Reporter's Notes

The job is the battle position

Jiefangjun Daily reporter Wu Anning

Every time he picks up a ruler to work, Du Kaipeng's heart, a certain naval chart school renovator in the Northern Theater Theater, will be like a ripple on the surface of a calm lake: "How far is our post from the battlefield?"

Two years ago, Du Kaipeng, who had just taken the post of re-establishment of the Shanghai Chart School, could not hide his loss: he did not board the mighty warship of his dreams, but walked into the chart room of only 20 square meters, and he felt that he was far away from the battlefield. Through the window, Du Kaipeng could look at the long military port and see the rows of ships. "Every time I saw a ship leave the port, my heart flew to the deep blue ocean. ”

Time has passed in a hurry, and Du Kaipeng has never followed a ship to sea. Now, for the questions of the past, the answers given by Du Kaipeng have long been different from the past.

"The nautical chart is the eye of the ship, although we do not go to the ocean with the ship, but we must be familiar with every reef under the water, and understand every inch of the sea area. Through the nautical charts that we have corrected, the officers and men of the warships can grasp the geographical situation of the sea area, formulate sailing routes, and enter and exit the port safely. "Even if he is just lying in front of the desk, every chart reviser is still feeling the joy of charging together with the officers and men of the ship in the day after day of carving and meticulous corrections.

"In this sense, we are always 'zero distance' from the battlefield, and my position is the battle position. Du Kaipeng said.

"Zero distance" is embodied in every symbol in the pen and in all kinds of nautical charts. There is no much-anticipated cleaving of the waves, and there is no deafening smoke of artillery fire. When the red handwriting is outlined and intertwined under the pen, when the smell of ink fills the air, the nautical chart proofreaders and the crew "set off" together, opening the same frequency resonance with the ship's "zero distance".

The charge of "zero distance" is instantaneous. After working for a long time, the nautical chart proofers were particularly sensitive to the sound of the ship's sailing whistle. Ships need the latest charts whenever they go to sea, and even if they encounter urgent tasks at night, they will quickly get up and go to the chart room to ensure the smooth delivery of the charts.

The charge of "zero distance" was meticulous. Every chart corrector is very clear about the responsibilities of the position, and understands the weight of each pen. Every step of the revision of the chart, they are meticulous and cautious, with a stroke of embroidery carved thousands of miles of sea frontier.

The charge of "zero distance" was unsung. Not every officer and soldier can board the ship, and when we look at the wider naval community, we will find that many soldiers are not on the ship, but silently guard the battleship and gallop across the ocean. Meteorologists observe the clouds and rain at all times, record the weather, and the navigation beacons repair the navigation beacons and inspect the routes in the wind and waves...... Like the nautical chart school reformers, groups of support soldiers went forward one after another, quietly watching the ship sail away.

Through the depth of field of the times, we may be able to read their passion and enthusiasm. Although their footsteps never left the military port, they were never absent from every moment when the ships charged wave by wave. It is like a "lighthouse", illuminating the deep blue track of the People's Navy.

Chart Reformer: Fighting in the "One Meter Square Ocean"

Jiefangjun Daily reporter Wu Anning and special correspondent Feng Zhibin

The nautical chart school of a certain navy department in the Northern Theater searched for information. Photo by Yuan Bo

This is a group of nautical chart school changers with an average age of only 24 years old. Walking into the chart room, the reporter saw them crouching in front of the desk, using an iron pen to depict the charts on a piece of wax paper, with a calm and calm expression. The room was filled with the sound of pages turning and the "creaking" of pens and steel plates.

Although they are young, they are very sophisticated. The intricate elements of the nautical charts are vividly displayed on the paper by their hands, clearly and accurately interpreting the latest changes in the sea area.

Before the interview, it was hard for the reporter to imagine that in today's vigorous development of information technology, there would be such a "primitive" method of nautical chart correction - manual transcription, wax paper engraving, mimeographing one copy, and manual review......

Song Zhaoyuan, a nautical chart reviser, told reporters that although warships are equipped with electronic nautical charts and a variety of information equipment, preparing paper nautical charts before going to sea is still an indispensable "prescribed action." He recalled that during a training mission, a ship encountered a strong electromagnetic interference environment, and a number of electronic equipment on the ship, including electronic charts, suddenly failed. In desperation, the paper charts they corrected played an important role.

"We must use accurate charts to ensure that our comrades on the voyage can gallop smoothly in the deep ocean. Although the chart is small, only square meters, it is like a section on the journey of a strong army, recording the changes of the open sea and the ocean, witnessing the pillow and loyalty of every nautical chart reformer: "We are also charging." This 'one-meter-square ocean' is our battlefield!"

1 stencil, 117 symbols

In addition to skillful hands, changing drawings also requires a dedicated heart, and only by having no distractions can you perfectly exert your exquisite skills

Reefs, embankments, lampposts, piers...... In the eyes of the nautical chart revisers, the vast ocean is made up of these symbols.

It takes a pair of skilful hands to engrave various symbols on wax paper as thin as a cicada's wing.

If the wax paper is scratched through, the symbols will be easy to diffuse during the mimeograph, and if the strokes are not deep enough, the ink will be too light and the symbols will be difficult to read. The pen is crisp, and the wax paper scratches will be transparent, which is the most suitable.

Back in time 1 year ago, Han Jiashuo, a nautical chart school reformer, not only had a clumsy hand. For the first engraving, he spread translucent wax paper on a steel plate, bent over his waist and clutched a pen to draw finely. A few hours later, when I picked it up, I found that not only the symbols were crooked, but the whole paper was also full of holes. Stiff and sore wrists and arms due to excessive exertion.

Diligence is the only way to build a skillful hand. Every chart reviser needs to get a great feel in the day-to-day portrayal.

The calluses on the fingers are getting harder and harder, telling the hard time of practice. Han Jiashuo took the opportunity to pick up a modified model and explained: "This one alone has 117 symbols, some large and small, some thick and some fine, even a person with a good mind has to practice for more than a month. ”

The chart pattern is thick, and nearly 1,000 symbols test the feel and pen power of the chart renovators. Through the mottled edge of the mold, the reporter saw the persistence and pursuit of a group of nautical chart proofreaders for skillful hands.

Maintaining near-perfect brushstrokes takes a long period of time. In other words, if you don't practice for a day, you will give birth to your hands. Even when he was at home on vacation, Han Jiashuo would draw a few strokes from time to time, for fear of losing the feeling he had accumulated so hard. "The older the charting tool, the better. Today, his tools are also very handy.

In addition to skillful hands, changing drawings also requires a dedicated heart, and only by having no distractions can you perfectly exert your exquisite skills.

A distracting experience made Han Jiashuo remember it vividly: "The chart was very complicated, it took two whole days to draw, and the last few strokes, because I was distracted, I didn't control the strength of the pen, the wax paper was engraved, and the entire chart was instantly invalidated." ”

While polishing the charts, the hearts of the chart proofreaders were also being tempered. Han Jiashuo said: "When I first came to work in the chart room, I felt that the people here were very old-fashioned and incompatible with my energetic me. However, in several recent phone calls with his family, his mother mentioned that he had become more composed.

Regarding the tempering of mentality, Song Zhaoyuan, a school reformer, also felt a lot. Two years ago, he was still a beacon operator, and in a business competition, he performed well and won the second place in his individual event in one fell swoop. As the "pioneer" of the battleship galloping in the deep blue, he shouldered the tasks of deploying and maintaining navigation beacons, opening up and marking emergency battlefield passages, and chopping waves at sea every day.

"It's a completely different experience to engrave your familiar buoys on paper. Song Zhaoyuan feels that if the days used to be riding the wind and waves, today's work is like slowly diving.

Dealing with tools such as iron pens, steel plates, writing machines, lifting compasses, and drawing modification molds every day is the initial feeling of many nautical chart proofers. "It's really overwhelming to be faced with countless lines and markings. Remembering all kinds of elements, people are dizzy, and sometimes they suddenly forget the symbol they have just memorized. Song Zhaoyuan said frankly, "The time of drawing is sometimes difficult, and it is difficult to persevere without tenacious perseverance and perseverance." However, there is no shortcut to changing the map, and the nautical chart reviser must repeatedly compete with the impetuosity in his heart. ”

From transcription to engraving, from identifying annotations to memorizing symbols, from controlling emotions to calmly reviewing, Song Zhaoyuan has always focused on the vast sea of his paintings, often working in the chart room until he forgets the time.

This year is the second year that Song Zhaoyuan has officially become a member of the school reform. Over the years, he has used more wax paper than can be counted. After a long time, he found that as the tip of the pen touched the paper again and again, the whole person seemed to be withdrawn from the hustle and bustle of the world around him, and he could only feel the tides and currents, the shoals and reefs in front of him......

48 hours, 60 charts

In the tense pace of work, the school reformers have learned the responsibility and responsibility, and are accustomed to the accelerated pace

The nautical chart of the school reform is also known as "embroidery on paper", and the real embroidery pays attention to "slow work and meticulous work", but the nautical chart of the school reform often has to race against time.

The "Notices to Mariners", which report changes in navigational beacons and obstacles in the sea area, are issued once a week, and the task of the chart corrector is to revise the charts of the corresponding sea area according to the notice. One morning, as soon as Tian Kun, a member of the nautical chart school, retrieved the notice, he met the crew members who had come to receive the latest nautical charts, and several ships that had received the task were going to sea the day after tomorrow.

The vast sea is full of dangers...... Up-to-date charts are essential for ships. "In less than 48 hours, we need to correct 60 charts!" Tian Kun and his comrades-in-arms quickly threw themselves into the intense work.

Not only to ensure the accuracy of the charts, but also to catch up with the short amount of time, they are like clockwork tightened, not slackening for a moment. When they are sleepy, they rub their cheeks with their hands, and when they are tired, they put a few drops of eye drops into their sour eyes, and they continue to charge and successfully complete the task.

In the tense pace of work, the school reformers have learned the responsibility and responsibility, and are accustomed to the accelerated pace. "We often encounter urgent tasks, and although the process is difficult, the moment we complete the handover of the charts, an unprecedented sense of accomplishment envelops our bodies in an instant. Saying that, Tian Kun's tone was a little excited.

The work of the nautical chart school reformers is mostly dull, there are no thrilling moments, but they are never short of surging blood.

2 years ago, the old squad leader Zhang Xu saw Song Zhaoyuan's potential at a glance: "This young man is not only calm when he encounters problems, but also has the momentum to not admit defeat, and he will definitely be able to become a talent in the future!"

"In fact, there are similarities between the nautical chart reviser and the navigation marker, the erection of navigation beacons must be fast and accurate, and the calibration of nautical charts also tests our speed and accuracy. Song Zhaoyuan said, "The slogan of the chart soldiers is 'accurate and efficient', and since the task has been issued, we must complete it quickly and well." In the battle position, there is no reason for us to live up to our mission, and we are not qualified to slow down. ”

Song Zhaoyuan took the reporter to the chart warehouse, "There are more than 30,000 charts here, all stacked up and 2 stories high, which is also the best proof that we are fighting day and night and not slacking off." ”

Below the main chart of each chart, there is a series of red numbers in different handwriting that follow each other, called "minor correction marks", which record in detail the successive changes of the chart. Some of the old charts, "minor corrections" date back to the beginning of this century. "When I got the charts from my predecessors, I always felt heavy in my heart. "It's like going through one relay run after another, and generations of nautical chart school reformers are passing on their mission in their hearts, and they are running faster and faster.

The transformation of the army has been carried out in an all-round way, which has brought a stronger sense of urgency to the members of the Chart School than in the past. "In recent years, the tasks of the chart room have multiplied, and in order to provide a solid and powerful guarantee for the ships to sail, we have been fighting hard and conquering seemingly impossible missions one after another. ”

Taking the initiative, rather than acting passively, is the choice of every nautical chart reschooler. "In some areas, even if ships rarely visit, we still strive to complete the update of all the chart elements in the area as soon as possible to avoid being caught off guard. "Sometimes I want to postpone less urgent tasks, but once there is a temporary change, the crew will not have the latest paper charts available." We will carry out many tasks ahead, and we must not allow our crew to be in any possible danger, let alone lose our fighters on the ever-changing training ground. ”

At all times, the nautical chart proofers are doing their best to provide the latest nautical charts of various sea areas and types at any time to escort the ships.

That year, Ding Ziyang was on vacation, and after receiving a notice of an urgent support mission, he hurriedly booked a ticket to return to the barracks. When I stepped into the chart room, I saw that every colleague in front of me was doing their best, and there was no time for him to even say hello. Unable to wait or hesitate, he walked briskly to his desk and began to work.

In the chart room, under the light, the calloused hands of the chart proofers are holding rulers and carefully measuring. They are always in a state of "full grid", immersed in the passion of charging on the chart.

0.2 mm, 100 m

In the world of nautical chart reformers, there is no standard of "good", and everyone must go all out to achieve excellence

"The bathymetric grid of these two images is offset by 0.2 millimeters, and the two diagonal lines in this one are of unequal length. "During a routine internal quality inspection, three charts were found to be unqualified. For this matter, they held a special meeting, and the three charts were declared invalid on the spot.

Every chart corrector knows that redrawing is a delicate job, and any slight mistake can lead to a nautical accident.

Last autumn, Zhang Xu, who was about to retire, specially conducted a pre-appointment lecture for the new batch of nautical chart school reformers. "In 2005, a foreign submarine crashed into the underwater mountains while sailing, killing one person and injuring 97 others...... After investigation, it was found that the "culprit" that caused the navigation accident was a chart with errors. In class, the old class leader told the shocking case with a serious expression.

"Naval battles do not start when artillery shells are fired! To some extent, wars begin in the process of preparing nautical charts! A mistake of 0.2 mm may be negligible in life, but on a chart of 1:500,000, it represents a distance of 100 meters. If the deviation is close to 100 meters when sailing, it is very likely to lead to incalculable consequences. ”

Listening to the old squad leader's narration, Chen Weiping, a member of the nautical chart school, and his comrades-in-arms felt an electric current running through their bodies, instantly hitting the central room. For them, even a millimeter wrong is a big deal.

When he was a student, he liked to play football and always played the role of goalkeeper in the team. That day, he suddenly felt that there were similarities between the two very different roles of goalkeeper and nautical chart reschooler. The goalkeeper cannot charge on the pitch, but the success or failure of the goalkeeper can sometimes directly determine the outcome of the game. The same is true of the nautical chart renovators, who have no halo in the spotlight and few people pay special attention to their presence, but they guard the safety of the battleship at all times and never allow mistakes to happen.

Ordinary positions have an extraordinary role, and VIP Chen instantly appreciated the weight behind this job. That night, he stood by the window and stared at the sea in the distance for a long time. Clusters of thin lines on the chart seemed to turn into safety ropes, floating out of this inconspicuous two-story building, rushing to the ocean in the distance, tied to the waists of the comrades on the ship, ensuring the safety of their lives.

In addition to carving pictures, VIP Chen delved into the gallery to study the business whenever he had time. Look at the position of the chart, study the hydrological elements, and compare the color and pen strength of different correction situations. latitude and longitude, map projection, cartographic synthesis ...... These principles that only chart editors need to understand, he does not teach on his own, just to fully grasp the knowledge of nautical charts and ensure that there are no mistakes in changing the charts. In the past two years, VIP Chen's work has been summarized densely and memorized in several large volumes, and his comrades-in-arms affectionately call him a "living dictionary".

Manpower review is the last step in the mapping process, and you can always see Chen's distinguished guest: "There are thousands of elements in the chart, and if there is a mistake in any place, the consequences are unimaginable. It is necessary to ensure that the charts do not have problems such as mis-swiping or missing scrubbing. ”

Today, the backbone of the Chen VIP has a special sensitivity to nautical charts. Once, a batch of printed charts was about to be delivered, but Chen VIP stared at one place and frowned. "Wait a minute, I'll look it up. He hurried to the reference room. A few minutes later, VIP Chen anxiously rushed back: "The water depth here has changed, which may pose a danger to navigation, let's quickly plot it!"

Nearly 1,000 charts needed to be redrawn, and a new chart reviser made a difficulty: "This change in water depth is not obvious, so there is no need to change it!" Chen Weiping, who is usually easy-going, was extremely serious at that moment: "If this shallow point is not marked, it is equivalent to us planting a mine on the ship's channel with our own hands!" Then, everyone quickly changed the map and plotted the new parameters.

In the world of nautical chart reformers, there is no standard of "good", and everyone must go all out to achieve excellence. Like Mr. Chen, the nautical chart proofreaders always maintain extreme meticulousness and sensitivity, and do a good job of every level of the map revising to eliminate potential safety hazards for the ship's navigation.

The weight of responsibility and the weight of mission. Time and again, the members of the nautical chart school have used meticulously carved nautical charts to ensure that the ships sail to high standards, and to "pave the way" for the officers and men to go to the ocean.

▲Published on April 12, the 5th edition of the People's Liberation Army Daily

Source丨People's Liberation Army Daily, Learning Corps (ID: xuexijuntuan)

Producer丨Ou Can, Hou Dawei, Editor丨Liu Jianwei, Yan Shan, Qian Zongyang, Zhou Zhou, Zheng Pengrui