Chapter 792 AWACS Is Needed
The roll rate of 140° per second is not an amazing number if it is placed in the entire fighter range.
The F16 Mirage 2000 in the distance, the J-10 and Rafale in the near distance, all far exceed this number, and the highest can even reach more than 300° per second in the net configuration.
However, it is obvious that these aircraft are designed with high agility.
For a heavy fighter that is not good at this - in fact, it has always been a shortcoming in the past, this number has improved significantly.
And all of this was recorded by the J-11AS flying slightly behind.
"1121, your roll is very fast, and the roll process is stable, with almost no altitude loss, very good."
Even for top test pilots, they need to rest between two test flight subjects, so the two planes in the sky are taking advantage of this time to communicate by radio.
"I feel that this has not reached the limit of the fuselage's strength, but if the flaperons alone are used, I'm afraid that they will not be able to provide a higher rolling moment."
Fu Guoxiang's voice was mixed with a slightly rapid gasp:
"I will turn 180 degrees first and increase the speed by 100 to try."
At the same time, as the first roll test ended, there was applause in the tower.
Although the current wireless data transmission efficiency does not support the processing of high-definition images, by integrating a set of additional antennas and sensors inside the prototype, some basic flight data can be sent back to the tower in real time.
This improvement is actually dispensable for a smooth test flight, but if there is any malfunction or even an accident during the test flight, it may become the key to solving the problem.
Although this kind of thing has not happened for several years, everyone still has to keep this string in mind.
Once aviation safety is relaxed, there is a high probability that a landslide will occur directly.
"Mr. He, it seems that your aircraft structure upgrade has been very effective."
Chang Haonan looked at the flight parameter curve displayed on the screen in front of him, and his tone became much lighter.
Although He Ming next to him looked calm on the surface, his mouth corners, which were just suppressed when he spoke, still revealed his inner excitement:
"We have actually determined the effect of the aircraft structure upgrade before. Now that we can implement this theoretical effect, we still have to thank you, including Mr. Chang, for providing new technologies and new processes for our Project 11."
Of course, his statement is not entirely false.
The Su-27SM next door, which uses the same aircraft, had its first flight more than half a year ago, verifying the effectiveness of this configuration.
In addition to the improvement of structural strength, which has lifted the restrictions on roll at the flight control level, more importantly, the length of the flap aileron of the new configuration has been significantly increased, almost occupying the entire trailing edge of the wing, so it can participate in roll more actively.
But design is design, and the actual object is the actual object.
Otherwise, the aircraft built by Stan Airlines would not be so difficult to hold.
For China, which has just finished building the basic model Su-27SK, it is very rare that there are no problems after a major structural and process upgrade.
"In fact, Lao Fu feels that there is no problem. In terms of structural strength alone, this aircraft can actually have a lot of margins to squeeze. I heard that Sukhoi is planning to install AL31FU on a Su-27SM prototype to test where the limit is."
AL31FU is the engine used by the No. 711 technical verification aircraft. Compared with AL31F, it has improved thrust and more importantly, it has thrust vector control (TVC) capability.
The body of the Flanker is large, and the installation position of the two engines is far away from the central axis, so the moment of inertia is large.
In the past, the main factor restricting the improvement of roll rate was structural strength, so this problem was not very obvious.
Now, as Fu Guoxiang said, flaperons alone can no longer meet the requirements.
However, everything has two sides.
If the TVC nozzle is installed, the original simple encumbrance can provide torque with one turn.
In this case, the engine position is far from the centerline, which is an advantage.
"Let's do it step by step."
Chang Haonan put his hands behind his back:
"After the WS-10 is completely finalized, the upgrade of TVC capability will definitely be on the agenda."
Thrust vectoring, to be honest, may not be of much use.
But it is better to have it than not.
For high-thrust engines, the thrust-to-weight ratio will not be lost much, and the TVC nozzle will not consume its life when it is not working.
As long as it is used once, it is a big profit.
However, the priority can indeed be put a little later.
After all, China has never had any technical accumulation in this area in the past.
A rotatable nozzle itself is not difficult, but it is difficult to write this thing into the flight control.
He Ming was not urging for it, but just mentioned it by the way when he said this, so the attention of several people quickly returned to the display screen.
After the first test, Fu Guoxiang conducted several more tests in the transonic section at a step length of 100km/h.
As the speed increases, the efficiency of the flaperons on the outer section of the wing will decrease, so the roll rate will inevitably be affected.
However, even at the lowest speed of 1350km/h, it still maintained a level of about 60° per second, far exceeding before the improvement.
"It seems that the four simulated mounts have little impact on the performance of the aircraft..."
He Ming touched his chin and nodded, obviously very satisfied with the test results.
"This is also the inherent advantage of the Su-27."
Chang Haonan replied:
"When we first started Project 11, 601 also studied whether it was possible to consider setting up a conformal fuel tank between the two engines to further extend the range, but later found that the gains did not outweigh the losses, so you have never seen this plan, but added an aerial refueling device."
The best mounting position of the Flanker is placed between the two air intakes in the middle of the fuselage. This is a low-pressure area, so the resistance is very small, and large-sized ammunition is generally hung here instead of under the wing.
If four medium-range missiles of the size of R77 or PL-12 are mounted in parallel, the impact on flight performance is almost negligible.
While the two were talking, the data on the screen also showed that the prototype No. 1121 began to slow down and returned to level flight.
Today's test content has been completed, and it is time to return.
"Mr. Chang, at this rate, the basic flight performance test will probably be completed soon."
He Ming suddenly said:
"The next step is to wait for the delivery of the test bombs of PL-12 and PL-13, and then test the airborne avionics and fire control systems."
"PL-12 should be fine, the 1493 radar itself can cover the entire envelope, but if you want to test PL-13, you may need the early warning aircraft to provide additional target information at a longer distance."
Compared to the TVC that was just mentioned casually, this matter is indeed more important.
This is true for both PL-13 and the entire Chinese Air Force.
"The ring project can no longer be counted on. I heard that David has even begun to prohibit technicians from the 14th Institute of Electronic Science and Technology from approaching the aircraft."
Chang Haonan put on his coat and walked outside to greet the triumphant test pilot, while saying to He Ming who was half a body behind him:
"But the KJ-200, which made its maiden flight at the beginning of the year, has now been equipped with a real radar array. If there are no major problems with the electronic equipment and data links, it will definitely be able to catch up with your test shooting."