Chapter 93: Companies and Enterprises

  "Ladies and gentlemen, passengers, Xiamen Airlines flight XN0021 from Liuzhou Bailian Airport to Chengdu Shuangliu Airport has arrived at Gate 1. Please take your luggage and boarding passes and board the plane in an orderly manner. Ladies and gentlemen, passengers..."

  Liuzhou, as the largest industrial base in the autonomous region, is also the starting point of the aviation industry. After China Aviation Group rose to prominence in Liuzhou, it has become the largest aviation research and manufacturing base in the autonomous region. When China Aviation Group's civil transport aircraft was officially finalized, the Civil Aviation Administration had already passed its adaptation period and began to formally perform its functions, quickly approving the relevant procedures for Southwest Airlines and China Ping An Airlines.

  Two airlines are very lucky to have obtained many lucrative routes, including Liuzhou to Chengdu and Chongqing in Sichuan Province, Sanya and Haikou in Hainan Island, Guiyang, Zunyi and Liupanshui in Guizhou Province. Of course, the routes from Liuzhou to Nanning, Zhanjiang, Kunming, Qinzhou and Beihai operated by Ping An Airlines are also very good. The economic development of Guangxi Province has created a very good aviation market within the province. Since the two companies started operating formally, Ping An Airlines' business performance has been stronger than that of Xinan Airlines, mainly because the people of Guangxi have stronger economic power and naturally prefer to take faster flights. However, Xinan Airlines' Liuzhou-Chengdu route has also been booming since its launch, with five round-trip flights per day barely meeting demand.

  Of course, both companies are booming, but they cannot escape the fact that they need to buy planes for operation. The only passenger aircraft model C-01 launched by China Aviation Group can carry 28 passengers and 2 tons of cargo, with a range of 3,000 kilometers, which can almost fly directly from Liuzhou to Urumqi, Xinjiang, but in fact, the route from Liuzhou to Xi'an has not been opened yet. However, this aircraft has such excellent performance that it is priced at 1.05 million yuan, and to make passengers travel comfortably, nearly 10,000 yuan needs to be spent on hardware equipment, so each airline company needs to spend 1.058 million yuan per plane.

  Although both companies are fully state-owned, in fact they operate in the same way as Asia America Group, with a high degree of autonomy. In order to maximize the use of routes and gain more economic benefits, in addition to the 20 million yuan injected by the government, Xinhua Airlines also borrowed 32 million yuan from the Guangxi Autonomous Region Industrial and Commercial Bank, while China Ping An Company borrowed a total of 43.02 million yuan from the Construction Bank and Agricultural Bank, with each company owning 28 and 33 aircraft respectively.

  As the aviation industry develops steadily, major cities in various provinces of the autonomous region have also built civil airports. Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou are undoubtedly among the fastest followers. Of course, the largest airport in the autonomous region at present is Baiyun Airport in Liuzhou. Except for the test flight airport affiliated to China Aviation Group and the air force aviation training airport, it is the largest and only civil aviation airport. The airport is named "Baiyun" because of its location near the ancient human activity site of Baiyun Cave.

  Two 2000-meter-long and 45-meter-wide runways, more than 6,000 square meters of terminal building area, and a 300-meter-long and 110-meter-wide apron make up the world's first civil airport. Such a large-scale airport is naturally the main airport for the two major airlines, and it is also the autonomous region's first aviation hub. According to the designed annual passenger throughput of 800,000 people, during peak hours, it can handle 250 passengers per hour and 15 tons of cargo and mail.

  Since the two airlines officially started operating, Liuzhou Airport has quickly entered a hot state. As the political, economic and cultural center of Guangxi Autonomous Region, there are many passengers traveling to and from various provinces in Guangxi, especially business people. Currently, there are 608 registered companies with a certain scale in the autonomous region, and nearly 1874 private factories with good profitability, some of which have already done business in remote areas such as Xinjiang Kashi. With the People's Government starting to expand the light and heavy industry construction in Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces, attaching importance to the economic development guidance of Shaanxi, Gansu and Xinjiang provinces, the most intuitive manifestation after the integration of the entire autonomous region is that there are more people traveling to Guangxi.

  "Hey bro, is flying safe? I feel like being in the air is always less safe than running on the road..."

  When lining up to board the plane, many people who are flying for the first time ask this and that, especially on flights to Chengdu which are very frequent. Those who have taken the flight before ask even more questions, after all, it's not absolutely safe to fly over the 2,000-meter-high Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. Although the highway winds and turns, the road is solid and safe as long as you don't make big mistakes on the two-way four-lane provincial cement highway. Taking the train is the most reassuring way to travel through mountains and bridges, but planes are flying in the sky, with the lives of dozens of people entrusted to the two pilots, so it's natural for those who have never flown before to be worried.

  "I've already taken four round trips. Except for takeoff and landing, I'm still not used to it, but other times I just sleep through it, which is much faster than taking the train." After finishing speaking, a certain company's Sichuan regional manager, who was holding a briefcase, looked at his fellow traveler behind him and said with a smile: "You can rest assured, 80 yuan for the ticket, 3 yuan for accidental insurance, and 1 yuan for airport construction fees. We spent a total of 84 yuan on this trip that's less than four hours long. That's equivalent to a ordinary worker's monthly salary. Without sufficient safety guarantees, would an airline continue to operate?"

  "If it weren't for being in a hurry, I really wouldn't want to take a plane."

  The speaker is the boss of a food company, Sichuan is where his factory and main market are located. He came to Liuzhou specifically to purchase a new set of mechanical equipment and took a tour around, sugar industry development in Guangxi is very good, so he also took the opportunity to inspect it. However, when applying for a new branch in Chongqing, some problems were found by the provincial administration for market regulation department, so he can only rush back to Chengdu headquarters to handle it, at least thirty hours of train ride is definitely not possible, so he can only rush back by plane.

  "If you're not willing to sit, then the thirty-odd hours of sleeper is safe, but who told you to rush? I'll go in first, if you don't want to do it, you can still get a refund now!"

  The manager finished speaking with a faint smile, handed over the ticket in his hand to the flight attendant for inspection, and after passing the check, he quickly entered the cabin to find a good seat. He couldn't stand the dizzy feeling when taking off, so he sat down and started greeting people around him. Doing business requires relationships from all aspects, it takes ten years to build a relationship that can be called "same boat", and it may take a hundred years to develop a relationship that can be called "same machine". Maybe on this flight, there will be business partners who can develop good cooperative relationships.

  "Conductor, can I still get a refund at this time? I..."

  "Sir, you really want to refund the ticket?"

  "Yes, oh no, I'm just a bit worried if this plane is really safe?"

  "Sir, you don't have to worry at all. Our flights are checked after every flight, and the crew... Of course, if you're concerned about aircraft safety, our company's jointly developed flying boat with Ping An Airlines will be put into use soon..."

  The already successful old boss always had a tight string in his heart, his chubby body was sturdy enough but his courage was not proportional to his weight, the richer he got the more afraid of death he became. The flight attendant just checked his ticket and he was already sweating profusely, it's really unknown what he would look like when the plane took off, but no matter what, even if he was scared to death, he still had to take this flight.

  "By the way, when will your company open a route to Lanzhou? If flying is really safe, I'll definitely be a frequent customer of yours!" The boss, who was already prepared to put his life on the line, had handed over his ticket to the flight attendant for inspection, showing his "determination". Of course, if it's really very safe, he would choose to fly first when traveling on business in the future. "And what about Xi'an? Shouldn't there be one already?"

  "Sir, the Civil Aviation Bureau has been verifying the air passenger routes between provincial capitals one by one. As for when we can launch air passenger services to Lanzhou in Gansu and Xi'an in Shaanxi, I'm afraid I cannot give you an accurate answer at present."

  The flight attendant smiled and handed back the checked ticket to the boss, smiling and saying: "Our company also has air freight business, convenient, fast and reasonably priced. I believe our company can have better cooperation with you, and wish you a pleasant journey..."

  For the newly established Xihang Airlines, as well as Ping An Airlines, it is naturally hoped that in the future, they can gather a large number of fixed passengers. At this time, both sides are doing their best to promote themselves and strive to make profits. On this flight, a batch of one and a half tons of medicine planned by the Ministry of Health to be sent to Tianshui People's Hospital in Gansu was transported, with thin profits, but Xihang Airlines still took it on.

  Of course, all passengers are unaware that Southwest Airlines and its competitor, China Eastern Airlines, do not have their own pilots. The entire flight crew on the planes operated by these companies are actually trained by the Air Force Aviation School. There is no reason to only transport people without cargo. After the establishment of the Air Force, it also worked hard to grow and seize every opportunity to develop, with two aviation training bases in Liuzhou and Yulin, which are crucial for the combat effectiveness of the Air Force. The number and quality of pilots are extremely important, so from the beginning of its founding, the Air Force selected pilots from a large number of soldiers with certain scientific and cultural knowledge to participate in training, from flying biplanes to single-wing all-metal trainers, and then to transport planes or fighter jets. Fighter pilot training takes longer to gain strength, but transport plane crews need continuous tempering opportunities.

  After the establishment of the two major civil aviation enterprises, the Sichuan Civil Aviation College, which was jointly invested and constructed by them, was still in its original state. As a result, they had ample opportunities to hone their skills, while also earning considerable revenue for the air force and receiving substantial subsidies for themselves. Of course, this good situation did not last long. Once the civil aviation college began to formally "mass-produce" professionals in fields such as pilots, flight attendants, and ground crew, the civil aviation industry would gradually shed its reliance on the air force. However, it was during the initial stages of these two major airlines that the air force provided significant support. In later years, the civil aviation industry remained a solid backing for the air force, and it can be said that many of the air force's honors were backed by the shadow of civil aviation enterprises.

  At 9:21, Xiamen Airlines Flight XN0021 took off on schedule and is expected to arrive in Chengdu at around 13:00. Three minutes later, China Eastern Airlines' direct flight ZP0018 to Kunming also took off smoothly. Five minutes after that, Ping An Airlines Flight ZP0025 from Sanya, Hainan Island landed safely. Fourteen minutes later, another Xiamen Airlines flight took off, but this one was bound for Kunming, not Chengdu. The busy airport welcomed a constant stream of arriving and departing flights, transporting batch after batch of passengers...

  The civil aviation industry in the autonomous region has entered a period of rapid development since its inception, which is naturally inseparable from the contribution of China Aviation Industry Group. However, when they changed their golden appearance and wanted to become a money tree, the division of AVIC occurred. This rumor had been circulating for a long time and went through several stages, including small talk, speculation, rumors, and wind whispers. Finally, it came true, and AVIC was finally divided into parts by the Ministry of Industry on November 5, 2021.

  First to be transformed is the strongest pillar enterprise of AVIC Group - AVIC Engine Company, whose "Independent Research" plan was approved by the Ministry of Industry. According to the plan, the company will focus on research and development in the future, with design and production as secondary goals. It aims to make breakthroughs in turbojet, turboprop, turboshaft, and other areas, while continuing to increase R&D efforts in traditional piston engines, providing the best piston engines for large aircraft.

  Secondly, the passive knife is the skeleton of China Aviation Group. As the sole monopolizer of autonomous region aviation industry, it was initially responsible for research, test flight and mass production of aircraft. It seemed to have formed an ultra-large-scale "absolute monopoly". In order to refine the environment of the aviation manufacturing industry and also for the healthy development of the aviation industry, China Aviation Group will be divided into three major groups, just like the original China Railway Construction Group.

  At the beginning, China Railway Construction Group was just a super-large group that only built railways for Guangxi Province. Due to its oversized scale, it was not convenient for management and lacked competitors to promote progress. As a result, it was split into three independent groups. The Ministry of Transportation let them bid on projects separately, and the capable ones got more work and rewards. During this period of benign competition, the three major railway construction groups made indelible contributions to the region's railway transportation industry. Therefore, the Ministry of Industry planned to follow the example of the Ministry of Transportation and divide China Aviation into smaller parts. However, the specific approach was different, as China Aviation's strength was not particularly strong at that time, and it could not afford to disrupt the existing production order, especially since the air force and two major civil aviation companies had placed a certain number of orders that still needed to be completed.

  Taking advantage of the autonomous region's vigorous development of Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces, the group will split into three according to plan. The Industrial Department will establish a new company based on AVIC's existing foundation, developing new aviation businesses in Sichuan and Guizhou. AVIC I will take Sichuan as its main base and Shaanxi as its second development location, focusing on large and medium-sized aircraft and military combat aircraft; while AVIC II will develop in Guizhou, with the province's relatively sparse population and remote location making it an ideal main development area, and Yunnan as its secondary development location. The group will focus more on research, production, and manufacturing of certain types of aircraft that require confidentiality, such as helicopters and fighter jets, with small aircraft being a key development target.

  The Third Group will naturally continue to stay in Guangxi Province, and scientific research is the primary goal of the group. Of course, developing commercial aircraft is also a daily task for the group. Important aviation projects must still be led by the group as the main research body within a certain period of time. The current production lines of China Aviation Group's C-01 "Blue Eagle" large aircraft and F-01 "Flying Eagle" fighter jet in Liuzhou will not undergo major personnel changes or system reforms, and will continue to focus on fulfilling their production orders. Only after the hardware construction of China Aviation First and Second Groups in Sichuan and Guizhou takes shape will there be personnel adjustments.

  The Ministry of Industry's intervention in China Aviation Group is not small, but the General Affairs Office's rectification efforts in the automotive industry are also not to be underestimated. As one of the three pillars supporting the development of the autonomous region, the absolutely monopolized automobile manufacturing industry has always been an important source of government revenue. Simply relying on fiscal tax revenue would definitely not be able to afford the expenses of universal compulsory education, numerous public construction projects, military development, and other expenditures. Relying on the huge profits from bilateral trade during the European war, the People's Autonomous Government can be said to have earned enough to cover ten years' worth of fiscal budget.

  The good times did not last long, and the People's Army expanded in scale, increased education and scientific research, just these two items made the "ten years" become "three years". As European countries entered the post-war economic reconstruction period, it caused some obstacles to the traditional high-value-added goods exports of the autonomous region. Relying solely on the US market was far from satisfying the appetite of the autonomous region, so foreign trade export performance had been shrinking all the time. Expanding domestic demand and actively building Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and vigorously supporting Xinjiang became the top priority of the People's Government.

  Within three years, if foreign trade exports continue to decline and the domestic market does not receive due development, the current prosperity of companies in the autonomous region will be hindered. The massive industrial manufacturing capacity will not be fully utilized, and the problem of overproduction will bring significant obstacles to the development of the autonomous region. At that time, provinces that have not yet been incorporated into the autonomous region's territory, with their vast market space, will inevitably become a piece of fat meat, without needing anyone to stir them up. The People's Autonomous Government will have to consider taking them down one by one. However, before that, the autonomous region does not need to expand outward, after all, places like Shaanxi, Gansu, and Xinjiang have not been fully utilized, and even provinces like Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan are not absolutely perfect.

  The decline in foreign trade exports is due to the fact that many private enterprises in the autonomous region have seen their export goods shrink in market space, resulting in a significant decline in profitability. France and Germany, among other belligerent countries, are facing large-scale post-war reconstruction, and former wealthy ladies and gentlemen have become people struggling to make ends meet. Those who were once well-off now have to work hard for a living, and fine candies, exquisite clothing, luxurious furniture, etc. have all become distant from their lives. The number of people with the ability to purchase has greatly decreased compared to before. The automobile manufacturing industry, which is the mainstay of the autonomous region, has also been severely affected, and the decline in the car market has been even more pronounced. However, fortunately, due to large-scale post-war reconstruction, the demand for trucks, bulldozers, excavators, etc. has begun to increase, becoming an important factor in maintaining the performance of the automobile manufacturing industry without being affected.

  The automotive industry was affected to some extent, and for the first time in nearly a decade since the development of the automotive manufacturing industry in the autonomous region, the delivery capacity of orders was saturated. The "high-load" work of the automotive industry for ten years also ushered in a rare opportunity for rest. Therefore, the General Affairs Court took advantage of this opportunity to take action against the absolute leader of the automotive manufacturing industry, the Asia-Mei Group. The organization is too large, and the personnel scale and production management are very complex. Such a cumbersome structure has begun to be unfavorable to the development of the world's top ten enterprises. For long-term development, the General Affairs Court, together with the Ministry of Industry, carried out major restructuring of the group.

  Yulin is the largest gathering place for autonomous region's power equipment manufacturing enterprises, China Aviation Power is located there, and Asia America Group's gasoline and diesel power, including China Heavy Industry Shipbuilding Group's diesel engines, gas turbines and other power equipment manufacturing also have a part there. So Asia America Group was first cut off its traditional strong project, like the aviation group, let the power-related companies truly independent, established China Automotive Power Co., Ltd., in the future it will independently carry out business expansion and power equipment research, order production, etc., becoming a government-owned but operationally autonomous special company.

  Asia-Mercator has three major automobile manufacturing bases in Liuzhou, with several production lines for the "Yazhi", "Huarui" and "Kechong" sedan series. After eight years of market adaptation and adjustment, the current mass-produced products include 1-ton and 3.5-ton light gasoline-powered trucks, 8-ton, 12-ton and 20-ton diesel-powered heavy trucks, as well as 60-ton and 120-ton tractor-trailer vehicles. Among them, the super-heavy truck used for transporting turbine wheels to the Hongshui River Cascade Hydropower Station can carry a weight of around 250 tons.

  Of course, there are also 150-ton mining trucks used for export and in major mining areas, as well as semi-trailer, fence, box, standard container, and port-specific transportation trucks, with a load capacity of 24 tons to 55 tons. If we add the production and manufacturing factories of various models of tractors, bulldozers, excavators, cranes, special transport vehicles, buses, medium-sized buses, luxury buses, etc., the group's technical staff alone has exceeded 200,000 people. In the United States, there is a manufacturing base and two assembly plants, and France and Germany also have assembly plants. Such a large group is really too big and has reached the point where it must be trimmed down.

  The giant of the AsiaMe Group will be trimmed to focus on the development, production and sales of cars and medium-sized best-selling trucks, whether it is for domestic sales or international trade, or for military cooperation.

  The name "AsiaMide" has become a well-known brand, and it would be unwise to abandon it easily and create another car brand. Therefore, after the split, many of them will still retain the AsiaMide title for a long time. The AsiaMide bus will focus on passenger vehicles, including buses, short- and medium-haul passenger vehicles, etc. The AsiaMide special vehicle will focus on engineering vehicles, special transport vehicles, such as dangerous goods transport vehicles, large cranes, etc. are their goals. While the AsiaMide heavy truck puts its emphasis on large transport trucks, dump trucks, large goods transport vehicles, etc., and the AsiaMide machinery equipment is dedicated to pure mechanical aspects.

  Each of the major companies that have spun off has a great deal of autonomy, and there are no longer any absolute obligations and responsibilities between them. After leaving the unified leadership, they can unfold competition and cooperation on an equal footing, allowing enterprises to independently develop markets, participate in competition, and win market share. To do this, they must use better products, better after-sales service, and better services as a spearhead, with scientific production management, streamlined and effective personnel mechanisms, and an enterprising spirit as a backing. In the fiercely competitive market economy environment, only by constantly striving for progress can we avoid falling behind, and only by continuously developing can enterprises remain invincible. This is the only way to truly enable China to have a large number of companies that benefit the people and are beneficial to the country, and to possess a strong economic foundation, which is inseparable from their continuous contributions.

  Not all large groups will face division and reorganization, some are even strongly supported to strengthen their monopoly position and functional execution capabilities. For example, the four construction groups of China's water conservancy and hydropower construction have shown excellent abilities in the Hongshui River cascade hydropower station plan, and the General Logistics Department has given them high recognition and expanded the scale of the four major construction groups to facilitate their future development in Sichuan, Guizhou and other provinces.

  The China National Petroleum Corporation has received a significant boost, with its subsidiary, the China Petroleum Exploration Company, receiving nearly 3 million yuan in special expansion funds to purchase more equipment and improve employee benefits. After completing their exploration tasks in Shaanxi, their next target is the harsh environments of Gansu and Xinjiang, where they will search for even larger oil fields. This task is extremely challenging, so it is necessary to enhance their ability to execute tasks and improve employee benefits. Of course, the China Petrochemical Corporation also has an exploration company under its umbrella, but their expertise differs from that of CNPC. After receiving the "reward", they will be heading to Sichuan and other places to conduct oil and gas field surveys.

  Of course, the two major groups have been strengthened to varying degrees. Oil, as the lifeblood of industry, is extremely important. With the expansion of autonomous region's industrial construction, the demand for oil has increased day by day. Although the two major groups have their own strengths in different industries, their focus is still the same, that is, to provide a steady supply of refined oil and chemical products to the autonomous region, regardless of whether the crude oil is imported or domestically extracted and refined. The importance of monopoly after joining forces is self-evident.

  Apart from this, the European war brought an unprecedented shipbuilding boom to the autonomous region. During this period, the thriving medium and heavy shipbuilding industry relied heavily on a steady stream of cargo ship orders. However, with the end of the war, the German Navy would no longer benefit the shipbuilding industry with its cunning unrestricted submarine warfare. The autonomous region's foreign trade exports also gradually declined. It was thought that the medium and heavy shipbuilding industry would enter a cold winter period, but the news of the People's Army developing its navy is undoubtedly the biggest positive factor.

  Even if there is a big difference between military and civilian ships, they will win another spring after their efforts. At this time, the "lollipop" of the General Office came, with policy preferences in many aspects, and the biggest encouragement was the 5 million yuan research incentive fund, which was used to reward individuals or teams that made outstanding contributions to the development of the shipbuilding industry. The policy preference is virtual, but the red ticket is real. The General Office attaches importance to the shipbuilding industry, representing the entire people's government, which is undoubtedly an extra sunshine encouragement before the arrival of spring for China State Shipbuilding Corporation, driving away the deadly cold air in winter.

  Indeed, the oldest enterprise in the autonomous region is AsiaMe Group, which has a lifespan of only 12 years. Compared to the eight-year-old autonomous region, both are very young. However, being young does not mean being inexperienced and unreliable; instead, it means having the advantage of being young and limitless, constantly growing and developing, and one day will show the world the power of Chinese enterprises.