Apollo And The Jet Age.by Kingstar008ChaptersThe concept.Engine test.Aspera’s first flight.A dream of the past and future.Concorde’s worthy successor.The concept.March 17, 1010, A.G Cloudsdale International Air Station. 10:00 AM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXtTBQW0lwg&pp=ygUUb3BwZW5oZWltZXIgYW1iaWVuY2U%3D It was a beautiful spring day in the cloud city of Cloudsdale, and right now, Apollo Titan Yukon was walking through the air station terminal after an hour-long flight. The only bag he had was a briefcase. Unlike most of the ponies in the terminal, he was not here to enjoy the beautiful city. He was here to meet with the CEO and CFO of a major aviation manufacturing company called Omega industries, to convince them to develop and build the first airplanes on planet Equis. With himself as head engineer. If you have told Apollo that he would be doing this today, he would’ve laughed in your face and called you crazy. But that all changed four weeks ago when a company from the River Federation called Pearl aeronautics built the largest passenger zeppelin in the world. After that other companies from the Federation also release their new classes of airships. Some were freighters, others were very luxurious airliners. Almost immediately these companies were getting a lot of orders. While their Equestrian counterparts were getting less and less. Which is why some Equestrian aviation corporations were inviting engineers from around the nation to propose their concepts to them. And Apollo immediately signed up for it. After Apollo exited the terminal, he saw that the bus to downtown was already there. He ran towards it and got on board just in time. 20 minutes later, the bus arrived at his stop. He got off the bus, walked to Omega‘s headquarters and enter the building. “Hello Miss, I’m here to meet with the Omega brothers.” Apollo said to the pegasus receptionist. “What is your name, sir?” She asked. “Apollo Yukon.” “You’re just in time for your meeting.” She said, after looking at the schedule. “ The CEO and the CFO are in conference room 280. It right down the hall.” “Thank you very much.” He said before walking away. ===•••=== Room 280 Inside of the conference room, sat two Pegasus brothers who looked like they were in their early to mid 40s. The one on the right has a cream color coat with an orange mane and tail and the pegasus on the left had a light brown coat with a dark red mane and tail. Their names are Astro and Roy Omega. The CEO and CFO of Omega industries. “Roy, who is next on the list?” Astro asked before taking a sip of his coffee. “Apollo Yukon.” His older brother answered. “Yukon? Isn’t that the last name of the humans that appeared last year?” “Yep. I never thought I would meet one of them.” “Me neither, I wonder what he’s going to show us.” A few seconds later, they heard a knock on the door. “It’s open.” Roy said. “Good morning, Mr. Astro, Mr. Roy. My name is Apollo and I’m here to have a meeting with the both of you.” Apollo greeted. “Ah, Mr. Yukon, we been expecting you.” Astro folded his hands on the table. “May I have a seat?” Apollo ask. “Of course.” After he sat down, Apollo clears his throat. “Before I show you what I have to offer, I just want to say thank you for hearing me out.” “No problem, we were once in your shoes a long time ago. Now, what are you going to show us today?” Roy said. “I’m glad you ask because unlike some ponies before me, I am not going to show you a new airship design or something like that.” “Then, what are you presenting?” Astro asked. “The future.” Apollo opened his briefcase and took out two sheets of blueprint paper. One of them was two engine wide body airliner, and the other one was a four engine supersonic jet. “What is this?” Astro curiously ask. “These machines are called airplanes. Safe, fast and very reliable aircraft.” “Interesting. What are their model names?” Roy asks. “The two engine jet is called Aspera and the supersonic airliner is called the Astra.” “This thing could break the sound barrier?” Astro said in shock. “That’s right. The Astra should be able to fly at a top speed of Mach 2.8. Its maximum capacity should be around 250 passengers.” “Wow, that’s amazing. Is that even possible for something like this to fly that fast?” Roy ask. “It is, I have seen it back on my home world a few times before.” ‘And nearly went deaf because of it.’ Apollo thought. “All right. What can the Aspera do?” Roy asked as he looked at the blueprints. “Well it can’t go supersonic like the Astra. But the Aspera is bigger, so can carry passengers or cargo.” “I got a question. If it was a sunny day but there was high winds in the area, would it prevent these airplanes from taking off?” Astro ask. “It’ll be difficult, but it’s possible for airplanes to fly through high winds. The only thing that will ground a plane is in hurricane, tornado or blizzard.” This answer surprise the omega brothers. Anytime a zeppelin tries to takeoff and high winds there was always a high chance of it crashing into something. So hearing about an aircraft able to takeoff and such conditions was not only foreign to them, but to many ponies as well. “Any more questions?” Apollo asks. (30 minutes later.) “Apollo, it was nice meeting you today. We will keep your ideas in mind.” Astro said as he put Apollo‘s blueprints into his folder. “It was nice meeting you guys too. Apollo shook their hands. “Well, I better get going. Hope you guys have a nice day.” After that, Apollo left the room. ===•••=== 8 PM The Omega brothers we’re in Astro’s office looking over all the blueprints they received from all the meetings they had in the past two days. They’ve been looking them over for almost an hour at this point, trying to figure out which engineer they should go with. “How about this one?” Roy ask as he showed his brother a passenger airship design. “It looks promising.” Astro looked it over and shook his head. “No, it look like the type of design that our competition might use. I mean, look at it. It looks so generic.” “Ok, it might look ordinary, but could be a success.” “Yeah, but I also could end up being another ordinary aircraft. And ordinary is not going to cut it.” “You’re right.” Roy said before putting the blueprint in the reject pile. “Let’s look at one more before we call the night.” “All right.” Astro said before picking up Apollo's blueprints that were stapled together. After looking at the two pieces of paper for a few seconds he looked at his older brother and said. “I think we should go with Apollo’s ideas.” “Really?” “Yeah, hearing about what these aircraft can do is amazing. These airplanes are going to be a great success.” Roy had a feeling that this was going to happen. Astro was more of the visionary and risk taker of the two. While Roy was more cautious and pragmatic. “They are interesting, but you really think that the airlines are ready to embrace this type of aircraft? Airplanes might successful on his home planet, but we don’t know if it would be the same on Equis. This could be a major shock to the industry as a whole. It’s too much of a risk.” “Ponies said the same thing to Ace Tradewinds when he invented the first blimp and look what happened. He created a billion bit industry and change the way we travel forever. And we’re no strangers to risks. I believe that us and Apollo could do the same.” “Are you sure you want to do this?” Roy ask. “Definitely.” “All right, airplanes it is.” ===•••=== The very next day. 12:30 AM Apollo was in his office looking over some boring paperwork, when he heard a knock on his door. *Knock, knock, knock* “Come in.” The door opened, revealing Derpy holding a letter. “I have a letter for you, Apollo.” Apollo got up from his chair and was handed the letter. “Thanks, Derpy.” “You’re welcome.” Derpy said before walking away. Apollo looked at the envelope and saw that it had an Airship with an orange letter O on its side. The symbol of omega industries. He opened the envelope and began reading the letter. ===•••=== Dear Mr. Yukon. Omega industries is happy to tell you that your concepts have been chosen by our top executives and engineers. We’re excited to be working with you in creating the future of air travel. We hope that this partnership will be a start of something new between you and our company. Your first day will be on the 20th of march at 9 AM at the latest. Until then, we hope that you have a nice rest of your day. From, a representative of omega industries. ===•••=== Apollo read the letter over and over again. He couldn’t believe it. They chose him out of hundreds of potential candidates. “Hell yeah! I did it!” He laughed before he left his office to tell his siblings the good news. Engine test.May 16th 1010 A.G Cloudsdale, Equestria. 9:00 AM. It was a bright sunny day in Cloudsdale and right now Apollo was walking through the Omega industries factory. While drinking a cup of coffee while doing so. It’s been almost 2 months since Apollo’s airplane concepts were chosen. Since then, he’s been coming to the Omega factory three times a week. He chose this schedule so he wouldn’t neglect his career back in Canterlot and give his project as much attention as possible. A few weeks after the project started, the company decided to announce that they were creating the world’s first airplanes. This obviously got some media attention with some ponies being interested in the idea, while others were not. One of the project’s biggest critics was an aviation engineer named Lloyd Ivory. He one of the biggest names in the industry. Lloyd believes that what Apollo was doing was wasting every ponies time and suggest that he should just scrap the entire operation entirely. Despite the fact that a few major airlines expressed interest of producing a fleet of new airplanes. Unfortunately, Apollo met Lloyd before on a few occasions. Let’s just say their meetings weren’t pleasant. Thank goodness that the company was focusing Aspera for now. If the critics knew about the Astra’s supersonic capabilities, he didn’t know how they would react. But if Apollo was being honest, he couldn’t wait to see his face when the Aspera becomes a major success. Finally, after 10 minutes of walking, he finally arrived in a warehouse with a jet engine in the middle being held up by steel beams. This is where new engines for new aircraft of different shapes and sizes are tested. To make sure they are fit for commercial use. On Apollo’s right, there was a room just a few yards from him that had a large window. The room in question is the control room. He opened the door and saw that there was a gray pegasus mare with a white and blonde mane and tail, writing something down in a notebook. Her name is Patricia, she is one of the head engineers. “Morning, Patricia.” Apollo greeted. “Morning, Apollo.” She smiled. “Are you ready to get to work?” “You know it.” Apollo put his coffee down on the desk and look out of the window. “You and your crew did a really good job building that engine. It looks better than I imagined.” “Thanks.” Patricia said before she turned on the control panel. She pressed a red button which turned on the engine and then grabbed a lever and pushed it forward. Which caused the engine fan blades to spin faster and faster. “It’s looking pretty good. So, what’s the first test of the day?” Apollo asks. “The rain test.” She answered. “Do you want to do the honors?” “Sure, why not.” Apollo said before pushing a blue button with an image of a water droplet on it. The warehouse sprinkler system turned on, simulating a heavy rainstorm. After 10 minutes, they decided to turn off the sprinklers. As expected, the engine had no problems at all. “Ok, what’s next on the list?” Apollo ask. “The winter test.” Patricia said. “Wait, should we let it dry first?” “No, we don’t usually do that. It’s s a good way to see how the engine will handle ice forming on it.” “You’re the expert.” Apollo said before walking over to the warehouse thermostat and turning it down. It took a little while for the temperature to drop, but when it did, it was just as cold as winter in Manehattan. “Huh, this has to be the first time I have seen an engine surviving these temperatures on the first try.” Patricia said. “I was expecting the fan blades to freeze up by now.” “Maybe jet engines are just better than their propeller counterparts.” “Ok, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” Patricia said as she turned off the engine, walking over to the thermostat and putting back on its normal setting. “After everything thaws out will continue the trials. Until then, do you want to play some cards?” "Ok." ===•••=== Two hours of testing later. “All right, we are almost done. Now all we have to do is the broken fan blade test.” Apollo said as he looked at the clipboard. “How are we going to destroy one of the fan blades?” “Easy. Before you came in, I planted a small explosive behind one of the blades.” Patricia said as she held up a small remote with a big red button in the middle. “Doing this will simulate anything from a bird strike to debris hitting the engine.” “What a coincidence, many aviation companies do the same thing on planet earth.” “Really now? What a small galaxy. Do you want to do the countdown?” “Sure. 3. 2. 1.” Patricia press the button causing the explosive to go off and the broken fan blade to be sucked in to the air intake. Barely even a few seconds later the engine exploded. Shrapnel went everywhere as the engine slowly died and burst into flames. “Damn, that wasn’t supposed to happen.” Apollo exclaimed. “Well, that’s the reason why we do these tests in the first place. Hopefully next time we will have better results.” ===•••=== For the next few weeks, Patricia and Apollo redesigned and rebuild more jet engine prototypes. Every time they put the prototypes through the tests, they had hope that this time it would be successful. Only for it to explode like one big frag grenade. The failures even put them behind schedule a little bit, as the first Aspera was going through its own trials. But no matter how many times they failed; they didn’t give up. ===•••=== June 1 1:30 AM “Ok, we did the noise test and the fuel consumption test. All that is left now is the broken fan blade.” She sighed. “This is the 60th time we attempted this?” “Yeah, this is the 60th time.” Apollo replied. “Should we do the countdown?” “No, just press it.” “All right.” He grabbed the remote and hope for the best. “Here goes nothing.” He press the button and once again, broken blade got sucked in to the engine. They both watched with bated breath as the engine started to smoke and slowly died. But this time it didn’t explode. “Oh my God, we did it.” Apollo said disbelief. “It’s finally over.” Patricia said quietly. The human and the Pegasus looked at each other before yelling. “We did it!” Before hugging each other. A few moments later, they separated. “Finally, we are done with these tests. I’m glad that it’s over.” “Me too, but we do have to test out the Astra’s engines in the future.” Patricia stated. “Don’t worry about it, that’s our future selves to worry about, not ours.” He said before picking up the notebook. “I’m going to tell Astro and Roy the good news. I’ll see you later.” “See ya.” She said before Apollo left the room. ===•••=== 3:30 PM After a long day at work, Patricia was finally able to clock out of the day. But before she can leave the factory, a familiar voice called her name. “Hey, Patricia.” She turns around and said. “Oh, hello Apollo. What’s going on?” “Nothing much, I just want to ask if you want to get something to eat. To celebrate our success today.” “Apollo, you don’t have to do that.” “I insist. After almost driving ourselves crazy over the past few weeks, I feel like we deserve to treat ourselves. So, are you coming or not?” He smiled. “All right, you win.” “I knew you would want to come.” “Where are we going anyway?” Patricia asked. “I was thinking we can go to this buffet that Atlas recommended to me. It’s in downtown. Is that good or do you want to go somewhere else?” “No, the buffet sounds good to me.” “All right. Let go before rush-hour comes.” After that, the two coworkers left the factory together. Aspera’s first flight.October 17 1010 A.G Omega industry factory. 8:30 PM It was a chilly, fall evening in Cloudsdale, and right now Apollo and Astro were on the factory floor looking at the aircraft they work so hard to build. In front of them is the brand new Aspera. The airliner’s new paint job glistened under the bright factory lights and its size gave it almost a larger than like presence. In that moment, the human and the Pegasus both agreed that this was one beautiful aircraft. “It was almost like it was yesterday when me and Roy decided to partner up with you, who knew that we would accomplish so much so quickly.” Astro said. “I couldn’t agree more. It was like pulling teeth trying to get her ready, but it was all worth it. Before you know it, it’ll be the Astra’s turn to take its first flight.” “Yep. Can’t wait to see every pony’s reaction when that jet breaks the sound barrier.” Astro said as check his watch. “I have to get going, don’t want to miss my flight. Are you already to make history, pilot?” “Yes, sir.” “Good. I’ll see you in Manehattan. Have a good night, Apollo.” “Good night.” After that, Astro walked away. Apollo stayed a few minutes longer before he too, left the factory. ===•••=== October 18 11:30 AM Apollo was outside of the Aspera’s hanger, answering all the questions the crowd of journalist were asking him. He wasn’t surprised the moment he arrived; he would be surrounded by journalist from around the world. After all, today is a special day. After spending about 15 minutes of interacting with the press, he decided to check his watch. “I’m sorry every pony, I have to get going.” He teleported out of the crowd and started walking towards the hanger. ‘I thought that would never end.’ Apollo thought. “Apollo, you got this!” Atlas yelled. Apollo looked on his right and saw that Atlas, Artemis and his friends were standing behind one of the barriers. He smiled and waved to them before he entered the building. But before he could walk up the stairs to enter the plane, a familiar wealthy Canterlot accent called out to him. “Apollo, wait.” This made him stop in his tracks. “Oh God, don’t tell me it’s him.” He whispered. He turned around and saw that his rival, Lloyd Ivory, was walking towards him. He is a white Kirin with a platinum-colored mane and tail. “Lloyd, whatever you’re going to say, please make it quick.” “I will. I just came over here to tell you good luck on your flight.” This surprised, Apollo. Anytime these two would meet, it almost always ends up in an argument. “Oh…. thank you, Lloyd. I never thought I would hear something like that from you.” “Well, just because rivals, doesn’t mean we have to hate each other’s guts. I respect you as an engineer, even though your vision for the future is a bit…. radical.” “Same over here. Maybe we will come to an agreement one day.” Apollo said. “Maybe.” “I’ll see you when I get back to Cloudsdale.” “See you then.” After Lloyd was gone, Apollo walked up the stairs, closed the exterior door and enter the cockpit. After he put on his seatbelt, he grabbed his headset and turned it on. “Patricia, are you there?” Patricia: “I am here, Apollo. Are you ready to go?” “Yes, I am.” Patricia: “All right. Hang tight.” Apollo didn’t wait long for the doors to slide open. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MppIym5AuK4&pp=ygUMZXBjb3QgYW50aGVt Moments later, a small aircraft tug reversed into the hanger and its towbar was attached to the airplane front landing gear. After that, the tug started to tow the plane out of the hanger, revealing the Aspera to world for the first time. This also gave Apollo an opportunity to see the large crowd of ponies surrounding the factory complex. He wondered if seeing an airplane in person for the first time would inspire some of the younger spectators in the crowd. Like just Apollo, when he saw Concorde for the first time. After the Aircraft tug tow the plane on to the taxi way, its towbar was detached from the landing gear and the small vehicle drove away. Now it was up to Apollo to get the Aspera to the runway. He turned on the engines and guided the plane on the narrow tarmac. Taxiing a plane the size of a Boeing 777 was not easy. But Apollo knew what he was doing. A few minutes later, the plane was on the runway. After getting permission to takeoff, Apollo put his hand on the throttle. “All right, here we go. Three, two, one.” He pushed the throttle all the way forward, giving the engines 100% power. Propelling the airliner down the runway. Every pony in the area was silence as they watched the large plane speed down the runway. Before it got to the end of the tarmac, Apollo pulled back on the yoke, making the nose of the airplane tilt skyward and the rear wheels to lift off the ground. And just like that Equestria’s first airplane, was now flying. The crowd immediately erupted into cheers as the Aspera flew away. ===•••=== 2:50 PM It’s been three hours since Apollo left Cloudsdale and so far, everything has been pretty good. The airliner has been operating normally and he didn’t encounter any bad weather since he is flying at an altitude of 25,000 feet. Fly this high in the sky, gave the human pilot the most beautiful view of the Equestrian landscape. He checked his radar and noticed that he was almost to his destination. In standard procedure, Apollo started his descent. The airplane was flying through the clouds at this point when he got contacted by Air traffic control. ATC: “Aspera, come in, Aspera.” “This is the Aspera speaking. I’m assuming this is Manehattan-Hooflyn International?” ATC: “That is correct. The tower wants to let you know that you’re on the right flight path and you have permission to land. Oh, and you have attracted a bit of an audience.” “How big is it?” ATC: “It’s pretty big.” “Thanks for letting me know.” ATC: “You’re welcome.” A few minutes later, the plane finally got through the clouds, and the air station was in sight. Apollo lowered the landing gear and lined up with the newly built runway. As he got closer to the ground, he was able to see the large crowd that was gathered at perimeter of the airfield. The air traffic controller was right, the crowd is big. But he didn’t have time to worry about that now, he had a plane to land. He pulled the throttle back, slowing the aircraft down and kept it steady until the planes rear wheels touch down on the runway. After the front landing gear was on the ground, Apollo put on the brakes and turned on the thrust reversers. Slowing the plane down until it came to a complete stop near the end of the runway. After the Aspera arrived at the Air station’s hangers, Apollo picked up his bag and disembark the plane. The first thing that greeted him was the flashing lights of more than a dozen cameras. ===•••=== 3:15 PM 20 minutes later. The moment Apollo’s shoes touch the ground, he was immediately surrounded by hundreds of journalists. Somehow, they were even more curious than the ones back in Cloudsdale. Which is why he has been spending the last 20 minutes answering every question they had while trying his best not to spill any company secrets. “I have time for one more question.” He said before pointing at a green sea pony reporter. “You have a question for me?” “Yes, I do.” She replied. “After this amazing achievement, do you and Omega brothers have any plans for the future? And if so, what is it?” “Well, I can’t tell you the specifics. But what I can’t tell you is that me and the brothers are not done yet. The plans we have for the future is going to be just as amazing, if not more, than the Aspera. All you ponies have to do is just wait and see.” Apollo answered before walking away as a few journalists try to get him to answer one more question. ===•••=== 10 minutes later. “Congratulations Apollo, you did it. You prove to the world that jet travel is the future.” Roy said as their limo drove through the city of Manehattan. “No, we did it. If it wasn’t for you two, The Aspera would’ve been nothing more than a drawing on a piece of paper.” “Yeah, but you were the one that started this whole thing in the first place.” Astro said. “True.” “Oh, I almost forgot. Thanks to the Aspera’s first flight, we got a ton of new orders. We even got some from the River Federation.” Roy said. “The Federation?! Holy crap. I knew we would be successful, but not that successful.” Apollo said in shocked. “Success is a major understatement for what we have achieved today.” Astro said as he pulled out a champagne bottle from the cooler. After he filled up three champagne glasses, he passed them out before raising his own. “Cheers, colts.” “Cheers!” The other two stallions said as they tap their glasses together with an audible clink. While they were having fun in Manehattan, the rest of the world was wondering, what are those stallions planning to do next? A dream of the past and future.February 9 1011 A.G Canterlot Castle. 2:15 AM It was a chilly night in the city of Canterlot, and right now, Apollo was in his office, looking over some blueprints. It’s been almost 5 months since Aspera took off for the first time and since then, a lot of things have been going on in the Aviation world. Ever since the Aspera entered service two weeks after its first flight, the industry was flipped upside down. Creatures around the world were amazed by the reliability, versatility and comfort of the world first airliner. Airlines from every corner of the globe have been ordering entire fleet of planes for months now. Making Omega industries insanely rich. This caused every air station from Rhodesia all the way to the Crystal Empire to build runways and expand their terminals to accommodate the new jets. Thanks to the Aspera, the age of airship dominance was quickly coming to an end. Now Apollo and the Omega brothers were working on the Astra. And so far, things have not been good at all. Development of the Aspera’s supersonic sibling is not off to a good start because it was discovered that the Astra’s design created a sonic boom that was just as loud as Concorde’s. Which is not good if you want a supersonic airliner to be successful. That meant that the company had to redesign the Astra. This is why Apollo was in his office so late. He looked at the new redesign he made on a separate piece of blueprint paper only to crumpled it up and toss it at an overflowing trash bin. He leans back in his chair and looked out of his window to see the beautiful night sky with an airplane flying across it. “What are we doing wrong?” He sighs. At this moment when his office door opened, revealing Luna wearing a beautiful nightgown. “Apollo, what are you doing up so late? You should be in bed right now.” “Lulu, I’m doing something right now. I have no time to sleep. I thought you were in the dream realm.” He replied as his marefriend enter the office. “I was, until I realize your dream was not in there. Which only means one thing.” She said, gesturing to the blueprints on his desk. “Apollo, I know this project means a lot to you, but that doesn’t mean you should drive yourself to exhaustion. It’s not healthy.” “I’ll be fine even if I don’t get eight hours of sleep. I won’t blackout like most ponies.” “You will if you continue to do this.” She said before putting a hand on his shoulder. “Come on go to bed. If you want, you can sleep with me tonight. Who knows maybe you might get a new idea when you wake up.” After thought it over for a moment, Apollo decided to concede. “All right fine. I’ll go to sleep with you.” “Good boy.” Luna patted him on the head before teleporting the both of them to her bed chambers. ===•••=== Apollo opened his eyes and saw that he was standing in a hallway in one of the Omega factory hangers. “Goddamnit, well I’m going to be here for the next few hours so might as well make the most of it.” He walked down the hallway and found a door that lead to the main area of the building. He opened it thinking that he would see one or two Asperas parked inside. But instead, he saw a Concorde parked inside. A British Airways version to be more specific. “Wow.” He said quietly as he got closer to it. Apollo walked underneath the aircraft touched the bottom of its right wing. The last time he saw Concorde in person was 2003 when it took off from JFK for a very last time. The sad day for every aviation lovers out there. Even though this was a dream, this Concorde was still as beautiful as its real life counterparts. Then he noticed that there was another aircraft right next to it. The plane in question has a similar fuselage design, but that’s where the similarities end. The plane is a bit larger and its delta wings were shaped like a compound delta instead of a ogival delta design the Concorde had. If Apollo had to be honest, this plane looked like it was from the future. Like from the year 2030 or something. That’s when he realized that he was looking at the Astra. No, much better version of the Astra. “I need to check this out.” He said quietly. Luckily for him, there was a set of stairs on the left side of the plane. After he got inside of the plane, he looked around and whistled. The inside was just as nice as the outside. After Apollo did a little exploring, he decided to check out the cockpit. He walked from the back of the plane to the cockpit and sat down in the captain’s chair. “I wonder if I could take this bad boy for spin.” It was at this moment when the hanger doors started to open up. Instead of seeing the outside world, Apollo saw a blinding light which made him cover his eyes. He turned his head when he heard the sound of Concorde’s loud engines powering on and saw the iconic airliner moving towards the light. After it disappeared, the light started to envelope everything. ===•••=== 5:50 AM The moment Apollo opened his eyes he slowly sat up in Luna’s bed and thought about the lucid dream he just had. He didn’t know why he had that dream, but he glad he did. He got out of bed, knowing what he had to do. After he got out of bed, Apollo teleported to his office. Apollo turned on his desk lamp and began to draw on a piece of blueprint paper. 10 minutes later, Apollo put his pencil down and looked at his work. The airliner on the blueprint was identical to the one in his dream. He smile, knowing that he may have the solution to his problem. After he put the blueprint in a folder, he teleported out of his office. ===•••=== 7:05 After Apollo arrived in Cloudsdale, he teleported from the air station all the way to factory. As he was walking through the building, he found Patricia writing something down on her clipboard. “Morning, Pat.” He greeted. “Oh, morning Apollo. You know you don’t have to come in the factory until next Sunday, right?” “I know that. I’m here is because I think I found the perfect design for the Astra.” He said as he handed the folder to the gray pegasus. “Hmm, it looks similar to the original design.” She commented before closing the folder. “But it can’t hurt to test it out. Thanks for giving me this.” “You’re welcome. I will see you next week.” “See you then.” After that, Apollo left the factory. ===•••=== Two days later. 11:30 AM Apollo was walking from the castle conference room after a long meeting with a few foreign delegates. He was heading over to the library for a well-deserved break when he heard Atlas calling his name. “Hey Apollo.” “Hello Atlas, what’s going on?” He asked as his identical sibling walked over to him. “I’m here to give you a letter that the castle received a few minutes ago.” Atlas said as he handed the envelope to Apollo. “Thank you.” “You’re welcome.” Atlas said before walking away. After Apollo entered the library, he open up the envelope and began reading. ===•••=== Dear Apollo. I have some great news. A few hours ago, Patricia and her team tested out the new design for the Astra in the wind tunnel and I’m happy to write that it passed with flying colors. The engineering team is predicting that its sonic boom is going to be much quieter than its old design and it’s possible that will be much more fuel efficient as well. As I'm writing this the factory is planning to build a prototype for further testing. Good work, Apollo. I don’t know what inspired you to create that new design, but I’m glad you did. From Astro. ===•••=== “Finally.” Apollo smiled, relieved that the first major hurdle of the Astra project was finally behind them. He didn’t know what was going to happen next, but he is sure that it was going to be smooth sailing from here on out. Concorde’s worthy successor.October 25, 1011 A.G 7:51 AM It is a chilly fall morning in the cloud city of Cloudsdale, and right now, Apollo was checking himself in the mirror making sure that everything on his pilot uniform was perfect. He had to because today is the Astra’s first flight. Billions of creatures around the world would be tuning in to watch the world‘s first supersonic jet take off for the first time and he didn’t want any photos of him with his uniform looking unprofessional. After he felt satisfied on the way he looked he checked his watch and realized it was almost time for him to go. So, he grabbed his suitcase and left his hotel room for the very last time. After he returned his room key at the front desk, he left the hotel and was immediately greeted by a cold fall air. Luckily, for him, he didn’t have to stand in the cold for long before he saw a black SUV with Omega’s logo on the side, pulled up. After he got in the vehicle and greeted the driver, the SUV drove away. ===•••=== 8:03 AM Apollo looked out of the window and saw the large crowd of creatures surrounding the factory complex. As expected, the crown was even bigger than the one the Aspera had. And it’s not surprising why. Back when Omega industries revealed the Astra to the world back in July, the news spread like wildfire. Airlines were eager to order the jets, CEOs of companies who were struggling to compete against Omega were fuming, and Air forces around the world were foaming at the mouth. Eager to get their hands on Astra. Likely to convert them into military jets. But there were also a few ponies believing that the Astra will never break the sound barrier, let alone fly three times the speed of sound. Which made Apollo eager to show those ponies what this jet can do and prove them wrong. After SUV came to a stop, Apollo came out of the car with suitcase in hand and started heading over to the airstrip. While the press were taking photos of him or trying to shove their microphones at Apollo. It took him a few minutes to get to where he needs to be, but to Apollo, it felt like forever. “God, they’re more energetic than last time.” Apollo said to himself before he looked up at the large plane in front of him. Instead of leaving the supersonic airliner in the hanger until it was time for takeoff. Like they did with the Aspera. Patricia and her team decided to take the aircraft out of its hanger two hours before takeoff. And Apollo is glad they did. This jet was too beautiful to keep it inside. Its paint job is mostly white with a sky-blue stripe that went along the sides of the aircraft, on its tail is Omega industries logo and the cherry on top, Is the aircraft’s name written in platinum color letters on both sides of the aircraft. Just a few windows away from the cockpit windshield. As he got closer to the stairs right next to the aircraft, he noticed a small little detail on the bottom left of the aircraft nose. Right below the cockpit. It said ‘approved by Rainbow Dash’ in gold letters. The statement made Apollo remember how this little Easter egg came to be. Back in June, Apollo gave his friends and siblings the supersonic jet. With the Omega brother’s approval, of course. After seeing the aircraft, Rainbow Dash decided to give her seal of approval by grabbing a piece of paper, wrote the statement down and place the it right next to Astra’s front wheels. When Apollo discovered the paper later that day he requested to have it painted on the plane. After all the world’s fastest airplane just got approved by the world fastest Pegasus. Who wouldn’t want to show that off? “Good luck on your journey, Apollo!” Blaze yelled as he and the rest of Apollo‘s friends from the Royal guard cheered him on. The Royal sisters were also there as well. “Thanks, guys!” He waved at them before going up the stairs and entering their aircraft. After he closed the exterior door, he got in the cockpit, put his suitcase away and sat down in the captains chair. Apollo reached into his pocket and pulled out his walkie-talkie. “Patricia, come in Patricia.” Patricia:“This is Patricia speaking, are you ready to go?” Apollo: “Yes, I am. Are you?” Patricia:”I’ve been ready. Just give my crew a few minutes to remove the stairs.” After the ground crew did just that, Patricia put the airplane tug into gear and slowly tow the aircraft away. When they eventually made it onto the taxiway, The gray pegasus engineer unhooked the towbar from the Astra’s front landing gear. Patricia: “All right, it’s all up to you now. Have fun breaking the sound barrier.” Apollo: "Don't worry, I will. See you in a few days.” ”See you later.” She replied before getting back inside the tug and driving away. After seeing the coast was clear, Apollo put on his headset and turned on all four of the Aircraft’s engines. One by one, four of the most engines Omega has ever built, roar to life. He pushed the throttle up a little bit and started guiding the airplane to the runway. To Apollo’s surprise, airline wasn’t as difficult to taxi compared to its subsonic sibling. A few minutes later, the Astra was finally on the runway. After he got permission to takeoff from air traffic control, Apollo put his hands on the throttle and prepared himself. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JZ-o3iAJv4&pp=ygUWY2FuIHlvdSBoZWFyIHRoZSBtdXNpYw%3D%3D Apollo pushed the throttle all the way up and immediately felt the power of engines pushing the aircraft forward. Just like the Aspera did a year ago, Astra raced down the runway, eventually reaching takeoff speed and the point of no return. “V1, rotate.” The pilot pull back on the yoke, making the plane tilted skyward and lifting off the ground for the very first time. The crowd started the cheer. But this wasn’t what they were here for and Apollo knew this. After he lifted up the landing gear and made a hard left towards the north, the airplane started to climb to its cruising altitude of 60,000 feet. At this height, you can see the curvature around the planet. It was truly breathtaking. ‘Is this what John Glenn and Neil Armstrong saw when they went to space?’ He thought before he cleared his head. It wasn’t here to enjoy the view, he was here to bring a legend back. Billions around the world watched as the plane race across the Equestrian sky. Its four powerful engines were producing large amount of thrust they propelled the jet past the speed of sound. Breaking Rainbow Dash’s record and cementing itself fastest thing to ever be built on planet Equis. Finally, 40 minutes after takeoff, the Astra finally reached its top speed of Mach 3.2. The world stared in shock and awe, while Apollo smiled. Knowing that all the sleepless night and the stress was all worth it. He then took his eyes off the speedometer. “Next stop, the Crystal City.” He said as the supersonic airliner flew into the history books. ===•••=== 10:00 AM it was a cold clear day above the Crystal Empire and right now, Apollo was making his descent towards the Crystal City international Air Station. Usually take on average 6 half hours for the Aspera to fly from Cloudsdale to the Crystal city. On the Astra, it only took two hours, which is a record in itself. In total, the Airliner broken two world records already. Apollo could not imagine what else this thing could do, but for now he needs to focus on landing this thing. ATC: “Astra, this is Air traffic control. Do you copy?” “Loud and clear.” ATC: “Good. You know, you came here faster than we thought. Good job, Astra.” “Thanks. Do I have permission to land?” ATC: “You have permission to land, Astra. Runway two is clear just for you. Oh, and expect a warm welcome when you arrive.” “Good to know. Astra, over and out.” After Apollo ended transmission, the plane finally made it through the clouds and the Crystal city came into view. Once the symbol of the trauma that Sombra afflicted on the Empire has become one of the fastest growing cities in the world. Construction cranes could be seen through out the skyline. As they worked around the clock to help build the various construction projects popping up all over the metropolitan area. One of these projects that the city completed five months ago, is the city’s brand-new Air station. And just like Manehattan, there was a big crowd of ponies waiting for their special guest to arrive. What an interesting time to be a crystal pony. Apollo lowered the landing gear and guided the airplane towards the runway until the rear wheels touchdown on the tarmac. The sound of screeching tires could be heard until the plane came to a complete stop near the end of the runway. When the Astra arrived at the air station hangers Apollo waited a few minutes for the portable stairs to be put in place. After that, Apollo grabbed his suitcase, open the exterior door and walk down the stairs. Where his friends and siblings were waiting for him. “Congratulations Titan, you did it! You broke the sound barrier!” Atlas smiled as he patted Apollo in the back. “Apollo, what you did up there was amazing.” Twilight said. “It was awesome!” Rainbow Dash chimed in. “Oh, so you’re not sad about your record being broken?” Apollo ask. “Not one bit. Even though I am the fastest Pegasus in Equestria, I knew that one day some pony would surpass me one way or another.” “So, what’s next after this?” Applejack ask. “I don’t know. I haven’t thought of that yet.” Apollo answered. “Well, you have all the time in the world now to think about that.” Artemis smiled. It was at this moment when a familiar blue sea pony journalist emerged from the crowd and approached the group. “Is that who I think it is?” Apollo said. “Yep. Mira breeze of the Phoenix Times, at your service.” The journalist replied. “Huh, I never thought we would see you this far North. Not that I’m complaining.” Atlas said. “Of course I would be here. My job is to cover the news, especially historic moments like this. Is it ok if I take a group photo of all of you?” “Of course you can.” Apollo said. After every pony got together for the photo, Mira aimed her camera at them and said “Say cheese.” “Cheese!” They smile before they got their photo taken. Which would be on the front cover of the Phoenix times newspaper later that day. ===•••=== https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa3c9aVGIaU&pp=ygUfaG9sc3QganVwaXRlciBzaG9ydGVuZWQgdmVyc2lvbg%3D%3D Three weeks after its first flight, the Astra officially entered commercial service and became just as successful as the Aspera. This major success encouraged Omega industries to take on more airplane projects, both civilian and military. Even though his partnership with the company ended a few weeks after the Astra started its service life. Apollo stayed in touch with Patricia, Astro and Roy, sometimes even meeting with them from time to time. Despite rival companies creating their own airplanes to compete with Omega’s jets, the Astra and the Aspera held special place in the industry for ushering in the new age of aviation. And eventually became the symbols of Equestrian ingenuity. All of this wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for a certain human with a dream, a dream of a new jet age.
The concept.March 17, 1010, A.G Cloudsdale International Air Station. 10:00 AM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXtTBQW0lwg&pp=ygUUb3BwZW5oZWltZXIgYW1iaWVuY2U%3D It was a beautiful spring day in the cloud city of Cloudsdale, and right now, Apollo Titan Yukon was walking through the air station terminal after an hour-long flight. The only bag he had was a briefcase. Unlike most of the ponies in the terminal, he was not here to enjoy the beautiful city. He was here to meet with the CEO and CFO of a major aviation manufacturing company called Omega industries, to convince them to develop and build the first airplanes on planet Equis. With himself as head engineer. If you have told Apollo that he would be doing this today, he would’ve laughed in your face and called you crazy. But that all changed four weeks ago when a company from the River Federation called Pearl aeronautics built the largest passenger zeppelin in the world. After that other companies from the Federation also release their new classes of airships. Some were freighters, others were very luxurious airliners. Almost immediately these companies were getting a lot of orders. While their Equestrian counterparts were getting less and less. Which is why some Equestrian aviation corporations were inviting engineers from around the nation to propose their concepts to them. And Apollo immediately signed up for it. After Apollo exited the terminal, he saw that the bus to downtown was already there. He ran towards it and got on board just in time. 20 minutes later, the bus arrived at his stop. He got off the bus, walked to Omega‘s headquarters and enter the building. “Hello Miss, I’m here to meet with the Omega brothers.” Apollo said to the pegasus receptionist. “What is your name, sir?” She asked. “Apollo Yukon.” “You’re just in time for your meeting.” She said, after looking at the schedule. “ The CEO and the CFO are in conference room 280. It right down the hall.” “Thank you very much.” He said before walking away. ===•••=== Room 280 Inside of the conference room, sat two Pegasus brothers who looked like they were in their early to mid 40s. The one on the right has a cream color coat with an orange mane and tail and the pegasus on the left had a light brown coat with a dark red mane and tail. Their names are Astro and Roy Omega. The CEO and CFO of Omega industries. “Roy, who is next on the list?” Astro asked before taking a sip of his coffee. “Apollo Yukon.” His older brother answered. “Yukon? Isn’t that the last name of the humans that appeared last year?” “Yep. I never thought I would meet one of them.” “Me neither, I wonder what he’s going to show us.” A few seconds later, they heard a knock on the door. “It’s open.” Roy said. “Good morning, Mr. Astro, Mr. Roy. My name is Apollo and I’m here to have a meeting with the both of you.” Apollo greeted. “Ah, Mr. Yukon, we been expecting you.” Astro folded his hands on the table. “May I have a seat?” Apollo ask. “Of course.” After he sat down, Apollo clears his throat. “Before I show you what I have to offer, I just want to say thank you for hearing me out.” “No problem, we were once in your shoes a long time ago. Now, what are you going to show us today?” Roy said. “I’m glad you ask because unlike some ponies before me, I am not going to show you a new airship design or something like that.” “Then, what are you presenting?” Astro asked. “The future.” Apollo opened his briefcase and took out two sheets of blueprint paper. One of them was two engine wide body airliner, and the other one was a four engine supersonic jet. “What is this?” Astro curiously ask. “These machines are called airplanes. Safe, fast and very reliable aircraft.” “Interesting. What are their model names?” Roy asks. “The two engine jet is called Aspera and the supersonic airliner is called the Astra.” “This thing could break the sound barrier?” Astro said in shock. “That’s right. The Astra should be able to fly at a top speed of Mach 2.8. Its maximum capacity should be around 250 passengers.” “Wow, that’s amazing. Is that even possible for something like this to fly that fast?” Roy ask. “It is, I have seen it back on my home world a few times before.” ‘And nearly went deaf because of it.’ Apollo thought. “All right. What can the Aspera do?” Roy asked as he looked at the blueprints. “Well it can’t go supersonic like the Astra. But the Aspera is bigger, so can carry passengers or cargo.” “I got a question. If it was a sunny day but there was high winds in the area, would it prevent these airplanes from taking off?” Astro ask. “It’ll be difficult, but it’s possible for airplanes to fly through high winds. The only thing that will ground a plane is in hurricane, tornado or blizzard.” This answer surprise the omega brothers. Anytime a zeppelin tries to takeoff and high winds there was always a high chance of it crashing into something. So hearing about an aircraft able to takeoff and such conditions was not only foreign to them, but to many ponies as well. “Any more questions?” Apollo asks. (30 minutes later.) “Apollo, it was nice meeting you today. We will keep your ideas in mind.” Astro said as he put Apollo‘s blueprints into his folder. “It was nice meeting you guys too. Apollo shook their hands. “Well, I better get going. Hope you guys have a nice day.” After that, Apollo left the room. ===•••=== 8 PM The Omega brothers we’re in Astro’s office looking over all the blueprints they received from all the meetings they had in the past two days. They’ve been looking them over for almost an hour at this point, trying to figure out which engineer they should go with. “How about this one?” Roy ask as he showed his brother a passenger airship design. “It looks promising.” Astro looked it over and shook his head. “No, it look like the type of design that our competition might use. I mean, look at it. It looks so generic.” “Ok, it might look ordinary, but could be a success.” “Yeah, but I also could end up being another ordinary aircraft. And ordinary is not going to cut it.” “You’re right.” Roy said before putting the blueprint in the reject pile. “Let’s look at one more before we call the night.” “All right.” Astro said before picking up Apollo's blueprints that were stapled together. After looking at the two pieces of paper for a few seconds he looked at his older brother and said. “I think we should go with Apollo’s ideas.” “Really?” “Yeah, hearing about what these aircraft can do is amazing. These airplanes are going to be a great success.” Roy had a feeling that this was going to happen. Astro was more of the visionary and risk taker of the two. While Roy was more cautious and pragmatic. “They are interesting, but you really think that the airlines are ready to embrace this type of aircraft? Airplanes might successful on his home planet, but we don’t know if it would be the same on Equis. This could be a major shock to the industry as a whole. It’s too much of a risk.” “Ponies said the same thing to Ace Tradewinds when he invented the first blimp and look what happened. He created a billion bit industry and change the way we travel forever. And we’re no strangers to risks. I believe that us and Apollo could do the same.” “Are you sure you want to do this?” Roy ask. “Definitely.” “All right, airplanes it is.” ===•••=== The very next day. 12:30 AM Apollo was in his office looking over some boring paperwork, when he heard a knock on his door. *Knock, knock, knock* “Come in.” The door opened, revealing Derpy holding a letter. “I have a letter for you, Apollo.” Apollo got up from his chair and was handed the letter. “Thanks, Derpy.” “You’re welcome.” Derpy said before walking away. Apollo looked at the envelope and saw that it had an Airship with an orange letter O on its side. The symbol of omega industries. He opened the envelope and began reading the letter. ===•••=== Dear Mr. Yukon. Omega industries is happy to tell you that your concepts have been chosen by our top executives and engineers. We’re excited to be working with you in creating the future of air travel. We hope that this partnership will be a start of something new between you and our company. Your first day will be on the 20th of march at 9 AM at the latest. Until then, we hope that you have a nice rest of your day. From, a representative of omega industries. ===•••=== Apollo read the letter over and over again. He couldn’t believe it. They chose him out of hundreds of potential candidates. “Hell yeah! I did it!” He laughed before he left his office to tell his siblings the good news.
Engine test.May 16th 1010 A.G Cloudsdale, Equestria. 9:00 AM. It was a bright sunny day in Cloudsdale and right now Apollo was walking through the Omega industries factory. While drinking a cup of coffee while doing so. It’s been almost 2 months since Apollo’s airplane concepts were chosen. Since then, he’s been coming to the Omega factory three times a week. He chose this schedule so he wouldn’t neglect his career back in Canterlot and give his project as much attention as possible. A few weeks after the project started, the company decided to announce that they were creating the world’s first airplanes. This obviously got some media attention with some ponies being interested in the idea, while others were not. One of the project’s biggest critics was an aviation engineer named Lloyd Ivory. He one of the biggest names in the industry. Lloyd believes that what Apollo was doing was wasting every ponies time and suggest that he should just scrap the entire operation entirely. Despite the fact that a few major airlines expressed interest of producing a fleet of new airplanes. Unfortunately, Apollo met Lloyd before on a few occasions. Let’s just say their meetings weren’t pleasant. Thank goodness that the company was focusing Aspera for now. If the critics knew about the Astra’s supersonic capabilities, he didn’t know how they would react. But if Apollo was being honest, he couldn’t wait to see his face when the Aspera becomes a major success. Finally, after 10 minutes of walking, he finally arrived in a warehouse with a jet engine in the middle being held up by steel beams. This is where new engines for new aircraft of different shapes and sizes are tested. To make sure they are fit for commercial use. On Apollo’s right, there was a room just a few yards from him that had a large window. The room in question is the control room. He opened the door and saw that there was a gray pegasus mare with a white and blonde mane and tail, writing something down in a notebook. Her name is Patricia, she is one of the head engineers. “Morning, Patricia.” Apollo greeted. “Morning, Apollo.” She smiled. “Are you ready to get to work?” “You know it.” Apollo put his coffee down on the desk and look out of the window. “You and your crew did a really good job building that engine. It looks better than I imagined.” “Thanks.” Patricia said before she turned on the control panel. She pressed a red button which turned on the engine and then grabbed a lever and pushed it forward. Which caused the engine fan blades to spin faster and faster. “It’s looking pretty good. So, what’s the first test of the day?” Apollo asks. “The rain test.” She answered. “Do you want to do the honors?” “Sure, why not.” Apollo said before pushing a blue button with an image of a water droplet on it. The warehouse sprinkler system turned on, simulating a heavy rainstorm. After 10 minutes, they decided to turn off the sprinklers. As expected, the engine had no problems at all. “Ok, what’s next on the list?” Apollo ask. “The winter test.” Patricia said. “Wait, should we let it dry first?” “No, we don’t usually do that. It’s s a good way to see how the engine will handle ice forming on it.” “You’re the expert.” Apollo said before walking over to the warehouse thermostat and turning it down. It took a little while for the temperature to drop, but when it did, it was just as cold as winter in Manehattan. “Huh, this has to be the first time I have seen an engine surviving these temperatures on the first try.” Patricia said. “I was expecting the fan blades to freeze up by now.” “Maybe jet engines are just better than their propeller counterparts.” “Ok, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” Patricia said as she turned off the engine, walking over to the thermostat and putting back on its normal setting. “After everything thaws out will continue the trials. Until then, do you want to play some cards?” "Ok." ===•••=== Two hours of testing later. “All right, we are almost done. Now all we have to do is the broken fan blade test.” Apollo said as he looked at the clipboard. “How are we going to destroy one of the fan blades?” “Easy. Before you came in, I planted a small explosive behind one of the blades.” Patricia said as she held up a small remote with a big red button in the middle. “Doing this will simulate anything from a bird strike to debris hitting the engine.” “What a coincidence, many aviation companies do the same thing on planet earth.” “Really now? What a small galaxy. Do you want to do the countdown?” “Sure. 3. 2. 1.” Patricia press the button causing the explosive to go off and the broken fan blade to be sucked in to the air intake. Barely even a few seconds later the engine exploded. Shrapnel went everywhere as the engine slowly died and burst into flames. “Damn, that wasn’t supposed to happen.” Apollo exclaimed. “Well, that’s the reason why we do these tests in the first place. Hopefully next time we will have better results.” ===•••=== For the next few weeks, Patricia and Apollo redesigned and rebuild more jet engine prototypes. Every time they put the prototypes through the tests, they had hope that this time it would be successful. Only for it to explode like one big frag grenade. The failures even put them behind schedule a little bit, as the first Aspera was going through its own trials. But no matter how many times they failed; they didn’t give up. ===•••=== June 1 1:30 AM “Ok, we did the noise test and the fuel consumption test. All that is left now is the broken fan blade.” She sighed. “This is the 60th time we attempted this?” “Yeah, this is the 60th time.” Apollo replied. “Should we do the countdown?” “No, just press it.” “All right.” He grabbed the remote and hope for the best. “Here goes nothing.” He press the button and once again, broken blade got sucked in to the engine. They both watched with bated breath as the engine started to smoke and slowly died. But this time it didn’t explode. “Oh my God, we did it.” Apollo said disbelief. “It’s finally over.” Patricia said quietly. The human and the Pegasus looked at each other before yelling. “We did it!” Before hugging each other. A few moments later, they separated. “Finally, we are done with these tests. I’m glad that it’s over.” “Me too, but we do have to test out the Astra’s engines in the future.” Patricia stated. “Don’t worry about it, that’s our future selves to worry about, not ours.” He said before picking up the notebook. “I’m going to tell Astro and Roy the good news. I’ll see you later.” “See ya.” She said before Apollo left the room. ===•••=== 3:30 PM After a long day at work, Patricia was finally able to clock out of the day. But before she can leave the factory, a familiar voice called her name. “Hey, Patricia.” She turns around and said. “Oh, hello Apollo. What’s going on?” “Nothing much, I just want to ask if you want to get something to eat. To celebrate our success today.” “Apollo, you don’t have to do that.” “I insist. After almost driving ourselves crazy over the past few weeks, I feel like we deserve to treat ourselves. So, are you coming or not?” He smiled. “All right, you win.” “I knew you would want to come.” “Where are we going anyway?” Patricia asked. “I was thinking we can go to this buffet that Atlas recommended to me. It’s in downtown. Is that good or do you want to go somewhere else?” “No, the buffet sounds good to me.” “All right. Let go before rush-hour comes.” After that, the two coworkers left the factory together.
Aspera’s first flight.October 17 1010 A.G Omega industry factory. 8:30 PM It was a chilly, fall evening in Cloudsdale, and right now Apollo and Astro were on the factory floor looking at the aircraft they work so hard to build. In front of them is the brand new Aspera. The airliner’s new paint job glistened under the bright factory lights and its size gave it almost a larger than like presence. In that moment, the human and the Pegasus both agreed that this was one beautiful aircraft. “It was almost like it was yesterday when me and Roy decided to partner up with you, who knew that we would accomplish so much so quickly.” Astro said. “I couldn’t agree more. It was like pulling teeth trying to get her ready, but it was all worth it. Before you know it, it’ll be the Astra’s turn to take its first flight.” “Yep. Can’t wait to see every pony’s reaction when that jet breaks the sound barrier.” Astro said as check his watch. “I have to get going, don’t want to miss my flight. Are you already to make history, pilot?” “Yes, sir.” “Good. I’ll see you in Manehattan. Have a good night, Apollo.” “Good night.” After that, Astro walked away. Apollo stayed a few minutes longer before he too, left the factory. ===•••=== October 18 11:30 AM Apollo was outside of the Aspera’s hanger, answering all the questions the crowd of journalist were asking him. He wasn’t surprised the moment he arrived; he would be surrounded by journalist from around the world. After all, today is a special day. After spending about 15 minutes of interacting with the press, he decided to check his watch. “I’m sorry every pony, I have to get going.” He teleported out of the crowd and started walking towards the hanger. ‘I thought that would never end.’ Apollo thought. “Apollo, you got this!” Atlas yelled. Apollo looked on his right and saw that Atlas, Artemis and his friends were standing behind one of the barriers. He smiled and waved to them before he entered the building. But before he could walk up the stairs to enter the plane, a familiar wealthy Canterlot accent called out to him. “Apollo, wait.” This made him stop in his tracks. “Oh God, don’t tell me it’s him.” He whispered. He turned around and saw that his rival, Lloyd Ivory, was walking towards him. He is a white Kirin with a platinum-colored mane and tail. “Lloyd, whatever you’re going to say, please make it quick.” “I will. I just came over here to tell you good luck on your flight.” This surprised, Apollo. Anytime these two would meet, it almost always ends up in an argument. “Oh…. thank you, Lloyd. I never thought I would hear something like that from you.” “Well, just because rivals, doesn’t mean we have to hate each other’s guts. I respect you as an engineer, even though your vision for the future is a bit…. radical.” “Same over here. Maybe we will come to an agreement one day.” Apollo said. “Maybe.” “I’ll see you when I get back to Cloudsdale.” “See you then.” After Lloyd was gone, Apollo walked up the stairs, closed the exterior door and enter the cockpit. After he put on his seatbelt, he grabbed his headset and turned it on. “Patricia, are you there?” Patricia: “I am here, Apollo. Are you ready to go?” “Yes, I am.” Patricia: “All right. Hang tight.” Apollo didn’t wait long for the doors to slide open. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MppIym5AuK4&pp=ygUMZXBjb3QgYW50aGVt Moments later, a small aircraft tug reversed into the hanger and its towbar was attached to the airplane front landing gear. After that, the tug started to tow the plane out of the hanger, revealing the Aspera to world for the first time. This also gave Apollo an opportunity to see the large crowd of ponies surrounding the factory complex. He wondered if seeing an airplane in person for the first time would inspire some of the younger spectators in the crowd. Like just Apollo, when he saw Concorde for the first time. After the Aircraft tug tow the plane on to the taxi way, its towbar was detached from the landing gear and the small vehicle drove away. Now it was up to Apollo to get the Aspera to the runway. He turned on the engines and guided the plane on the narrow tarmac. Taxiing a plane the size of a Boeing 777 was not easy. But Apollo knew what he was doing. A few minutes later, the plane was on the runway. After getting permission to takeoff, Apollo put his hand on the throttle. “All right, here we go. Three, two, one.” He pushed the throttle all the way forward, giving the engines 100% power. Propelling the airliner down the runway. Every pony in the area was silence as they watched the large plane speed down the runway. Before it got to the end of the tarmac, Apollo pulled back on the yoke, making the nose of the airplane tilt skyward and the rear wheels to lift off the ground. And just like that Equestria’s first airplane, was now flying. The crowd immediately erupted into cheers as the Aspera flew away. ===•••=== 2:50 PM It’s been three hours since Apollo left Cloudsdale and so far, everything has been pretty good. The airliner has been operating normally and he didn’t encounter any bad weather since he is flying at an altitude of 25,000 feet. Fly this high in the sky, gave the human pilot the most beautiful view of the Equestrian landscape. He checked his radar and noticed that he was almost to his destination. In standard procedure, Apollo started his descent. The airplane was flying through the clouds at this point when he got contacted by Air traffic control. ATC: “Aspera, come in, Aspera.” “This is the Aspera speaking. I’m assuming this is Manehattan-Hooflyn International?” ATC: “That is correct. The tower wants to let you know that you’re on the right flight path and you have permission to land. Oh, and you have attracted a bit of an audience.” “How big is it?” ATC: “It’s pretty big.” “Thanks for letting me know.” ATC: “You’re welcome.” A few minutes later, the plane finally got through the clouds, and the air station was in sight. Apollo lowered the landing gear and lined up with the newly built runway. As he got closer to the ground, he was able to see the large crowd that was gathered at perimeter of the airfield. The air traffic controller was right, the crowd is big. But he didn’t have time to worry about that now, he had a plane to land. He pulled the throttle back, slowing the aircraft down and kept it steady until the planes rear wheels touch down on the runway. After the front landing gear was on the ground, Apollo put on the brakes and turned on the thrust reversers. Slowing the plane down until it came to a complete stop near the end of the runway. After the Aspera arrived at the Air station’s hangers, Apollo picked up his bag and disembark the plane. The first thing that greeted him was the flashing lights of more than a dozen cameras. ===•••=== 3:15 PM 20 minutes later. The moment Apollo’s shoes touch the ground, he was immediately surrounded by hundreds of journalists. Somehow, they were even more curious than the ones back in Cloudsdale. Which is why he has been spending the last 20 minutes answering every question they had while trying his best not to spill any company secrets. “I have time for one more question.” He said before pointing at a green sea pony reporter. “You have a question for me?” “Yes, I do.” She replied. “After this amazing achievement, do you and Omega brothers have any plans for the future? And if so, what is it?” “Well, I can’t tell you the specifics. But what I can’t tell you is that me and the brothers are not done yet. The plans we have for the future is going to be just as amazing, if not more, than the Aspera. All you ponies have to do is just wait and see.” Apollo answered before walking away as a few journalists try to get him to answer one more question. ===•••=== 10 minutes later. “Congratulations Apollo, you did it. You prove to the world that jet travel is the future.” Roy said as their limo drove through the city of Manehattan. “No, we did it. If it wasn’t for you two, The Aspera would’ve been nothing more than a drawing on a piece of paper.” “Yeah, but you were the one that started this whole thing in the first place.” Astro said. “True.” “Oh, I almost forgot. Thanks to the Aspera’s first flight, we got a ton of new orders. We even got some from the River Federation.” Roy said. “The Federation?! Holy crap. I knew we would be successful, but not that successful.” Apollo said in shocked. “Success is a major understatement for what we have achieved today.” Astro said as he pulled out a champagne bottle from the cooler. After he filled up three champagne glasses, he passed them out before raising his own. “Cheers, colts.” “Cheers!” The other two stallions said as they tap their glasses together with an audible clink. While they were having fun in Manehattan, the rest of the world was wondering, what are those stallions planning to do next?
A dream of the past and future.February 9 1011 A.G Canterlot Castle. 2:15 AM It was a chilly night in the city of Canterlot, and right now, Apollo was in his office, looking over some blueprints. It’s been almost 5 months since Aspera took off for the first time and since then, a lot of things have been going on in the Aviation world. Ever since the Aspera entered service two weeks after its first flight, the industry was flipped upside down. Creatures around the world were amazed by the reliability, versatility and comfort of the world first airliner. Airlines from every corner of the globe have been ordering entire fleet of planes for months now. Making Omega industries insanely rich. This caused every air station from Rhodesia all the way to the Crystal Empire to build runways and expand their terminals to accommodate the new jets. Thanks to the Aspera, the age of airship dominance was quickly coming to an end. Now Apollo and the Omega brothers were working on the Astra. And so far, things have not been good at all. Development of the Aspera’s supersonic sibling is not off to a good start because it was discovered that the Astra’s design created a sonic boom that was just as loud as Concorde’s. Which is not good if you want a supersonic airliner to be successful. That meant that the company had to redesign the Astra. This is why Apollo was in his office so late. He looked at the new redesign he made on a separate piece of blueprint paper only to crumpled it up and toss it at an overflowing trash bin. He leans back in his chair and looked out of his window to see the beautiful night sky with an airplane flying across it. “What are we doing wrong?” He sighs. At this moment when his office door opened, revealing Luna wearing a beautiful nightgown. “Apollo, what are you doing up so late? You should be in bed right now.” “Lulu, I’m doing something right now. I have no time to sleep. I thought you were in the dream realm.” He replied as his marefriend enter the office. “I was, until I realize your dream was not in there. Which only means one thing.” She said, gesturing to the blueprints on his desk. “Apollo, I know this project means a lot to you, but that doesn’t mean you should drive yourself to exhaustion. It’s not healthy.” “I’ll be fine even if I don’t get eight hours of sleep. I won’t blackout like most ponies.” “You will if you continue to do this.” She said before putting a hand on his shoulder. “Come on go to bed. If you want, you can sleep with me tonight. Who knows maybe you might get a new idea when you wake up.” After thought it over for a moment, Apollo decided to concede. “All right fine. I’ll go to sleep with you.” “Good boy.” Luna patted him on the head before teleporting the both of them to her bed chambers. ===•••=== Apollo opened his eyes and saw that he was standing in a hallway in one of the Omega factory hangers. “Goddamnit, well I’m going to be here for the next few hours so might as well make the most of it.” He walked down the hallway and found a door that lead to the main area of the building. He opened it thinking that he would see one or two Asperas parked inside. But instead, he saw a Concorde parked inside. A British Airways version to be more specific. “Wow.” He said quietly as he got closer to it. Apollo walked underneath the aircraft touched the bottom of its right wing. The last time he saw Concorde in person was 2003 when it took off from JFK for a very last time. The sad day for every aviation lovers out there. Even though this was a dream, this Concorde was still as beautiful as its real life counterparts. Then he noticed that there was another aircraft right next to it. The plane in question has a similar fuselage design, but that’s where the similarities end. The plane is a bit larger and its delta wings were shaped like a compound delta instead of a ogival delta design the Concorde had. If Apollo had to be honest, this plane looked like it was from the future. Like from the year 2030 or something. That’s when he realized that he was looking at the Astra. No, much better version of the Astra. “I need to check this out.” He said quietly. Luckily for him, there was a set of stairs on the left side of the plane. After he got inside of the plane, he looked around and whistled. The inside was just as nice as the outside. After Apollo did a little exploring, he decided to check out the cockpit. He walked from the back of the plane to the cockpit and sat down in the captain’s chair. “I wonder if I could take this bad boy for spin.” It was at this moment when the hanger doors started to open up. Instead of seeing the outside world, Apollo saw a blinding light which made him cover his eyes. He turned his head when he heard the sound of Concorde’s loud engines powering on and saw the iconic airliner moving towards the light. After it disappeared, the light started to envelope everything. ===•••=== 5:50 AM The moment Apollo opened his eyes he slowly sat up in Luna’s bed and thought about the lucid dream he just had. He didn’t know why he had that dream, but he glad he did. He got out of bed, knowing what he had to do. After he got out of bed, Apollo teleported to his office. Apollo turned on his desk lamp and began to draw on a piece of blueprint paper. 10 minutes later, Apollo put his pencil down and looked at his work. The airliner on the blueprint was identical to the one in his dream. He smile, knowing that he may have the solution to his problem. After he put the blueprint in a folder, he teleported out of his office. ===•••=== 7:05 After Apollo arrived in Cloudsdale, he teleported from the air station all the way to factory. As he was walking through the building, he found Patricia writing something down on her clipboard. “Morning, Pat.” He greeted. “Oh, morning Apollo. You know you don’t have to come in the factory until next Sunday, right?” “I know that. I’m here is because I think I found the perfect design for the Astra.” He said as he handed the folder to the gray pegasus. “Hmm, it looks similar to the original design.” She commented before closing the folder. “But it can’t hurt to test it out. Thanks for giving me this.” “You’re welcome. I will see you next week.” “See you then.” After that, Apollo left the factory. ===•••=== Two days later. 11:30 AM Apollo was walking from the castle conference room after a long meeting with a few foreign delegates. He was heading over to the library for a well-deserved break when he heard Atlas calling his name. “Hey Apollo.” “Hello Atlas, what’s going on?” He asked as his identical sibling walked over to him. “I’m here to give you a letter that the castle received a few minutes ago.” Atlas said as he handed the envelope to Apollo. “Thank you.” “You’re welcome.” Atlas said before walking away. After Apollo entered the library, he open up the envelope and began reading. ===•••=== Dear Apollo. I have some great news. A few hours ago, Patricia and her team tested out the new design for the Astra in the wind tunnel and I’m happy to write that it passed with flying colors. The engineering team is predicting that its sonic boom is going to be much quieter than its old design and it’s possible that will be much more fuel efficient as well. As I'm writing this the factory is planning to build a prototype for further testing. Good work, Apollo. I don’t know what inspired you to create that new design, but I’m glad you did. From Astro. ===•••=== “Finally.” Apollo smiled, relieved that the first major hurdle of the Astra project was finally behind them. He didn’t know what was going to happen next, but he is sure that it was going to be smooth sailing from here on out.
Concorde’s worthy successor.October 25, 1011 A.G 7:51 AM It is a chilly fall morning in the cloud city of Cloudsdale, and right now, Apollo was checking himself in the mirror making sure that everything on his pilot uniform was perfect. He had to because today is the Astra’s first flight. Billions of creatures around the world would be tuning in to watch the world‘s first supersonic jet take off for the first time and he didn’t want any photos of him with his uniform looking unprofessional. After he felt satisfied on the way he looked he checked his watch and realized it was almost time for him to go. So, he grabbed his suitcase and left his hotel room for the very last time. After he returned his room key at the front desk, he left the hotel and was immediately greeted by a cold fall air. Luckily, for him, he didn’t have to stand in the cold for long before he saw a black SUV with Omega’s logo on the side, pulled up. After he got in the vehicle and greeted the driver, the SUV drove away. ===•••=== 8:03 AM Apollo looked out of the window and saw the large crowd of creatures surrounding the factory complex. As expected, the crown was even bigger than the one the Aspera had. And it’s not surprising why. Back when Omega industries revealed the Astra to the world back in July, the news spread like wildfire. Airlines were eager to order the jets, CEOs of companies who were struggling to compete against Omega were fuming, and Air forces around the world were foaming at the mouth. Eager to get their hands on Astra. Likely to convert them into military jets. But there were also a few ponies believing that the Astra will never break the sound barrier, let alone fly three times the speed of sound. Which made Apollo eager to show those ponies what this jet can do and prove them wrong. After SUV came to a stop, Apollo came out of the car with suitcase in hand and started heading over to the airstrip. While the press were taking photos of him or trying to shove their microphones at Apollo. It took him a few minutes to get to where he needs to be, but to Apollo, it felt like forever. “God, they’re more energetic than last time.” Apollo said to himself before he looked up at the large plane in front of him. Instead of leaving the supersonic airliner in the hanger until it was time for takeoff. Like they did with the Aspera. Patricia and her team decided to take the aircraft out of its hanger two hours before takeoff. And Apollo is glad they did. This jet was too beautiful to keep it inside. Its paint job is mostly white with a sky-blue stripe that went along the sides of the aircraft, on its tail is Omega industries logo and the cherry on top, Is the aircraft’s name written in platinum color letters on both sides of the aircraft. Just a few windows away from the cockpit windshield. As he got closer to the stairs right next to the aircraft, he noticed a small little detail on the bottom left of the aircraft nose. Right below the cockpit. It said ‘approved by Rainbow Dash’ in gold letters. The statement made Apollo remember how this little Easter egg came to be. Back in June, Apollo gave his friends and siblings the supersonic jet. With the Omega brother’s approval, of course. After seeing the aircraft, Rainbow Dash decided to give her seal of approval by grabbing a piece of paper, wrote the statement down and place the it right next to Astra’s front wheels. When Apollo discovered the paper later that day he requested to have it painted on the plane. After all the world’s fastest airplane just got approved by the world fastest Pegasus. Who wouldn’t want to show that off? “Good luck on your journey, Apollo!” Blaze yelled as he and the rest of Apollo‘s friends from the Royal guard cheered him on. The Royal sisters were also there as well. “Thanks, guys!” He waved at them before going up the stairs and entering their aircraft. After he closed the exterior door, he got in the cockpit, put his suitcase away and sat down in the captains chair. Apollo reached into his pocket and pulled out his walkie-talkie. “Patricia, come in Patricia.” Patricia:“This is Patricia speaking, are you ready to go?” Apollo: “Yes, I am. Are you?” Patricia:”I’ve been ready. Just give my crew a few minutes to remove the stairs.” After the ground crew did just that, Patricia put the airplane tug into gear and slowly tow the aircraft away. When they eventually made it onto the taxiway, The gray pegasus engineer unhooked the towbar from the Astra’s front landing gear. Patricia: “All right, it’s all up to you now. Have fun breaking the sound barrier.” Apollo: "Don't worry, I will. See you in a few days.” ”See you later.” She replied before getting back inside the tug and driving away. After seeing the coast was clear, Apollo put on his headset and turned on all four of the Aircraft’s engines. One by one, four of the most engines Omega has ever built, roar to life. He pushed the throttle up a little bit and started guiding the airplane to the runway. To Apollo’s surprise, airline wasn’t as difficult to taxi compared to its subsonic sibling. A few minutes later, the Astra was finally on the runway. After he got permission to takeoff from air traffic control, Apollo put his hands on the throttle and prepared himself. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JZ-o3iAJv4&pp=ygUWY2FuIHlvdSBoZWFyIHRoZSBtdXNpYw%3D%3D Apollo pushed the throttle all the way up and immediately felt the power of engines pushing the aircraft forward. Just like the Aspera did a year ago, Astra raced down the runway, eventually reaching takeoff speed and the point of no return. “V1, rotate.” The pilot pull back on the yoke, making the plane tilted skyward and lifting off the ground for the very first time. The crowd started the cheer. But this wasn’t what they were here for and Apollo knew this. After he lifted up the landing gear and made a hard left towards the north, the airplane started to climb to its cruising altitude of 60,000 feet. At this height, you can see the curvature around the planet. It was truly breathtaking. ‘Is this what John Glenn and Neil Armstrong saw when they went to space?’ He thought before he cleared his head. It wasn’t here to enjoy the view, he was here to bring a legend back. Billions around the world watched as the plane race across the Equestrian sky. Its four powerful engines were producing large amount of thrust they propelled the jet past the speed of sound. Breaking Rainbow Dash’s record and cementing itself fastest thing to ever be built on planet Equis. Finally, 40 minutes after takeoff, the Astra finally reached its top speed of Mach 3.2. The world stared in shock and awe, while Apollo smiled. Knowing that all the sleepless night and the stress was all worth it. He then took his eyes off the speedometer. “Next stop, the Crystal City.” He said as the supersonic airliner flew into the history books. ===•••=== 10:00 AM it was a cold clear day above the Crystal Empire and right now, Apollo was making his descent towards the Crystal City international Air Station. Usually take on average 6 half hours for the Aspera to fly from Cloudsdale to the Crystal city. On the Astra, it only took two hours, which is a record in itself. In total, the Airliner broken two world records already. Apollo could not imagine what else this thing could do, but for now he needs to focus on landing this thing. ATC: “Astra, this is Air traffic control. Do you copy?” “Loud and clear.” ATC: “Good. You know, you came here faster than we thought. Good job, Astra.” “Thanks. Do I have permission to land?” ATC: “You have permission to land, Astra. Runway two is clear just for you. Oh, and expect a warm welcome when you arrive.” “Good to know. Astra, over and out.” After Apollo ended transmission, the plane finally made it through the clouds and the Crystal city came into view. Once the symbol of the trauma that Sombra afflicted on the Empire has become one of the fastest growing cities in the world. Construction cranes could be seen through out the skyline. As they worked around the clock to help build the various construction projects popping up all over the metropolitan area. One of these projects that the city completed five months ago, is the city’s brand-new Air station. And just like Manehattan, there was a big crowd of ponies waiting for their special guest to arrive. What an interesting time to be a crystal pony. Apollo lowered the landing gear and guided the airplane towards the runway until the rear wheels touchdown on the tarmac. The sound of screeching tires could be heard until the plane came to a complete stop near the end of the runway. When the Astra arrived at the air station hangers Apollo waited a few minutes for the portable stairs to be put in place. After that, Apollo grabbed his suitcase, open the exterior door and walk down the stairs. Where his friends and siblings were waiting for him. “Congratulations Titan, you did it! You broke the sound barrier!” Atlas smiled as he patted Apollo in the back. “Apollo, what you did up there was amazing.” Twilight said. “It was awesome!” Rainbow Dash chimed in. “Oh, so you’re not sad about your record being broken?” Apollo ask. “Not one bit. Even though I am the fastest Pegasus in Equestria, I knew that one day some pony would surpass me one way or another.” “So, what’s next after this?” Applejack ask. “I don’t know. I haven’t thought of that yet.” Apollo answered. “Well, you have all the time in the world now to think about that.” Artemis smiled. It was at this moment when a familiar blue sea pony journalist emerged from the crowd and approached the group. “Is that who I think it is?” Apollo said. “Yep. Mira breeze of the Phoenix Times, at your service.” The journalist replied. “Huh, I never thought we would see you this far North. Not that I’m complaining.” Atlas said. “Of course I would be here. My job is to cover the news, especially historic moments like this. Is it ok if I take a group photo of all of you?” “Of course you can.” Apollo said. After every pony got together for the photo, Mira aimed her camera at them and said “Say cheese.” “Cheese!” They smile before they got their photo taken. Which would be on the front cover of the Phoenix times newspaper later that day. ===•••=== https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa3c9aVGIaU&pp=ygUfaG9sc3QganVwaXRlciBzaG9ydGVuZWQgdmVyc2lvbg%3D%3D Three weeks after its first flight, the Astra officially entered commercial service and became just as successful as the Aspera. This major success encouraged Omega industries to take on more airplane projects, both civilian and military. Even though his partnership with the company ended a few weeks after the Astra started its service life. Apollo stayed in touch with Patricia, Astro and Roy, sometimes even meeting with them from time to time. Despite rival companies creating their own airplanes to compete with Omega’s jets, the Astra and the Aspera held special place in the industry for ushering in the new age of aviation. And eventually became the symbols of Equestrian ingenuity. All of this wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for a certain human with a dream, a dream of a new jet age.
