said it's no longer suitable for space flight."

"Don't worry, you only participate as an auxiliary. Can you enter space and see if you can see it later."

...

Wei Kangping smiled slightly, bought a secret and said, "As for what task, let our experts tell you. Chief Teacher He, please explain it to Comrade Zhang Tiancong."

He Chun, who was standing next to Wei Kangping, walked out, "Comrade Zhang Tiancong, come with me. Let's take a look at this guy first."

After He Chun brought Zhang Tiancong and other 18 astronauts to the aircraft parked in an open area, he ordered the ground crew to pull away the canvas covering the aircraft.

brush!

A shiny aircraft with four Chinese characters "Flying One" painted on the fuselage appeared in front of the astronauts.

"Air, space shuttle?" Zhang Tiancong took two steps back in surprise, looking at the giant in front of him in disbelief.

"Oh my God. I'm not dreaming, space shuttle?" A female astronaut covered her mouth and said in shock.

"H Country also has space shuttles, and the size is larger than that of the United States?"

"Flying One. Its name is Feitian One."

"There are two things covered with canvas over there, and it seems that there are two identical planes."

"Everyone, let me tell you," He Chun coughed twice, and after the astronauts calmed down, he said: "This kind of space shuttle is developed by my country on the basis of aerospace shuttles and is used to perform space missions such as aerospace transportation and interstellar exploration. The code name is Feitian. This plane is the first space shuttle of this type, named Feitian 1, and the two behind the two are Feitian 2 and Feitian 3."

"This kind of space shuttle has a total length of 38.68 meters, a wingspan of 24.37 meters and a height of 17.89 meters... It can take off and land on the airport runway, with an empty weight of 61 tons, a maximum take-off weight of 180 tons, a minimum crew requirement of six, a standard crew of twelve, and can carry up to eighteen people in special circumstances. The power system uses nuclear power and plasma engines, with four sets of nuclear battery packs with a power generation power of 20 megawatts, a maximum output power of 80 megawatts, and four sets of eight-channel plasma engines at the tail, two sets under the main wing and two sets under the belly of the aircraft, which can achieve vertical take-off and landing..."

After hearing He Chun's detailed introduction, the astronaut kept making awesome awesome sounds, advanced, so advanced!

"The purpose of the Flying Space Shuttle is to complete manned lunar landing missions, carry a large amount of building materials, build a small lunar base on the moon, and send astronauts to stay for a long time... The purpose of the country sending you astronauts here is to be familiar with the pilot and use of the space shuttle, and strive to complete this mission in one month, land on the moon before September, and realize the manned lunar landing plan!"

Moon landing plan, lunar base.

After hearing these terms, all of these astronauts were stunned. They didn't believe it. The H-country, which only completed the construction of the Tiangong-3 space station last year, has not yet been used to it. It will land on the moon this year. Is there a lunar base on it?

"This, how is this possible?"

"When did the country have such advanced space technology?"

"Land on the moon, land on the moon..."

Zhang Tiancong stared at the huge space shuttle in front of him, and kept murmuring: "Flying One, Feitian One."

His heart jumped up accelerating, his blood accelerated, his face turned red, and his ears became louder and louder, "I want to fly, I want to land on the moon!" "I want to fly, I want to land on the moon!"
Chapter completed!