Chapter 1192 Birds of Prey Over Kadena

Chen Zhiwei's proposal was obviously a bit too bold.

The detonation engine was indeed too far away for humans at this time in 2005.

However, detonation waves are, after all, one of the most important factors inducing combustion instability in rockets and ramjet engines.

Effectively controlling the knocking phenomenon is of immeasurable significance to many current research and development tasks.

The Sixth Academy alone, in addition to the power of superb projects, also has a liquid oxygen kerosene engine and a liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen engine that are just at the right moment. They are the two core power sources in the next-generation launch vehicle spectrum.

Not to mention, the problem of combustion instability does not only occur in liquid rocket engines...

Chen Zhiwei couldn't help but feel a little ashamed for his dismissive thoughts a few hours ago——

I thought that Academician Chang did not bring resources this time and was simply putting pressure on them.

It turns out that if someone brings a brain, it is already the most valuable resource...

Thinking of this, Chen Zhiwei suddenly had an idea:

It would be best if Mr. Chang can lead everyone directly...

So he directly performed a face change at the speed of light, showing a slightly naive smile:

"That...Academician Chang."

As he spoke, he rubbed his hands eagerly, unaware that his image at this time was moving in a strange direction:

"The proposal just now is of great value... Do you think it would be convenient for you to directly guide our work, so that we can quantify your contribution and directly reflect it on paper..."

After saying this, he added an additional sentence:

"Of course it also includes several other projects in our hospital..."

Although the other party's twist was a bit abrupt, Chang Haonan could also understand the meaning.

Use part of the project resources and the name of the main completion person in exchange for systematic guidance on the work.

This is not an unusual occurrence in research circles.

Generally speaking, everyone gets what they need.

However, Chang Haonan himself was the person in charge of the research and development of hypersonic weapons, and all the results produced under this project will be attributed to him in the end.

Moreover, he has now climbed to the top of the pyramid of the Chinese academic system. There are only two major titles left, namely senior academician and the highest science and technology award, which he has not yet obtained. However, both of them are lifetime achievements, but he has not yet had time to obtain them. It’s not like you can’t get it.

But at this stage, you really don’t have to care about the false reputation.

Therefore, Chang Haonan wanted to refuse at first.

But then I thought about it and felt that this seemed like a good opportunity to learn about rocket engines, which I had not studied much in the past.

What if it is used in the future?

So, I swallowed back the words that were already on my lips:

"Forget about the guidance work... I actually don't know much about rocket engines."

At this point, he noticed that Chen Zhiwei and several people next to him all had expressions of "Are you just having fun?", so he had to explain a little:

"I just learned about some detonation and combustion instability when I was studying the combustion problem of stamping presses..."

"..."

But obviously, the explanation is not very effective.

Chang Haonan had no choice but to pretend to be thirsty and drink water, and then quickly changed the topic:

"Anyway, we'll talk about the guidance later. First, change the frequency of submitting progress reports from once a month to once every half month, and then add some more detailed technical content to the report so that I can understand the specific situation..."

…

Later in the day.

Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.

The sunlight shining through the clouds fell slantingly on the newly laid asphalt runway, baking the neatly trimmed grass on both sides into a shining golden color.

Two fighter jets, which were smooth and sleek in appearance and even looked like flying saucers from certain angles, had just landed and were heading towards the tarmac on the taxiway.

The surface of the fuselage was also illuminated by the setting sun, reflecting the golden light.

Even from a long distance, it can be seen that the two huge letters "TY" are spray-painted on the side of the vertical tail with a huge camber angle.

325th Fighter Wing, 43rd Squadron.

It is also the first unit to receive F22 fighter jets since 2003 and is responsible for pilot training.

Although the world's only fourth-generation fighter has not been officially announced for service, the U.S. Air Force has actually trained about 30-40 qualified pilots.

It only takes a few weeks for the two combat units of the 27th Squadron and the 94th Squadron to be completed and the initial operational capability (IOC) can be officially announced——

It is more than half a year ahead of schedule by the end of 2005.

For a post-Cold War equipment program, it was nothing short of a miracle.

You know, in 2005, the U.S. Air Force was relatively disciplined and could not do anything like modifying standards to force certification.

Therefore, the IOC of the F22 is an IOC with real combat capabilities.

You can even go on duty directly...

On the tarmac, two planes slowly drove into the parking bay under the guidance of the tower. Soon, ground staff arrived in small cars and helped set up the boarding ladder.

At the same time, the fully integrated canopy slowly opened, and the two pilots took off their oxygen masks and flight helmets and climbed out of the cabin.

One of them had gray hair and seemed a little too old for the profession of a fighter pilot.

So after his feet set foot on the ground again, his first reaction was to hold on to the aircraft tractor beside him and take a few deep breaths.

At this moment, the pilot of another plane next to him took the initiative to come over and saluted solemnly:

"General John Jungper, congratulations on completing all the pilot training courses for the F22 fighter jet and you can obtain the flight qualification!"

Jiang Po, the current Chief of Staff of the US Air Force, slowly raised his head:

"Thank you also for your guidance during this time, Colonel Evan Robinson..."

After saying that, he stood up and walked side by side towards the tower. It is a tradition of the U.S. military to some extent that the top commander of the Air Force receives training in driving combat aircraft.

Of course, it is impossible for a dignified second-class person in the empire to really let a sixty-year-old man go to heaven to fight.

So it's more of a symbolic nature.

It’s enough to be able to fly a few times.

And Jiang Po came here specifically for "extra practice" today, and naturally he also had other purposes.

Sure enough, after leaving the crowd, the chief of staff asked Robinson straight to the point:

"Colonel, from your personal point of view, how much advantage does the F22 have over traditional third-generation fighters...such as the Su-27 or the MiG-29?"

As for the combat effectiveness of the new generation aircraft, Lockheed Martin naturally has its own rhetoric, such as being equivalent to a hundred times that of the F15.

But Jiang Po himself was a pilot of the early model of F15A, and he is very aware of the tricks in these propaganda words.

Compared with the manufacturer's propaganda, he still believes in the judgment of front-line pilots.

Robinson hesitated for a moment, then shook his head:

"I cannot give an intuitive judgment, General."

Jiang Po didn't speak immediately, but just showed a questioning look.

Sure enough, after a few more seconds, the colonel continued to explain:

"We have used F22, F15 and F16 for 1 vs. 2, 1 vs. 4 and even 1 vs. 8 simulation training... It can only be said that as far as the aircraft itself is concerned, there is a qualitative change in the performance improvement of the fourth-generation fighter. Even though Facing enemies that are several times larger than ourselves, we can at least achieve some results while preserving ourselves.”

This answer satisfied the Chief of Staff very much:

"So... how much role does invisibility play in this?"

"It's very important, General."

This time, Robinson answered almost without thinking:

"Opponents without stealth capabilities often don't notice until we occupy a superior position and launch an attack. In most cases, we will directly lose 1-2 aircraft... Of course, even if we enter a battle within visual range, the mobility of the F22 It’s also far better than any opponent I’ve come into contact with, but it’s still not as safe as outside the mid-range.”

Jiang Po got the answer he wanted most.

But Robinson wasn't done yet:

"However, the actual environment is different from the simulation after all. For example, enemies with superior numbers will not rush over like in confrontation training. Let us maximize our stealth advantage. Instead, we will use tactics, such as pulling back and forth. Consume our fuel, you know the F22 is not an aircraft known for its range..."

"In addition, stealth is not absolute, especially the sides and rear of the aircraft may still be detected... Even if it cannot be locked, it will alert the enemy. Therefore, if the opponent is too large or has strong ground air defense facilities as support, Then it will be very difficult to occupy an advantageous position in advance..."

"In short, the F22 is very good, better than any fighter jet ever produced in human history, but it is still not omnipotent. We need sufficient numbers to truly take advantage of the full advantages of the fourth-generation aircraft..."

In addition to the obvious highlights such as radar stealth and high maneuverability, another huge advantage of the F22 is the IFDL data link for inter-machine/intra-fleet data transmission.

Not only does it have a wider bandwidth and lower latency than link16, it can share data such as radar detection results in real time. More importantly, it uses directional narrow beams to achieve extremely high electromagnetic concealment, and it is almost impossible for opponents to intercept the target location due to the use of data links.

The greater the number of F22s, the greater the advantage in this regard.

Jiang Po naturally heard that Robinson's implicit meaning was that he was dissatisfied with the purchase quantity of F22.

In fact, he was also dissatisfied.

But there really is no way.

Now these 187 aircraft have been produced with many obstacles. Even if the final assembly line is retained by then, it will be impossible for suppliers to continue to supply more parts legally and compliantly.

So I had to play a word game:

"Believe me, there will be more stealth aircraft in the future..."

Then he changed the topic at the speed of light and asked the most critical question of the day:

"Colonel, do you think the F22 fighter jets are ready for deployment overseas?"

Robinson almost stopped the latter in shock:

"Overseas deployment?"

He confirmed once with a somewhat disbelieving tone.

Due to the special historical and practical reasons of the United States, the threshold for deploying its equipment to allied bases is quite low.

But even so, it still seemed a bit too anxious to be deployed overseas as soon as he entered service.

But as the head of the training unit, he doesn't seem to be comfortable saying no directly...

So I had to reply tactfully:

"Of course there are no problems with the aircraft and the pilots, but the F22's maintenance and upkeep procedures are very different from those of third-generation aircraft. There are no relevant facilities and equipment in overseas bases, and there is a lack of ground staff with sufficient experience..."

But before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Jiang Po with a wave of his hand:

"It's not a long-term deployment, it's only one to two weeks at most. Will there be any problems?"

The colonel lowered his head and thought for a moment, then replied cautiously:

"In the short term, normal flights are no problem, but the absorbing coating needs to be maintained in a professional hangar every 6-10 flight hours at most. If this time is exceeded, the stealth effect will be compromised... Of course, it is definitely much stronger than other models.”

"It doesn't matter."

Jiang Po immediately replied:

"Our original purpose is to provide some deterrence to the Chinese, so during the entire deployment cycle, we may only fly 1-2 takeoffs and landings at most... Besides, if they really can't detect these aircraft at all, the effect will be lost."

Upon hearing "deterrence the Chinese," Colonel Robinson's eyes shone.

At his current age, he will probably be transferred to a leadership position in a few years, so he really wants to do something exciting at the end of his career instead of squatting in this training base all the time——

Although there is nothing wrong with teaching and educating people, the front line is still more open to me.jpg

"If that's it, then I don't think there's a problem."

Robinson finally gave a very straightforward answer:

"It's time for them to feel the true power of oppression..."

Then he asked an additional question:

"In addition...I wonder if you can reveal in advance where it will be deployed?"

Jiang Po glanced at the colonel who was full of fighting spirit:

"The name is to conduct a joint exercise with the Air Self-Defense Force... so it is tentatively planned to be at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa."