Chapter 135: Foreign Reporters Go Wild With Interviews
The DC-8 airplane can carry nearly 300 passengers, the Boeing 707 airplane carries more than 200 passengers, the United States president’s special plane “Air Force One” was modified from a Boeing 707 airplane, and there is also the Soviet Union’s Tu-104 airplane, which can carry 100 passengers.
However, Zhou Wenhua decided that the passenger aircraft for the shipping route deployed in Shanghai would be the Douglas twin-engine piston “passenger aircraft” DC-3 airplane.
Its appearance changed the air transport industry in the 1930s and 1940s, and its lasting impact on the aviation industry and World War II made it one of the most important transport airplanes. It is a new type of passenger aircraft with a speed of nearly 160 miles per hour that can carry 21 passengers. The airplane has an airborne kitchen and cabin beds, bringing a revolutionary breakthrough to passenger transport commercial flights in the Republic of China era.
Because during this period, all passengers taking airplanes, if they wanted to eat, could only enjoy meals at hotels located at the midway airport stations, and if there were no airport stations with hotels and restaurants, there was no food at all, making dining very inconvenient.
The DC-3 was also the first commercial airplane in the United States that could make money by carrying passengers.
By 1938, the DC-3 not only became the main passenger transport aircraft for all major airline companies in the United States, but also became the passenger aircraft that airline companies around the world rushed to purchase in large quantities.
By the eve of World War II, almost all the aircraft models used by people traveling by airplane in countries around the world were DC-3 airplanes.
So it can be seen that the Douglas twin-engine piston “passenger aircraft” DC-3 airplane achieved commercial success in passenger transport.
And Zhou Wenhua also saw its commercial advantage, so during these few years of his secret trips abroad, he used technology and design drawings rewarded by the system to secretly research and develop and manufacture it.
Of course, the DC-3 airplanes he manufactured were all produced at his secret aircraft manufacturing factory overseas.
Moreover, he was the first in the United States and worldwide to register the trademark.
Compared to the United States’ Douglas Company, he manufactured it two years earlier, and carried out sales in a small range to European countries and the United States side.
After Zhou Wenhua determined the model of the passenger aircraft to be deployed in Shanghai,
he also had people immediately hold a grand press conference for comprehensive and enthusiastic promotion.
And he also fully transported the prototype aircraft to the Shanghai ‘Xili’ airport that he had previously asked someone to purchase and establish, and also held a prototype aircraft test flight performance press conference.
And to ignite heated discussion throughout the whole city, he would select 100 people from various classes who signed up from Shanghai to participate in the free test flight for live promotion at the news test flight press conference.
When Zhou Wenhua published photos of the DC-3 airplane prototype in the newspaper, and also attached news of a free ride test flight live broadcast for 100 people.
Suddenly, it once again ignited boiling heated discussion throughout Shanghai, including the Foreign Public Concession, and the capital Nanjing side.
“Have you heard? That Xili Company is making big moves again. They just announced two days ago that they would also establish a passenger transport airport and shipping route in Shanghai, and unexpectedly today they released news again, saying that tomorrow they will invite reporters from major newspaper offices to their new airport to interview the appearance of the new passenger aircraft, and they will even draw 100 lucky people for free ride test flights!”
“Hiss! I heard, but I don’t know if it’s real or fake? What is the background of this Xili Company! From Lunar New Year’s Eve to the third day of the first lunar month, they are still churning out so much big news? And each one is more explosive than the last? Just like the penicillin antibiotic they launched, it’s equally explosive!”
“These days those newspaper offices seem to have reported that this Xili Company was created by people from our domestic side! There are also foreigners holding shares behind it! It’s a joint venture company!”
“No wonder! So foreigners have invested in it! No wonder they are so capable, coming up with so many explosive new products. Now they’re even playing with passenger aircraft! But which domestic bosses cooperated with these foreigners? How many shares do they hold?”
“Who do you ask me, who do I ask? But according to the inside news revealed by those newspaper offices, most of the shares seem to belong to our domestic bosses! Only a very small portion belongs to the foreigners!”
“What? No way? Did you get it backwards? It should be the foreigners holding the majority shares, and our domestic bosses just small shareholders? They don’t have the foreigners’ science and technology and industrial capabilities!”
“Hey! I think you’ve all gotten off topic? Shouldn’t we be discussing now whether to go together tomorrow to attend Xili Company’s press conference, and see if there’s a chance to grab one of those lucky slots for free ride on the passenger aircraft for the test flight? I’ve never ridden an airplane in my life! I really want to try it! I wonder what it feels like!”
At the same time, all kinds of boiling remarks were emerging endlessly, with heated discussion.
Even quite a few people had already started preparing to grab the lucky slots for free airplane rides tomorrow.
And different from the boisterous discussions among people of various classes, the reporters from those newspaper offices worked through the night to continuously interview Xili Company’s new person in charge Ma Lijun, and also personally received them with airport staff.
And they were also the first to let them interview the flight attendants who had undergone strict training and were wearing the most fashionable flight attendant uniforms.
Suddenly, the enthusiasm and passion of all the reporters were ignited.
All reporters, including foreign reporters, were like they had been injected with chicken blood, continuously taking photos, preparing to publish in the newspaper for promotion, becoming front-page headline news.
