Chapter 29: 29, Hangar Interview
“Please sit here. In a moment, I will ask some questions. Feel free to speak freely and don’t be nervous.”
Under the host’s guidance, Fang Wen, Howard, the machine gunner, and Pan Jiafeng took their seats one after another on the wooden sofa chairs opposite the host.
Fang Wen was wearing the airline company’s uniform, Howard and the machine gunner had also changed into suits, and Pan Jiafeng was in a new-style student outfit.
In terms of temperament, all four were very pleasing to the eye.
But aside from Fang Wen, the other three were very nervous.
Having experienced the baptism of the internet and coming from an entertainment era where everyone can livestream, Fang Wen did not think this was a big deal.
But people of this era felt completely different when facing the camera and microphone compared to Fang Wen.
The already very introverted Howard kept his head down.
The machine gunner sat upright with his back straight, just like during the most grueling training.
Pan Jiafeng’s hands had nowhere to place, so he kept wiping them on his thighs; presumably, the sweat on his palms kept flowing.
The host glanced over but said nothing, proceeding according to plan starting with Fang Wen.
But before starting, he unexpectedly inserted an advertisement.
“Merlinton Radio Station serves the people of Shanghai. The radio station has now moved upstairs to the Ruifeng Building on Broadway Road. Broadcast times are 8 to 9 a.m., 12 to 1 p.m. noon, and 5 to 9 p.m. in the evening.”
“Zhengguanghe soda, Western formula, refreshing taste, drink it and you’ll want more.”
“Lianzhupai cigarettes, produced by Nanyang Brothers Company, advocating industry, aviation saves the nation starting with me.”
“Today, this radio station was invited to secretly go to Nanjing, and now we are interviewing several participants in yesterday’s Shanghai air combat. They are the heroic air pilot Fang Wen, crew member American Howard, aviation team machine gunner Xie Bengui, and SH Municipal Wusong Middle School student Pan Jiafeng.”
“It was they who, yesterday, piloted a military transport aircraft to carry out the feat of bombing Japanese Army warships, successfully sinking one Japanese Army warship, causing some Japanese side warships to withdraw from the Huangpu River, greatly reducing the pressure on the 19th Route Army’s defense.”
“Now let’s first interview the pilot.”
“Hello, Mr. Fang, can you talk about what happened yesterday?”
Fang Wen remembered what the military officer had told him earlier: specific fighter jet situations and airport situations could not be mentioned, but the process and cause could.
He knew how to answer and spoke out:
“Yesterday we carried out a secret action, departing at 5 a.m. to go to Shanghai to bomb enemy forces warships.”
“Why go at five o’clock?” The host was very professional, seizing the opportunity to ask.
“Because intelligence sent back from Shanghai indicated that the Japanese Army would not dispatch the first batch of fighter jets for patrol until after 8 a.m. at the earliest. We departed at five, arriving in Shanghai before 6:30. Even if they discovered us, there would be a time difference to carry out the mission.”
The host nodded: “I see. Although I don’t understand much, it sounds very professional. Please continue.”
“Later we arrived in Shanghai and, according to plan, carried out a diversionary action. Five airplanes attacked Japanese side ground troops to attract the incoming enemy aircraft, while the transport aircraft I piloted went to bomb over the Huangpu River under the cover of two other fighter jets.”
“I heard you have great talent in flight piloting and air bombing, but how did you ensure a direct hit on the enemy warship when dropping bombs from 5000 meters altitude?”
“Can’t guarantee it. Probability-wise, my success rate was only fifty percent. It was raining and there was sea wind at the time, so there was also an element of luck.”
Fang Wen had just finished speaking.
The military officer stepped in to stop the interview.
“Stop recording first. Delete this segment and redo it. Fang Wen, you can’t say luck; use a confident tone. For example, ‘I firmly believed this bomb would hit the target, and for that I had done a lot of practice.'”
“Must I say it that way?” Fang Wen asked back.
“Yes, we need to shape an air hero. He can’t rely on luck but must possess skills and talent far superior to other pilots.”
“Alright.” Fang Wen agreed, but he lost interest in the subsequent interview.
He replied according to the military officer’s words. The host noticed something and soon ended the interview with him, turning to the other three.
For Howard, this kind of interview made him feel tremendous pressure, so much so that even answering in his native language was stammering.
The host had to cut this segment and add a supplementary recording: “Mr. Howard doesn’t understand Chinese and happens to have a sore throat, so he can’t be interviewed. I’ll briefly describe his situation. He is a mechanic for China Airlines and also Fang Wen’s friend. During the action, the two went together as companions; he is a good international friend. Now being interviewed is aviation team machine gunner Xie Bengui, the only military person among them. Let’s hear his evaluation of this action.”
The interview with Xie Bengui directly skipped his identity, clearly not wanting to mention Guangdong Air Force information in the interview.
Xie Bengui also knew this and cooperated by answering:
“Pilots are a special group. They need strong physique and endurance to cope with long-duration high-altitude flight piloting and various emergencies, while also mastering a lot of knowledge and having excellent psychological qualities. But these are all basic requirements for pilots. Some talents are possessed only by a few people. Like Fang Wen, he can complete independent night piloting based on familiar terrain without flying off course, and he can visually drop bombs to hit targets from high altitude—this is very rare. The reason our mission selected Fang Wen to participate was because of these talents of his.”
“Thank you for your professional answer. Now the last interviewee, the eighteen-year-old Pan Jiafeng. As a student, how did you join the action?”
Pan Jiafeng, who had originally appeared very nervous, performed very well when it was his turn.
“I was originally at my uncle’s house. That day, my uncle received a telephone call from eldest brother Fang Wen, requesting him to print a batch of leaflets, saying they would be dropped over Shanghai at night. I happened to overhear that the airplane was short one person to distribute leaflets, so I begged to get on the airplane.”
“You just got on the airplane like that? You sure have guts.”
“Yeah, at school I’m very good at sports and have great strength, which is just right for this job.”
“Mm, so you participated in the Shanghai Night Flight the night before last and the air combat yesterday. Such experiences are impossible for your peers. Will you become a pilot in the future too?”
“Of course I want to. I even want to apprentice under big brother Fang; learning flight from him would be great.”
“That could work. I look forward to riding on an airplane you pilot someday. Alright, the interview ends here. I hope the next interview will be held in Shanghai.”
Merlinton Radio Station’s recording interview was completed, and the group rode a military vehicle away from the airport.
The next day, Merlinton Radio Station broadcast this interview recording.
Radio waves spread across various districts of Shanghai.
In the alleys, households with radios proactively placed them on the balconies so neighbors in the corridors could listen together.
In the concession’s small Western-style buildings and trading firms, all sorts of people also gathered in front of radios, discussing.
Subsequently, various newspapers also published their special articles.
Through these recordings and texts, Shanghai residents learned more clearly about what happened on the day of the air combat.
This propaganda also greatly boosted the morale of the War of Resistance soldiers.
For this air combat, the Japanese side also took corresponding measures.
The warships on the Huangpu River no longer massed on the river surface; instead, two were sent out each day to maintain artillery fire suppression on Zhabei District.
At the same time, carrier-based fighter jet patrol frequency in the air increased, starting from 5 or 6 a.m. with small batches of fighter jets appearing, instead of 8 a.m.
