I can upgrade the shelter-Chapter 699 - 597: The Pilot’s Brief Respite

Behind the defense line, a helicopter is preparing to land on the landing platform of the Mobile Base.

"Quick, quick! Where's the stretcher? The wounded soldier has a torn chest injury, get him to the operating room immediately!" As the helicopter landed, the medical personnel, who had been ready for some time, rushed forward, pushed the stretcher to the cabin door, transferred the wounded soldier out, and quickly headed towards a nearby elevator to transport the wounded soldier to the operating room as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the helicopter on the landing platform shut down its engines, and with the assistance of the ground crew, the rotor blades were folded, and it was pushed into the hangar for replenishment and maintenance.

At the same time, another helicopter that had completed its preparation was pushed out. After the pilot completed the checks, it was granted permission from the tower and swiftly took off.

Wang Jiang carried his helmet, got off the aircraft, greeted his co-pilot, and then said to the ground crew nearby: "There was an unusual noise from the left intake when we returned. Something might have gotten in. Please check it out."

"Got it, when is your next flight?" The maintenance personnel noted Wang Jiang's words and asked casually.

If Wang Jiang's next flight was soon, maintenance would need to be arranged urgently, only performing some simple repairs to ensure the aircraft could continue flying.

But if the next flight had a more generous timeframe, then the ground crew could perform a comprehensive inspection on the aircraft, troubleshoot any issues, and replace some worn parts to improve the aircraft's condition.

"Old Li, when are we flying next?" Wang Jiang couldn't remember and asked the co-pilot beside him.

"Six hours later, so you still have time to grab some food and nap for a bit." The co-pilot, called Old Li, was also taking off his helmet at this moment, under the lights of the hangar, his face full of fatigue: "I'm quite tired, I'll catch a nap first, and then grab some food from the canteen to eat on the plane later when we depart."

"Alright, you go ahead and rest." Wang Jiang nodded at Old Li before turning to the ground crew: "Flying in six hours, so can it be done?"

"It's hard to say for sure. If it's just something in the intake, replacing the filter should be enough, it'd take about two hours to finish, but if there are other issues, the time required is uncertain." The ground crew shook their head, hesitant to make any promises, but still reassured Wang Jiang: "But don't worry, six hours later, the aircraft will surely be ready to fly."

"Alright, I'll leave it to you then!" Wang Jiang said and walked towards the nearby stairs.

There were elevators in the hangar leading to other deck levels, but currently, all the elevators were occupied transporting the wounded, and Wang Jiang had no reason to compete with them for elevator use, delaying their treatment time; taking the stairs wouldn't take more than a few minutes.

Descending the stairs within the Mobile Base, to the floor where the dining hall was located, Wang Jiang glanced at the other pilots eating in the canteen, then walked towards the serving window.

Since it was not meal time, those coming to eat were mostly pilots who had just returned.

"Chef, what's available to eat?" Wang Jiang inquired the chef behind the counter while also looking at the dishes laid in front of him.

"You're in luck today, there's still a serving of tomato scrambled eggs, do you want it? Both the tomatoes and eggs are fresh from today's shipment." The chef, seeing Wang Jiang still in his flight suit, smiled and introduced the options: "Additionally, there's stir-fried cabbage, protein meat, and roasted potatoes, what do you feel like eating?"

"Tomato scrambled eggs? Then I'll have a serving! Plus some protein meat and roasted potatoes, and a bit of the stir-fried cabbage." Hearing there were fresh tomato scrambled eggs, Wang Jiang couldn't help but feel excited.

Although pilots have always received the best treatment, even during war times they have the best resources guaranteed, under the overall material scarcity, even with the dual responsibilities of battlefield medical care and an airfield, resources at the Mobile Base are always secured, though supply shortages are unavoidable.

Even for pilots like Wang Jiang, it's not guaranteed they can eat fresh vegetables and eggs every day.

In fact, the supplies sent from the rear arrive once every three days, and they don't always include fresh vegetables and eggs; the fresh vegetables that arrive on a given day might only be eaten once every few days.

Yet, Wang Jiang didn't feel there was much to complain about; with supplies being tight, being able to eat enough was good enough.

He recalled his grandfather's era when during the war, having nothing but fried noodle powder in bomb shelters, sharing a single apple with the whole company; now they could sit comfortably in a dining hall, eating delicious meals without having to fight on an empty stomach, was already a big improvement.

Additionally, besides these dishes, the dining hall also offered bread, compressed biscuits, and emergency foods; though their taste might be a bit lacking, they ensured sufficient nutrition and energy.

This made Wang Jiang quite satisfied.

After finishing his meal, he also retrieved two loaves of bread and two packs of compressed biscuits from the dining hall chef, then returned to the cabin assigned to him and Old Li.

He placed the bread and compressed biscuits he brought back on the table, glanced at Old Li, who was already asleep, shook his head, took off his flight suit, and lay down on the bed.

However, he didn't sleep right away; instead, he took out a small notebook and pen, intending to write a diary.

Originally, Wang Jiang wasn't accustomed to writing a diary, but since the war began and he was transferred to the Mobile Base, witnessing many things that surpassed his understanding and imagination, he gradually felt the urge to write something down.

Especially watching the wounded being transported back daily for treatment from the front line, seeing comrades fighting valiantly, and lives slipping away one by one touched Wang Jiang deeply.

He recorded his daily observations and thoughts to prevent these emotions from weighing heavily inside and affecting his duties.

As he wrote, unconsciously, his small notebook was nearly filled.

"War, ah!" Wang Jiang sighed, finishing today's entry, putting away the small notebook, and closing his eyes to take a nap. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

As pilots, their tasks are intense, needing to shuttle between the front line daily, bringing severely injured soldiers back to the Mobile Base for treatment; their flight schedules are quite full.

If not for the need to factor in aircraft maintenance and pilots needing sufficient rest time, they wouldn't even have a six-hour interval between two flight missions.

So Wang Jiang now had to seize these six hours to rest well, recharging his energy and stamina to face the next mission.