NOVEL NEXT Chapter 52 Self-Driving Aircraft, Playing A VR Game
52 Self-Driving Aircraft, Playing A VR Game
The day has been a long and fruitful one for Silas. From him signing the building's papers with Mr Rendall to getting the Gear and Pod.
"Nothing more to accomplish today. I better start preparing myself for tomorrow's meeting," Silas said to himself, as he looked around his room.
"System?"
[Yes, host.]
"Where's location of the private jet?"
[Oakland International Airport.]
"Ok, thank you, system."
"LUNAR, you there?"
{Yes, sir.}
"Can you contact Oakland international Airport and let them know that we will be using one of their runways tomorrow, and let them give us the necessary clearances," Silas said.
He doesn't want a situation where he would get to the airport tomorrow and he will experience some delay due to 'lack of clearance' or 'need to go through the necessary protocols.'
{Ok, I will do that.}
"LUNAR, what's the closest city to the island?"
{Caracas, the capital of Venezuela.}
"It should be an hour flight from Oakland to Caracas," Silas said to himself.
{Wrong. The flight time between Oakland and Caracas is 8 hours, 18 minutes,} LUNAR said, correcting Silas.
"Eh?.. I thought it was an hour flight time?," Silas said to himself dumbfoundedly.
{No, it's not.}
"I see. I wonder how I made such a mistake?," Silas said and scratched his head in embarrassment.
While thinking of the flight time between Oakland and Caracas, and how long it will take him to drive to Oakland from Newport, Silas discovered another issue, he didn't have much time.
If he decides to leave tomorrow, there's no way he would be able to meet up as the meeting is scheduled to be held at the island, 12PM tomorrow.
Without considering the distance from Caracas to the island, just the time it will take for him to drive to Oakland and the flight time is more than enough for him to miss the meeting.
"LUNAR, I want the clearance today and also make the arrangements for when I get to Venezuela. A hotel room and a car that will be used for transportation," Silas said, as he immediately made the necessary changes to his plans.
{Already on it.}
"Good, I will be on my way to the airport now. I want them to give the clearance fast. Driving to Oakland will take 7 hours and I want the clearance ready by then. Got it?"
{Yes.}
"Good, time to leave," Silas said and took one of the cars' key fob, and the Gear before leaving his room.
When he got downstairs, he shouted to Serah and Emma, to inform them that he won't be around for a while before walking towards the garage.
Inside the garage, Silas got into the Corvette and drove off.
The drive to the airport was long and tedious as always, something that Silas is getting bored and tired of.
'Every time, it's a seven hours drive. Tsk.'
…..
By the time Silas got to the airport, the sky had already darkened and the airport lights were on, lighting up the night sky and bringing with it a beautiful view.
LUNAR, as expected, had already gotten the clearance for him.
Immediately after Silas parked the car and came down, a man walked up to him and greeted him.
"You must be Mr Silas? I'm Henry, the hangar manager for your private jet," The man said as he stretched his hand to Silas for a shake.
"Hi, Mr Henry," Silas said in surprise as he shook Mr Henry's hand.
In fact, there was no need for the man to introduce himself as all his information had already been displayed by LUNAR, on the Gear he wore.
Before, Silas uses his phone to chat with LUNAR but he found the Gear to be more convenient, as he can directly see the visual of what he wants, and he can hear LUNAR's voice directly in his head and he can also talk in his head, just like the system.
"Mr Silas, when I got the information that you were asking for clearance, I assisted in expediting the process and came to meet you out here," Mr Henry said with a smile.
"I see. Thank you for your help, Mr Henry," Silas said, and started walking towards the airport entrance.
"Mr Henry, is everything ready for us to take off?," Silas inquired.
"Yes, everything is ready. We were just waiting for you and the pilot," Mr Henry replied.
Silas' steps paused when he heard this.
"Pilot?," He asked with a strange expression on his face.
"Yes, you and the pilot. I have been waiting for a while, but I haven't seen the pilot and the plane is still in the hangar. I thought he was on the way with you," Mr Henry said.
'What the hell?!.... There's no pilot for the plane. Why didn't I think of this?'
'How does the system expect me to fly a plane? It's not like it gave me a skill related to piloting aircrafts.'
Silas felt so stupid on the spot. This was something he should have considered and made an arrangement for, but because he was in a hurry and the rush of excitement he felt from purchasing the Gear and Pod, made it to completely slip his mind.
"System, do you want me to operate the aircraft by myself and I don't remember seeing or getting any pilot related from the store?," Silas asked the system internally.
[You might not really need a pilot for the aircraft, host. Why don't you ask LUNAR to do a scan of it for you?]
'Eh? It doesn't need a pilot?'
Silas was surprised by this. It's a very novel thing for him as he has never heard of an aircraft not needing a pilot to operate it.
Well, he has heard of it but it's still something fictional.
Silas' body shook lightly in excitement when an unbelievable thought came to his mind.
He started walking towards the hangar where the aircraft was parked.
"LUNAR, you there?," Silas called LUNAR inwardly.
{Yes, master.}
"Can you try to scan the aircraft?"
{The scan has been done and I have the information ready.}
"You have the information? Why didn't you tell me anything?," Silas asked, surprised.
{I'm sorry, master. I thought you already knew.}
"Don't worry about it. It's fine. So, what's about the aircraft?"
{It's a fully automated self-driving aircraft,} LUNAR said, informing Silas of her findings.
'A what?!...'
'Haa… I'm loving you more, system.'
{Should I give it instructions to get to the runway and prepare for takeoff,} LUNAR asked.
"Yes. Please do that, LUNAR."
{Done.}
"Thank you, LUNAR."
Silas turned and looked at Mr Henry who was still following behind him.
"Mr Henry, you don't need to worry about the pilot," Silas said to him.
"Ok. Let me escort you to the runway," Mr Henry said offering his assistance.
"Sure, thank you," Silas said, allowing Mr Henry to escort him to where the aircraft was waiting on the runway.
When Silas got to the runway, he was met a very beautiful matte black Gulfstream G650ER on the runway.
The dark streamline body of the aircraft with gold stripes, gave it a very alluring appearance and its beauty amplified by the fusion of night sky's darkness, and the beautiful lighting of the airport.
'Wow!'
Silas turned to look at Mr Henry and said, "Mr Henry, thank you for your assistance."
After that, he took off the Gear and walked towards the aircraft's door that was already open and waiting for him. When he got into the aircraft, its entry door opened automatically.
"Cool..."
Silas finally got the chance to look around the interior of the aircraft and he was completely blown away by what he saw. The whole interior gave off a vague futuristic sci-fi feel.
A soft ambient light gradually illuminates the spacious and impeccably designed cabin. The seating arrangement is normal with nothing out of the ordinary.
Silas walked towards one of the seats and sat down. He could feel the softness of the material used to make the seat and how it seamlessly integrates with the cabin's architecture, providing both comfort and aesthetic appeal.
'Perfection.'
Even though Silas hasn't found any difference between the interior of the aircraft and regular ones, Silas still felt awed by its beautiful interior.
Silas ran his finger along the body of cabin as he stood up and walked towards the cockpit area to see how that of a self-driving aircraft will look like.
When Silas got to the cockpit, the first thing that caught his attention was a large screen displaying the aircraft data.
The screen he saw was actually the cockpit windshield. If one looks at the windshield from outside, it would look like a normal dark windshield, but what Silas is seeing from inside is a large screen.
Silas was amazed by what he saw. Even though he was prepared, the system always manages to catch him off guard and surprise him.
With a smile on his face, he gave the flight command to the aircraft.
"Set a course for Caracas International Airport."
{Command Received.}
A robotic female voice was heard and the aircraft engine came to life.
Silas saw that more information was now being displayed on the massive screen, more were appearing and it was changing with every passing seconds.
'This is something to kill for!'