通用航空的中国制造在何方?

文/韦恩·曼斯菲尔德 （Wayne Mansfield）译/赵艺

在过去的四年里，我来中国大概有20次，并在郑州和武汉的航空展上进行了飞行表演。我认识了许多航空爱好者，并与他们成了好朋友。

Over the past 4 years, I’ve been to China around 20 times,and have now fl own in several air shows, in both Zhengzhou and Wuhan. I’ve met so many wonderful people interested in aviation and become good friends with many of them.

2015年，韦恩在哈尔滨表演空中海报

什么是通用航空？

在中国，人们对飞行的热情很高。虽然很多人十分熟悉平时乘坐的飞机，却从未近距离接触过任何一架小型飞机。美国人熟知的通用航空对中国人来说是一个相对较新的概念。通用航空包括除公共航空运输（大型客机）之外的所有民用航空活动。最近有一群中国的航空朋友来到美国。他们是一群有才华、热诚且非常幸运的年轻人，他们被一家中国的航空公司选为飞行员，并被派到美国来学习飞行，目标是成为完全成熟的机长，有能力驾驶一架负载数百人的客机。我来自一个有90年飞行经验的飞行员世家，这对我来说像是把顺序前后颠倒了。我想说:“嘿, 等一下,不是应该先学习飞行，获得商业飞行员的资格，然后再去航空公司找工作吗 ?”不，在中国不是这样。你展现出良好的资质，在学术上取得成绩，然后被雇用并被派去学习飞行。这有培训失败的风险，政府和航空公司虽然能根据你表现出的潜力和优秀的考试成绩来判断你能否成功，不过你是否真的适合飞行，还有待观察。一直让我困惑的是，中国似乎还没有一个通用航空文化系统能够普及人们对飞行的认知。在美国和欧洲，通用航空业培养了数代飞行员，并发展为强大的航空产业，从而进一步充实了更为复杂和用途广泛的航空运输系统。

What Is General Aviation?

Enthusiasm for flying runs high in China, where many people have never been near, nor have they seen, a small airplane.General aviation, as known in America is a relatively new concept.“GA” as we call it, includes all civilian fl ying except big airliners.This week I greeted a group of my aviation friends arriving into the USA from China.They’re a select group of talented, dedicated – and very fortunate -young people to be chosen and hired as airline pilots.Their new employer, a Chinese airline has sent them to the USA to learn to fl y with the goal of becoming fully fl edged Airline Captains; that is to say command a passenger jet full of hundreds of people.Because I come from a family of aviators stretching back 90 years to my grandfather this seems like putting the cart in front of the horse.I want to say…Hey wait a minute.Don’t you fi rst learn to fl y, get a commercial pilot’s rating, and then get a job? Nope.Not in China.You show good qualif i cations, make the grade academically, and then get hired and sent off to learn to fl y afterwards.You can of course fail the training, but the government and the airline feel pretty sure you’ll make it based on your demonstrated potential and academic test scores.It remains to be seen if you are actually suited to fly airplanes.What continues to puzzle me is that it would seem that China has not yet de-veloped a widespread General Aviation culture and system capable of teaching its own people to fl y.In America and Europe it has been General Aviation that trained generations of pilots and developed a renowned aviation industry, leading to the further development of a complex and functional air transportation system.

韦恩·曼斯菲尔德，波士顿大学理学学士，Clear Sky有限公司董事、总经理，Aviad公司总裁/首席执行官， FAA（美国联邦航空管理局）“飞行员大师奖”获得者，FAA航空安全“年度好友奖”获得者

我的这群中国的航空朋友来自北京，年轻的他们充满活力、希望和热情。如今亚洲的航空公司支付给符合资质的西方飞行员高达30万美元的年薪。虽然我的朋友们作为本国培养的飞行员，可能无法获得同样的薪酬，但毫无疑问他们的薪水仍然很高，而且能在同龄人中享有很高的自豪感和声望。

My young friends arrived from Beijing full of energy, hope,and enthusiasm; as well they should be, given that Asian airlines are now paying qualif i ed western airline pilots up to$300,000 USD per year.No doubt that they, as domestically sourced pilots, will be remunerated on a lower pay scale, but will still be very well paid and enjoy a high level of familial pride and prestige amongst their peers.

中国如何填补飞行员和机组人员缺口？

每天都有新闻报道亚洲的航空公司新购了飞机。这几天的新闻宣称，厦门航空将以超过30亿美元的价格购买30架新波音飞机。但这只说了事情的一半，驾驶这些新飞机的飞行员和机组人员的短缺是迫在眉睫的危机。事实上，航空公司和制造商声称预计约有80万名飞行员的短缺，这还不包括维修人员、空乘人员和机场运营支持人员。在未来的十至二十年里，预计有两三百万航空人才的短缺。与西方国家不同的是，中国没有普及的通用航空文化和历史来培养飞行员。在美国，机组人员短缺的情况也是大问题，美国的航空公司正在为此努力；而在欧洲，廉价航空公司的领头羊瑞安航空（Ryanair) 最近正在为恶劣的客户关系而头疼，原因就是由于机组人员短缺迫使他们取消了一个半月内的2000个航班，使得大量乘客滞留。

How to Fill the Pilot and Crew Shortages in China?

Every day, news articles announce new purchases of aircraft by Asian airlines.Today’s news boasted of a sale by Boeing to Xiamen Airlines of 30 new planes at a cost in excess of $3 billion USD. What’s left out seems to be the other half of this story - the looming crisis of pilot and crew shortages to operate these planes.In fact, the airlines and manufacturers are claiming a projected shortfall of around 800,000 pilots – plus maintenance staff, fl ight attendants, and airport operations support. In round numbers, let’s say 2 to 3 million in the next decade or two.Unlike the West, China has no underlying aviation culture, nor a history of General Aviation to feed the fl ow of new pilots.The aircrew situation is bad enough in the USA where airlines are struggling to fi ll crew slots; and in Europe a crew-scheduling problem forced low cost leader Ryanair to cancel scores of fl ights, leaving people stranded and creating a horrif i c customer relations headache for them.

中国应该如何填补飞行员和机组人员的缺口？尽管中国已经明确了发展通用航空业的目标，大多数飞行员学生被派往国外培训。亚利桑那州和佛罗里达州主要的几个飞行学校的中国学生约占80%。这表明，中国政府促进发展通用航空业的决心已经产生了积极的影响。很多机场已改建以供通用航空使用，新的通用航空机场建设计划比比皆是，一些具有前瞻性的城市越来越重视航空展的举办。但通用航空文化的发展仍有些拖延和欠缺。在美国，航空文化长期以来一直活跃于电影、电视、杂志等各种文化领域，尤其在美国本地的许多机场，很多年轻人从很小的年纪就开始实际接触相关工作。像我12岁开始就在机场帮忙，为私人飞机提供清洗和其他各种服务。中国把飞行员送到美国、澳大利亚和欧洲培训可能在短期内解决危机，但是如果能扩大自己的飞行学校，让飞行学校拥有标有中国名牌、中国制造的飞机机队,不是能更好地服务国家吗？这样有利于实现三个目标：培训必需的机组人员；在制造飞机的过程中通过手把手地演示和启发教导及培训飞机维修人员，可以节省大量时间和资金。

How is this pilot and crew gap to be filled in China? Despite the stated aim of developing General Aviation, China is still sending the vast majority of flight students abroad.The enrollment statistics at major fl ight schools in Arizona and Florida show around 80% Chinese students.It would seem that a great opportunity is being missed here.There’s no doubt that President XI’s commitment to promote GA is having a positive effect.Airports have been converted and revamped for GA use, new GA airport construction plans abound, and airshows feature prominently in progressive municipalities, but it seems that there have been some delays and a lack of underlying culture. This is a disadvantage compared to America where aviation has long been in every single thread of culture from movies, TV, magazines, and especially access to local airports where many a youngster like myself cut his teeth washing and servicing private planes.Sending crews to the USA, Australia and Europe may solve the crisis in the short term, but wouldn’t China be best served by a major expansion of fl ight schools with its own fl eet of airplanes – airplanes made in China and branded as Chinese? This would serve three purposes: train the necessary fl ight crews; train the maintenance support personnel through shadowing and mentoring during the manufacturing process, and save signif i cant time and money.

中国如何能培养自己的飞行员队伍？

在全国推行航空运输培训需要时间、资金和坚定的意愿——这个意愿是指认为这是一项有价值的努力。正在海外接受培训的飞行员，其中有一些将成为回国培训下一届学员的理想人选。在所有完成培训的飞行员中选出最优秀的人才，并让他们把技能传承下去，这就解决了谁来培训新学员的问题。西方国家一直是这样进行的，先学后教。 当然还需要很多硬件设施。制造新飞机的一个主要障碍是开发和获得政府许可的成本较高，这个许可被称为“TC”(型号合格证),是航空管理局允许诸如Piper（派珀）和Cessna（塞斯纳）等飞行器制造商制造飞机的许可文件。近年来开发和获取一个新的型号合格证并进入市场需要花费10年时间和约1亿美元的资金。这将是一个巨大的障碍。但即便如此，已有几个在美国和中国都获得了许可的“型号合格证”可供制造飞机。中国可以考虑购买知名的通用航空型飞机，用作培训飞行员和机务人员的培训机，这也许可以成为中国启动和加快发展通用航空业的一个催化剂。

How to train Chinese Pilots by China?

To move air transport training in country will require time, money and the will to do so – the perception that it is a worthwhile endeavour. As scores of pilots are being trained offshore currently, some of them will be the right fi t to return and begin the training for the next gaggle.That is a natural result of sending the best and brightest.Of those who make the grade, some should be selected to pass their skills on, and this will solve the issue of who will do the training.This is exactly how it works in the West; learn and then teach. Still you need the hardware and lots of it.A major barrier to manufacturing new airplanes has been the cost of developing or acquiring a government manufacturing approval known as a (TC) “Type Certif i cate.” This is the aviation authority document allowing manufacturers like Piper and Cessna to build airplanes.Recent entries into the market have expended up to 10 years and $100 million USD to develop new TC’s.This is a very signif i cant barrier to entry.That said there are a few TC”s available in the open marketplace to build planes that are valid in both the USA and China.Acquisition of a well known and proven GA type aircraft to be used as a training tool both for pilots and maintenance personnel might be the catalyst that China needs to get their own General Aviation activity jumpstarted.

韦恩4岁时第一次跟随父亲开飞机

韦恩的母亲是历史上第一位表演空中海报的女飞行员

中美之间最近发生的贸易战凸显了中国发展国内通用航空产业的必要性。中国为开发和设计新型飞机付出了很多努力。在缺乏建造飞机的经验之时就试图设计更好的飞机是有风险的。因此，中国航空管理局在认证任何新设计之前都非常谨慎。另一方面，收购经过认证的飞机TC将使中国能够利用其现有的相关技术人才，迅速开始建造轻型飞机。瑞士信贷集团发布的调查结果显示，现在的中国年轻人偏向购买中国制造的商品，那么在飞机的选择上，为什么不如此？

The recent possibility of a trade war between China and the USA underscores the need for China to develop a domestic GA Industry.Much effort has been expended in trying to develop newer styles and Chinese aircraft designs.This is problematic because there isn’t enough history to fully understand the perils of trying to make better planes, before building proven ones.The benchmarks for safety, and commercial success do not yet exist.Accordingly the Chinese Aviation Authority moves very cautiously before certifying any new design.On the other hand, the acquisition of a certified aircraft TC with a known history and performance stats would enable China to quickly begin constructing light aircraft and to employ its existing workforce in skills that they have demonstrated excellent aptitude for.It’s also noteworthy that Credit Suisse has published fi ndings to indicate that now young Chinese much prefer China produced goods, so why not airplanes?

中国可以通过收购通用航空飞机的型号合格证和相关资产，来加速这一进程。只有拥有中国制造的训练飞机，才能使中国在航空产业上获得它想要和应得的独立自主性。中国有能力生产小型飞机，训练自己的飞行员和机组人员，建造小型机场，也有能力发展支持通用航空系统的所有相关产业。我所在的Clear Sky有限公司非常乐意为中国同行引进小型飞机和航空培训提供相关资源。我们应该铭记,是通用航空产业培养了飞行员、机械师和机组人员，它就像拉动马车的那匹马，是它拉动了整个航空业飞速奔驰。

In order to accelerate this process, China could quickly acquire GA aircraft TC’s and assets.A fleet of Chinese built training planes would give China the independence in aviation it wants and deserves.China has the ability to manufacture small planes, train its own pilots and crews, develop its small airports, and all of the associated support industries necessary for a General Aviation system.My Clear Sky Ltd is willing to provide relative resources for China.It’s useful to remember that it has always been General Aviation that trained the pilots, mechanics and crews that feed the airline industry.It’s the horse that pulls the cart.