Note: This article contains slight spoilers

From the perspective of subject matter, "King of the Sky" itself has distinct uniqueness. It is a rather rare air force theme work in the film market, especially because it focuses on test pilots, a relatively small group that is not well understood by the public. groups. The film has received strong support from the relevant departments of the Air Force. Therefore, the film has nothing to say about the "hardware". Many cutting-edge Chinese models, including the J-20, J-16, and J-10C, "participated" in the movie. . Also benefiting from the continuous improvement of the domestic film industry, a large number of aerial action scenes in the film are realistic and thrilling, and the visual effects are stunning.

"The King of Sky" poster

With strong hardware support, the story of "King of the Sky" is quite stable.

If one keyword is used to describe the job of a test pilot, it would be "difficult". Difficulties, first of all, are the difficulties in the general environment for the development of my country's aviation industry.

Recall that decades ago, when my country's aviation industry first started, all foreign experts were withdrawn overnight, and research and development fell into a "poor and blank" situation. Thanks to the hard work and painstaking efforts of generations of aviation personnel, my country's aviation industry has developed by leaps and bounds. But that doesn't mean external challenges don't exist anymore. Due to the fear and suppression of our country by external forces, a number of core technologies have been "blocked" from our country, and aviation personnel need to be self-reliant and self-improving. We must go to trial and error alone, have the courage to try and make mistakes, and find a breakthrough in various trial and error, so that a new type of aircraft can be successfully born and put into use. And every trial and error needs to be completed by manpower, which is the mission of the test pilot.

There are many real machines "acting" in the movie

The task of flight testing itself is even more difficult. Just imagine, in a real battle, any situation may happen, and the enemy may launch an attack at any time. Aviation R&D personnel must assume all kinds of worst-case scenarios if they want to ensure that front-line fighters can fight without worry. , and allow the aircraft to still function well in that situation. Therefore, the most important part of the flight test is to test the performance of the aircraft in extreme situations.

If you want to reach the limit, it means that you may be trapped in various extreme, dangerous, and extremely low-probability situations. Therefore, test pilots are "dancers on the tip of the knife". They should not be afraid of risks, but should take the initiative to meet and challenge risks. This brings a double test of physical and psychological.

Test pilots must dare to challenge the limit

Physiologically, test pilots must have super endurance and challenge their physical limits. For example, the "Red Vision" in the movie is impressive. The plane dived rapidly, and the inertia pushed the test pilot's blood from the whole body to the head. At this time, the pilot looked at the outside world as if wearing a pair of red glasses. Under the test of this kind of painful physiological limit, at the moment of life and death, it is difficult for the test pilot to make various operations accurately.

Psychologically speaking, flight testing is a job of dealing with danger. Once the flight test work starts, it means that the test pilots have risked their lives. They must pass the psychological level and be fearless. Another crucial part of the psychological test is the emotional choice.

The vast majority of ordinary people's expectations for life are to live peacefully and peacefully, to live in peace and happiness with their families. However, for test pilots, such a small fortune is also a bit of a luxury, because of the risk of test flight work. In the 74 years since the establishment of the Chinese Air Force, behind the test flights of more than 180 types and more than 22,000 domestically-made aircraft, there have been more than 500 major dangers and 32 test pilots sacrificed their lives.

Therefore, the parents of the young test pilot Lei Yu (played by Wang Yibo) initially expressed concern and opposition to Lei Yu's choice of being a test pilot. As Lei Yu's mother said, "If the car breaks down, it can still be repaired, but what if the plane breaks down?" Rationally speaking, with the advancement of the aviation industry, the risk of test flight work is decreasing; For this reason, it is human nature for parents to want their children to have a safer job.

Lei Yu (played by Wang Yibo)

Pilot leader Zhang Ting (played by Hu Jun) received support from his wife and son in his work, and his wife and son were all proud of Zhang Ting. But Zhang Ting also knows that when his wife fully supports him, it is actually his wife who bears all the worries silently. After each test flight, Zhang Ting would receive a message from his wife, although his wife just asked normally: Are you going home for dinner today? But Zhang Ting knew that when he was working, his wife's heart was also in suspense, so he always reported safety as soon as possible.

Zhang Ting (played by Hu Jun)

But between the small self and the big self, between the small family and everyone, the test pilots still chose the latter. No matter how difficult and risky the test flight is, generations of test pilots have not flinched. We all look forward to the safe return of every test pilot, but there are also some test pilots who dedicate their lives to the blue sky and the motherland. Through the selection and perseverance of test pilots in various extreme difficulties, "King of the Sky" made the audience deeply remember a group of behind-the-scenes heroes, and admire their courage, fearlessness and sacrifice. The few big characters that appear repeatedly in the movie are impressive, "The motherland will eventually choose those who are loyal to the motherland, and the motherland will eventually remember those who are dedicated to the motherland." The brave and fearless test pilots are just a group of people who are loyal and dedicated to the motherland.

immortal heroes

"The King of the Sky" is an impassioned work with the main theme, and it also has quite successful commercial and typographic expressions. This is emphatically reflected in the growth story of the young test pilot Lei Yu. Lei Yu's story gave the grand and important concepts of "The King of the Sky" a concrete and personalized support.

In the general direction, Lei Yu's growth story is a relatively common "stabbing growth history" in military dramas. For example, when the protagonists first appeared on the stage, they were sharp-edged, competitive, and somewhat individualistic and self-assured. However, after going through various trials and tests, they deeply understood the meaning of the collective, the responsibilities and missions of soldiers, and gradually integrated into it. The collective has also become more mature and more responsible.

But in some details, "The King of the Sky" tries to avoid the "protagonist halo" of the characters from being too dazzling and unreasonable, and prevents Lei Yu from becoming "Long Aotian". For example, Lei Yu has been secretly competing with the test pilot Deng Fang (played by Yu Shi) at the beginning, hoping to beat Deng Fang to take the first place. But the movie didn’t make Lei Yu “open” in various ways just because he was the male number one. Deng Fang was the first in the selection, and Deng Fang was also the chief test pilot later...

A more daring treatment in the movie is that Lei Yu encountered "frustration" during a test flight. In a panic, he parachuted to protect himself, but all the test data was lost. After this defeat, Lei Yu actually directly submitted an application to return to the original team. At first glance, this move is not "weiguangzheng", but it also makes the characters appear flesh and blood as much as possible, and Lei Yu's growth seems to be traceable.

From Zhang Ting to Lei Yu, the audience can see the legacy of the test pilots. As Zhang Ting said, if the first generation of test pilots is courageous and the second generation is technical, then the test flight team represented by Lei Yu is the epitome of the new generation of "expert" test pilots. In addition to courage and operational skills, they have profound aviation knowledge reserves. In addition to participating in daily test flight work, they also put forward their own suggestions for the development of fighter jets. They are also explorers, designers, and participants of aircraft.

This is where the audience feels extremely gratified. China's aviation industry is constantly progressing, and generations of test pilots continue to struggle, which will further reduce the danger of test flight work, and allow every test pilot to take off and return home safely as much as possible. When those real voices sounded at the end of the movie, many viewers couldn't help crying.

——"Call 81192, please return immediately!"

——"81192 received, I can't return to the voyage, you continue to move forward!"

Today we will never forget those who are loyal and dedicated to the motherland. Today we have aircraft carrier formations and more powerful weapons capable of deterring the enemy. Today we will allow them to return safely.

What was lost in the past, our generation must take it back