Chapter 5: Forced Landing

The EP-3 electronic reconnaissance aircraft has a normal layout, a cantilevered lower wing, and a traditional aluminum alloy structure. It is powered by four Allison T56-A-14 turboprop engines, each with a power of 3,661 kilowatts, each driving a 54H60-77 four-blade constant-speed propeller. Because the engine power is sufficient, just like the bombers of the World War II era, one engine is often shut down when performing many tasks, which can save fuel and extend the time in the air. If the aircraft weight, weather, etc. are suitable, even both external engines will be shut down.

Generally speaking, if the engine is shut down, the left outer engine No. 1 is selected, because it is the only one of the four engines of the P-3 that does not have a generator and does not need to generate electricity for the electronic instruments on board. Since there is no exhaust after the engine is shut down, the EP-3 has added an observation window on the port side of the aircraft.

Now, the observer on the EP-3 saw a thrilling scene. The enemy fighter plane actually cut off a piece of his own wing!

If only the engine was damaged, the aircraft could still be controlled and continue to fly after the No. 1 engine was shut down. However, now that a piece of the wing was cut off, the situation was completely different!

The left wing provided insufficient lift, causing it to fall downward, while the right wing provided too much lift, causing it to rise. In an instant, the huge EP-3 fuselage showed an obvious side turn.

The pilot was quick-witted and pressed the control panel hard to the right to right the plane. At this time, the plane's altitude began to drop rapidly, with a high-frequency sound cutting through the air, which made everyone in the cabin feel terrified.

Is the plane going to crash?

"Hold on, hold on!" Ashus shouted loudly. Although he was the executive officer of this mission, he was not the pilot. Faced with the sudden collision of the plane, he had no other choice but to shout.

The pilot tried hard to steady the control panel, but the EP-3 was still descending. If it continued like this, they would all fall into the sea!

"Comeon, baby!" the pilot shouted while pulling the control panel back hard. Finally, at an altitude of two thousand meters, the plane leveled off.

"Return, we return immediately!" shouted Ashus. From the cockpit on this side, he could see the MiG-25 flying majestically in front of him. The red five-pointed star on the vertical tail was so eye-catching.

"No, our plane was hit and is seriously damaged. We have no choice but to make an emergency landing. We can't continue flying thousands of kilometers to return home!" the pilot shouted.

A part of the left wing had fallen off. Although the plane was holding on, it would not be able to fly for much longer. The pilot could even imagine that as long as he made a large angle turn, the plane would definitely lose balance and fall!

The only option is to make an emergency landing!

But where can we make an emergency landing? This plane is not a seaplane! We can only choose to make an emergency landing on land! And the land nearby belongs to the Soviets!

"No, we must fly back!" Asus returned to his previous stubbornness.

Just at this moment, a side wind blew, and suddenly, the whole plane began to shake violently again, and everyone in the cabin exclaimed.

When Asus was shaking just now, his body fell on the seat, his face turned pale. If he was forced to go back, he would crash mid-air. There was no other choice but to make an emergency landing!

Where should we make an emergency landing? There seems to be a Soviet military airport nearby, so we need to at least get to land first!

Sitting in the cabin of the MiG-25, looking out through the narrow field of vision, Belenko was speechless. Andrei's action just now was definitely intentional! It was really crazy that he actually collided with the other party on his own initiative. However, the effect was quite good!

"Sokolovka, Sokolovka, 032 calling, 032 collided with the interception target, the interception target lost its ability to fly and is falling into our airspace." Andrei called the base on the radio: "Repeat, the interception target lost its ability to fly and is falling into our airspace."

There was an anti-aircraft missile position ahead, and Andre was very worried that the American electronic reconnaissance plane would be shot down by an anti-aircraft missile, and all his hard work would be in vain.

"Continue monitoring, 032, report damage to the aircraft." A voice from the ground came through the headset.

"My plane is normal and can continue to fly. The target has lost an engine and a wing." Andre reported on the radio: "It is estimated to make an emergency landing at our base."

Belenko was also flying a MiG-25 fighter, following behind the American electronic reconnaissance plane, closely monitoring the other party's flight. From his side, he could see more clearly that the other party was flying crookedly and seemed to be about to crash at any time.

Inside the EP-3 electronic reconnaissance plane, the Americans were still worried about their lives. They had already entered Soviet airspace. Would the Soviets shoot them down? You know, the Soviets had a very high sense of sovereignty. They dared to shoot down even a lost civilian airliner, not to mention their real electronic reconnaissance plane.

And what would be the consequences? Would it lead to a world war?

They had already flown above the land and could see dense forests and villages in the distance. Their altitude had dropped to one thousand meters!

Where can we land? The navigation equipment in the plane has been damaged, and now we can only rely on visual detection to find the target.

"In front, there is an airport in front!" Asus saw a straight runway in the distance and shouted to the pilot.

There was indeed an airport ahead! The pilot operated the plane and flew over shakily. He knew that he only had this one chance! If he missed it, it would be almost impossible to take off again.

Land! The pilot pulled the control panel, trying to descend along the standard glide path. Unfortunately, as soon as he moved, the plane was on the verge of losing control again, falling down like a big rock.

There were screams in the cabin, and some people started making the sign of the cross on their chests with their eyes closed.

Only the pilot is still trying hard.

The wheels had been lowered, and the main landing gear had already made contact with the ground even though the plane was not aimed at the runway. The left one touched the ground first, then bounced back, touched the ground again, and slid for dozens of meters before going down the runway and sliding onto the grass next to it. The pilot pushed the rudders with both feet. In standard operation, the two rudders had become the brakes of the wheels. The fuselage continued to rush forward, and finally stopped almost before rushing into the woods next to it.

This was a landing I will never forget!

"Stop, get off the plane!" said the pilot, unbuckled his seat belt, and ran to the cabin at the back.

"No, hurry up and destroy the electronic equipment on the plane!" After escaping death, Asus still remembered his responsibilities.

There are too many secrets on this plane. This is the most advanced electronic technology in the United States! Now that it has fallen into the hands of the Soviets, the Soviets will definitely dismantle the plane for research.

Nothing should be left for the Soviets!

Unfortunately, just as Asius finished speaking, the Soviets shouted outside: "Put down your weapons immediately and get out of the plane!"