“The Aircraft is in Good Order and Safe to Fly”

"Tower No.1， PA01 has moved into position and requests clearance for take-off."

"Cleared  for take-off."

"Roger."

It's a stunning sight to see pilots with the Police Aviation Unit of the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau maneuvering their helicopters across the Beijing skyline. But though much of the spotlight falls on master pilots in crisp uniforms， behind the scenes are teams of conscientious ground crews working quietly to provide a safety net for each operation. This is how the BPAU safeguards the city.

On a sunny day this late autumn， the Beijing Police Aviation Unit prepares for its aerial patrol above Beijing's northern suburbs. On the parking apron three police helicopters are on standby， and bustling inside and outside the hangar are Aircraft Maintenance Detachment officers applying the crucial final touches in preparation for take-off.

There are 31 officers in the Aircraft Maintenance Detachment of the BPAU， performing routine maintenance， regular overhaul， troubleshooting， parts replacement for all the police helicopters in the unit's service， alongside other tasks such as processing and translating correspondence and maintenance manuals.

The detachment is acknowledged as the most dedicated division in the Beijing Police Aviation Unit. Driven by a sense of meticulous craftsmanship， the detachment's members always aim for "zero error" operations and keep forever in mind their obligation to protect both the helicopters and pilots.

Officers of the BPAU have delivered top rate performances in an array of major security and maintenance missions since the unit's inception. By 2022， the team had flown service missions for a combined 15，000 accident-free hours， with an average of 1，500 flight hours annually in 2018 and 2019， the highest of all its peers nationwide. The BPAU has also dispatched officers to other provinces many times to assist local police with their aviation improvements. Moreover， the unit's self-trained translators have acquired a good knowledge of aviation English used to identify sophisticated fuselage-borne equipment and carry out aircraft flights， maintenance and rescue missions. Due to their stellar performance in processing English technical reports and translating various manuals and technical emails， they have won wide recognition from the Ministry of Public Security and other police aviation departments.

Preparing a helicopter for take-off is a complex and technical procedure， but Chen Faguo and his colleagues always appear competent and composed around their "beloved kids"： removing the inlet cover and airspeed sleeve， checking the voltage and fuel level， testing the machine performance， opening the main firing…before finally filling out the take-off clearance slip.

"Yes， the helicopters are just like our children. If we take good care of them， they will look after us in return，"Chen says with a shy smile.

Officers of the detachment mainly come from two sources： aviation college graduates and demobilized air force veterans. Chen Faguo， 57， was transferred here after his air force service in 2006. Before that， Chen had spent 24 years servicing fighters， air freighters， and helicopters as an engineer of avionics systems and a chief technician. "I was with the detachment from the very beginning when it had only six officers and four helicopters. Time does fly. Just like that， I've been working around aircrafts for 40 years，" Chen reminisces.

"In the face of ever-changing aeronautic technologies， we as aircraft maintenance officers must embrace lifelong learning for new concepts and technologies，" says Chen. He has practiced what he preaches： he learned Russian and English on his own during his military service and passed the mid-level technical qualification test at a young age. Though he is now 57， he still keeps the habit of memorizing a few new English words every day. Normally， a single helicopter comes with five or six thick flight instruction manuals， all in foreign languages， but Chen has memorized them all. In his spare time he flips through work journals he updates every day; he has accumulated nearly 20 volumes over years， all safely stored on his bookcase.

Chen enjoys hanging out with his younger colleagues—playing basketball， chatting， and discussing technical skills—as he hopes to pass on to them valuable wisdom from his years of experience. The young officers look up to Chen as a genuine craftsman who has dedicated half of his life to aircraft; likewise， Chen enjoys his young colleagues for their inquisitive minds， which， in his words， represent hope for the future.

Xue Hongli is Chen's apprentice， handpicked by Chen from the Aircraft Power Engineering Department of Civil Aviation Flight College of China. Xue， in his early 30s， is a competent and down-to-earth young man according to Chen. As any aircraft workers knows， once a helicopter is out of the hangar， whether it's taxiing， taking-off or landing， the maintenance detachment will be monitoring. That's why maintenance officers are always the first to arrive at the hangar and the last to leave. Xue started work as a maintenance officer in 2014 and has now become chief mechanic of the sole upgraded 109SP helicopter in the unit. When asked about his changed professional role， Xue gets a little emotional： "Bent on manufacturing aircraft years ago， I ended up as a technician servicing them instead. There is a saying in our detachment， which describes our responsibilities as protecting both the helicopters and the pilots. I think it's a strong statement in support of my belief that aircraft manufacturing and maintenance are equally important."