In 1974, General Zhang Aiping, who had made great achievements, had just retired. The former deputy chief of the general staff has made outstanding achievements, and he and Ye Jianying belong to the same warlord and have always had a good relationship. Who knew that in this year, a major military project was suddenly hit hard, and Ye Shuai personally went to the Jingxi Hotel to persuade Zhang Aiping to come back from the mountain. Zhang Aiping regarded as a fellow traveler and immediately refused. Unexpectedly, Ye Shuai's face was embarrassed, and he actually talked about a thrilling thing. Zhang Aiping was furious when she heard this, retook the table case, and blurted out in excitement to ask for a comeback. Ye Shuai was overjoyed when he saw this. What touched General Zhang Aiping's patriotic heart so much and made him swear to fight again? Does it have anything to do with that major military project?
First, the veteran returns
Great victories require great sacrifices and dedication. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Zhang Aiping experienced the vicissitudes of life and made many achievements. In the Battle of Taiyuan, he led the armed forces to meet the Japanese invasion, defended the central red base area, and won a great victory. Subsequently, he was ordered to expedition to the northwest, fought bloody battles, and successively participated in major military operations such as Yan'an rectification, hoeing rape, and Suiyuan, winning valuable time for the party's cause.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Zhang Aiping continued to serve the country. When the Korean War broke out, he was not afraid of danger and went to the front line to direct the battle. After the ceasefire in 1953, he was transferred to the post of deputy chief of the general staff, where he was responsible for the modernization of national defense and the development of weapons and equipment. Under his leadership, the mainland has made great progress in its missiles, aerospace, and other sophisticated weapons.
However, the smoke of war will eventually go away, and the years will inevitably pass by meritorious veterans. In the mid-60s of the last century, Zhang Aiping's old injuries recurred, and her movement was inconvenient. He once returned to his hometown to recuperate, but there was something wrong with the country, and he could not be idle. After the Lin Biao incident in 1971, Zhang Aiping was called to return to the Military Commission to assist Ye Jianying in national defense and military construction.
In 1974, Zhang Aiping, who was in her late teens, finally decided to remove her armor. On the one hand, his health is deteriorating day by day, and on the other hand, after decades of war, he hopes to mature steadily. Despite repeated door-to-door persuasion from the top of the Central Military Commission, Zhang Aiping politely refused and insisted on retiring.
The veteran general's determination was as strong as steel. When Ye Jianying came to the door in person, although Zhang Aiping was highly respected, she still refused bluntly as always. After years of ups and downs, he has long regarded death as home, and he has never wavered in the face of relatives and friends coming to save him.
However, as fate would have it, just when Zhang Aiping was about to live in seclusion, a sudden major national accident completely changed the senior general's mind. In the face of the country's crisis, Zhang Aiping could no longer stand idly by, and his heroic nature of generosity and righteousness made him pick up the banner of battle again.
Second, the country's important weapon is blocked
In the early 70s of the last century, the mainland was in a critical period of socialist construction. In order to enhance national strength and realize national defense modernization, the CPC Central Committee has listed the development of the aerospace industry as the top priority.
In 1970, China's first artificial earth satellite "Dongfanghong 1" was successfully launched, which opened the prelude to the mainland's manned space program. Since then, a series of cutting-edge weapons research and development projects have been in full swing, including the re-entry satellite program.
Re-entry satellites have excellent military and scientific value. It could not only be used for reconnaissance and mapping, but also could carry a nuclear warhead for long-range precision strikes, and was one of the most advanced guided weapons at that time. However, due to the high level of technical complexity, the road to R&D has not been easy.
On November 5, 1974, the mainland's first returnable satellite was launched at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. According to the plan, the Long March-2 carrier rocket will launch the satellite into orbit, after which the satellite will operate according to the scheduled route and finally land safely on the mainland.
At this moment, countless soldiers and civilians across the country held their breath and paid great attention. However, just 13 seconds before the launch, the operator detected a fault, and some systems on the satellite lost power and were forced to abort the launch.
After five hours of troubleshooting, the technicians decided that the fault had been brought under control and organized another launch. At the beginning of takeoff, the rocket flight attitude was normal. But just 6 seconds later, a shocking scene suddenly played out - the rocket had a serious pitch swing, the control system could not maintain balance, and finally had to self-destruct!
In this way, the high-profile re-entry satellite, only 20 seconds after leaving the ground, turned into a cloud of smoke and fire with the launch vehicle and fell to the ground in Jiuquan. The defeat on that day undoubtedly cast a huge shadow over the mainland's aerospace industry, and the prospects were once in a fog.
Over the next few weeks, the team of experts conducted a repeated analysis of the accident. According to the preliminary judgment, the direct cause of the failure was that a certain signal line in the control system was broken during the flight, resulting in loss of control.
However, the root cause of the signal line breakage is ironic - there was a serious process omission during the inspection before the final assembly of the rocket, and the equipment defects were not detected in time. Such a major negligence is really intolerable in the high-tech field.
Although the accident was only a small episode in the re-entry satellite program, its impact was far from overnight. Under pressure, the process of modernizing the mainland's weapons and equipment had to be forced to slow down and even be on the verge of interruption......
3. Heroes are impassioned
The bad news of the failure of the re-entry satellite launch was like a blow to the head, hitting Zhang Aiping, a veteran veteran, hard at the heart. As a first-hand witness of the cause of science, technology and industry for national defense, he knows all too well the importance of this cutting-edge weapon to national security. Once it falls behind, the sovereignty and territory of the country will be in jeopardy.
Just when Zhang Aiping was angry, Ye Jianying came uninvited, and actually came to tell him about this embarrassing accident. Hearing the details, Zhang Aiping's anger was even more raging - it turned out that this major failure was caused by an incredible process omission!
"So sloppy! My decades of hard work have been trampled on like this? Zhang Aiping was indignant and slammed the table, shaking the cups and plates. As a meritorious veteran who created the national defense science and industry system with his own hands, he cherishes this cause so much! He couldn't tolerate such a low-level mistake now.
In the face of Zhang Aiping's angry rebuke, Ye Jianying did not return the word, but just looked at this former comrade-in-arms silently. In fact, he had long expected Zhang Aiping to react like this - decades of life and death friendship, he knew too well the temper of this simple, loyal, frank and enthusiastic veteran.
"You and I were born in the same year and month, and we have also been to the national disaster together. Now that the motherland's heavy weapons are in a desperate situation again, as an old decay, what qualifications do you have to stand idly by? Ye Jian said earnestly in English, "I have begun to report this accident to the prime minister, and ask for approval to allow you to intervene in the handling!" ＂
Hearing this, Zhang Aiping's anger was immediately swept away, and it was replaced by infinite enthusiasm and sincerity for the motherland and the people. He immediately got up and proudly agreed: "Good! Just let me serve my country again! I am willing to cast heavy weapons for the country and promote my Chinese majesty! ＂
Things are like this in Zhang Aiping's heroic and dry words, and the clouds are open, and they are bright and clear. Recalling the years of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, he was not afraid of danger many times and regarded death as if he were at home; After the founding of the People's Republic of China, why didn't he charge ahead and slack off all night? Now that the heavy weapons are blocked and the country's fortunes are in danger, how can he escape alone and ignore them?
Yes, Zhang Aiping is in her prime, and her disabled leg disease is even more perennial. But as a communist and a glorious soldier of the people's army, he is not qualified to stand idly by at a critical moment. As long as there is a mouthful of blood burning, he will not be able to let the heavy weapons of the motherland die and break!
From this moment on, Zhang Aiping once again shouldered the burden of the country's heavy weapon. The pure heart, which burned with patriotic fervor, turned into a storm-like force, which dragged the dying old man back and rejoined the tide of the fiery cause of national defense science and industry.
Fourth, the important weapon of revitalizing the country
In this way, Zhang Aiping once again stepped forward and shouldered the burden of the motherland again. A veteran who is almost old and has long planned to live in seclusion has such a pride and ambition to overcome obstacles again and put down this rolling fire.
Zhang Aiping first commanded on the spot at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Base to comprehensively investigate the root cause of the failure of the retrieval satellite launch. After a painstaking analysis, he quickly identified the serious process omissions and quality defects that existed at the time.
Next, he quickly set up a team of elite experts and began to reform the detection system of aerospace equipment from the source. This team was personally selected by Zhang Aiping, bringing together top talents from all over the country, with excellent professional quality and rigorous and pragmatic style, without exception.
With his foresight and shrewd decision-making, the inspection system was completely reshaped and optimized. From R&D to testing to transportation and launch, strict operating specifications and quality standards have been formulated for each process, and layers of gatekeeping mechanisms have been set up to ensure that nothing goes wrong.
At the same time, Zhang Aiping also carried out a comprehensive and deepening ideological transformation of the entire aerospace talent team. He set an example, took the lead in investigating the subjective dogma and bureaucratic style that existed in research and development, vigorously grasped ideological and political construction, and tried to eliminate all unhealthy tendencies of sticking to the old ways and perfunctory responsibilities.
Under his influence and inspiration, the political consciousness and work enthusiasm of aerospace talents have been unprecedentedly high. The strong revolutionary will and the spirit of arduous struggle have been completely reshaped, and all the staff members are sincerely eager to contribute to the country's aerospace industry.
In line with this, a large number of advanced scientific research concepts and technical means were introduced into China at that time. Including strict quality management system, fine process control and various testing methods and so on. Zhang Aiping even stepped forward and personally organized and arranged practical drills many times to ensure that various new norms and new concepts could take root.
After two years of hard work, Zhang Aiping finally turned the situation around. On July 29, 1976, the mainland's second returnable satellite was successfully launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, and it landed safely as planned a few days later. This marks the return of the once low point of the aerospace program, which was once at a low point.
For Zhang Aiping, who was already in her prime, this gratifying achievement was undoubtedly a great encouragement. From standing up, to doing it himself, to reviving and declining, he used his lifelong energy and determination to open up a new road for the national aerospace industry.
Fifth, the veteran is still ambitious
The successful launch of the re-entry satellite marked the completion of a huge project in Zhang Aiping's twilight years. This major achievement not only won him high praise from the party and the people, but also rekindled his enthusiasm for serving the country.
In the following years, despite her advanced age, Zhang Aiping still fought bravely at the forefront of national defense science and industry. He has participated in the development of a series of cutting-edge weapons and equipment, such as Tianma, Long March series carrier rockets, and Dongfanghong communication satellites. Not only that, he also gradually popularized the concept of strict management mechanism and quality control that he had explored in the aerospace field, and made outstanding contributions to the modernization of national defense.
However, the year of the Lord's Glory is approaching. By the early 80s of the last century, Zhang Aiping was already in her nineties. Although he had more than enough heart but not enough strength, he still worked diligently, and whenever he had free time, he would visit major military factories and mines to understand the progress of the country's important weapons and check the pulse of people of insight.
In March 1983, Zhang Aiping stood up for the last time and attended the 12th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. As one of the very few proletarian revolutionaries of the older generation, he delivered an enthusiastic speech at the meeting, raising his arms and calling on the motherland's aerospace industry to unswervingly seize the day and strive for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
"Even though I am 7 out of 90 this year, my love for great things will never be extinguished! Zhang Aiping's voice was sonorous and powerful, "As long as I practice it, I will definitely rush to help the army of the motherland's construction and contribute my modest strength to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation!" ＂
This is Zhang Aiping's last appearance in public. In the years that followed, his health deteriorated and he was hospitalized several times. However, he has never given up paying attention to national affairs, and has always done everything possible to inquire about the trends related to aerospace and national defense modernization.
It was not until July 16, 1986 that Zhang Aiping, a national hero, passed away forever. Behind him, there are magnificent fruits: China successfully launched the first test satellite in far-earth orbit; The first navigation satellite has also kicked off; Together with the returnable satellites of that year, the continent's space undertaking has made one brilliant achievement after another...... And all this is the result of Zhang Aiping and her colleagues' diligent pursuit and unswerving.
Yes, it is only by relying on their unquenchable ideals and beliefs and their unquenchable loyalty to the party, the country, and the people that the proletarian revolutionaries of the older generation who have made outstanding contributions to the motherland and given wings to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. They used their lives to interpret what it means to be 'ambitious to sacrifice and dare to teach the sun and the moon to change the sky'!