On the test flight road, never go alone - "Heroic test pilot" Li Zhonghua was a guest in the first "Zhuhai Equipment Forum" shorthand

Xinhua News Agency, Guangzhou, October 2 Title: On the test flight road, never go alone - "heroic test pilot" Li Zhonghua was a guest of the first "Zhuhai Equipment Forum" shorthand

Li Yun, Guo Zhongzheng, Liu Yinuo

"I used to be a test pilot in the People's Air Force, and I will always be a veteran who pays attention to the blue sky of the motherland."

At the 13th China Airshow, the first "Zhuhai Equipment Forum" held by the Equipment Development Department of the Central Military Commission opened on October 1. Li Zhonghua, winner of the "August 1st Medal" and "heroic test pilot", was a guest at the forum to tell the story of the test flight and popularize the knowledge of science test flight.

The venue was packed. Li Zhonghua recalled his "earth-shattering fight" - May 20, 2005, which was also the closest Li Zhonghua was to death.

"On that day, my comrades and I flew a test flight in the course of 'pilot induced oscillation'. During the turn near the airport's long-distance navigation station, the system suddenly alarmed, and suddenly the aircraft was violently deflected to the right, sliding from the large side into the 'inverted buckle' state. ”

At that time, the aircraft was 500 meters high, flying at a speed of 270 kilometers per hour, and in the "inverted buckle" state, the ailerons of the aircraft were locked and uncontrollable, and they fell rapidly to the ground in the air.

"In the cockpit, my comrades and I hung upside down, and the wheat fields and highways on the ground rushed to the front. In the process of rapid fall, I quickly turned off the computer main power switch on the right side, the plane seemed to be lit up at once, restored the proper mechanical control, I did not hesitate, quickly flipped the plane over. Li Zhonghua said.

Life and death for 7 seconds, a shock to the earth. When the plane returned to normal state, it was only more than 200 meters above the ground!

Li Zhonghua's narration seems to be just recalling an ordinary old thing. As soon as the words fell, the applause of the audience was thunderous.

In the history of aviation development, aircraft performance records and major technological breakthroughs have almost always been completed by test pilots. Excellent test pilots can greatly promote the finalization of new aircraft, improve test flight efficiency and defuse risks.

More than 20 years of long test flight road, talking about the feelings, Li Zhonghua summed up in two sentences: one is the "test flight paves the way to heaven" engraved on the test flight monument of the China Flight Test Research Institute; and the other sentence is the "heavy weapon of the country, cast with fate" that Chinese test pilots faithfully practiced.

"In May 1999, when my comrade-in-arms Li Cunbao and I completed the stall tail spin test flight of the J-7 aircraft, Li Shuyou, chief engineer of the white-haired China Flight Test research institute, hugged me tightly with tears and said excitedly, 'I have studied the subject for nearly 30 years, and today I have finally overcome all of them!' Li Zhonghua said.

It is the success of this test flight that fills the gap in the stall tail spin of China's delta wing aircraft.

Li Zhonghua said that across time and space, China Airlines has gone through a "hundred years". From the "Lenin" to the "J-20" and "Yun-20", several generations of test pilots have used their youth, enthusiasm, and even life to promote the breakthrough and leap of China's aviation test flight from scratch and from weak to strong.

Looking up at the stars, "the test flight paves the way to the sky".

However, the road to test flight is not easy. On the Jingshan Mountain outside Yanliang City in Xi'an, 16 test flight heroes and martyrs were buried in the Test Flying Courtyard Martyrs Cemetery. Although they have left, they have become the brightest coordinates on the starry sky of history. Their bold loyalty and sacrifice are the precious spiritual wealth of Li Zhonghua and generations of test pilots who have continued to be glorious and march toward the future.

Looking back on the origins of the China Airshow and China Test Flight, Li Zhonghua said: "The figure and dedication of Chinese test pilots have never been lacking in previous air shows. Those models that debuted and surprised the world were all started from the test flight of the test flight institute. Those unforgettable moments are the deep love affair between China's test flight and the China Airshow. ”

During the audience question session, a child timidly raised the microphone: "Uncle Li, when you are in heaven, are you afraid?" ”

"Little friend, the victory over cowardice is always convinced that you are not alone in battle." Li Zhonghua said, "I have repeatedly confronted the 'God of Death', in fact, I am very relieved and firmly believe that I will come back safely." Because the test flight preparation is quite complete. On every test flight, the ground monitoring room had more than a dozen test engineers accompany me. (End)