freenovelworld Chapter 685 This isn't a compromise, it's development based on needs.
Chapter 685 This isn't a compromise, it's development based on needs.
“There are things you can’t make either…” Pang Guoxing looked shocked.
"There are too many things I can't create..." Jiang Xia said with a resentful twitch of his lips, a deep sense of powerlessness welling up in him as he emerged from the rationalization phase.
Yes, it can't be made.
This is not just a problem with one engine, but a chasm in the entire industrial system and technological accumulation. This is also the root of Jiang Xia's depression when he woke up this morning. Not only is the TF34-GE-100 non-afterburning turbofan engine a pipe dream, but even the demanding 47-square-meter large wing suitable for the A-10 is almost impossible with the current level of materials and technology.
Think about it, with a wingspan of nearly 17.53 meters, the wing area would need to reach 47 square meters to meet the A-10's "indestructible" characteristics.
What does a wing area of 47 square meters mean? It means that structural components such as wing ribs, spars, longitudinal walls, and stringers need to be added to the wing and assembled in a wing molding mold to form the wing's unit structure. Then, they are fixedly connected using a predetermined connection method.
Do you think that's the end of it?
No, it still needs skinning, and the wing structure needs smoothing and reshaping. Incidentally, others use flexible skin, but our most advanced J-6 uses aluminum alloy…
Look, there are so many impressive-sounding things inside just one wing, not to mention the turbofan engine.
"Not to mention the turbofan engine..." Jiang Xia rubbed his temples, deciding to explain things more clearly to Pang Guoxing.
"Turbofan and turbojet may sound like brothers, but they are actually quite different. A turbofan is essentially a turbojet with a huge fan and bypass duct built into its core."
He gestured with his hands, regardless of whether Pang Guoxing understood or not, as if trying to force the knowledge into Pang Guoxing's head: "Just making that huge diameter fan blade light, strong, and efficient is enough to cause a lot of trouble. What's more troublesome is that most of the airflow drawn in by the fan (outer bypass) and the hot airflow that has passed through the core engine (inner bypass) must have their flow rate, speed, and pressure perfectly matched to generate huge thrust while saving fuel."
"This coordination process is incredibly complex. Theoretical calculations and models alone are simply not enough. We have to go into a wind tunnel and use real equipment to blow air into it, adjusting it bit by bit!"
"And that doesn't even include the turbine blades that can withstand temperatures of over a thousand degrees Celsius, or the sophisticated electronic control system... So, the turbofan is the most technically complex and difficult part of the engine. As for the turbojet..."
Jiang Xia gave a wry smile, keeping those words to himself: turbojet... anyway, in later generations only a few air-to-air missiles or special experimental aircraft will use it...
Yes, that means that the A-10 drawn by Jiang Xia is even more outrageous than the Dongfeng-113 project for China's current industrial level...
Fortunately, Jiang Xia realized this in time and turned his attention to the Il-28, a jet bomber that still possessed some "cutting-edge technology".
Yes, this "veteran" who is occasionally used as a background figure for New Year's greetings in later generations still has some special skills at hand.
Aside from its ejection seat, bubble cockpit, and swept tail, its powerful firepower—with two 23mm cannons mounted on the nose and tail, carrying 3 tons of ammunition, capable of carrying nuclear bombs and torpedoes—also makes it worthy of modification.
Needless to say, the successful airdrop of the "Miss" declared our status to the great powers the moment the mushroom cloud rose.
In later years, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications even went so far as to use it to transport express packages, truly making it the king of crossover in the world of jet bombers.
So... how should we change it?
Of course, we need to add radar, pulse Doppler, terrain matching radar, digital radio, and so on!
Hey, don't tell me it's difficult. The original navigator's big glass cabin had a good view, but it was too fragile and took up too much space. Why not just get rid of it entirely! The space and load-bearing capacity freed up can be used to fit a powerful pulse-Doppler radar. This thing can effectively filter out ground clutter and specifically target moving tanks and vehicles below.
If the "laser rangefinder project" mentioned earlier yields results, it can be added to guide bombs and rockets.
Oh, and we can't forget the terrain-matching radar. This way, when flying close to the treetops, the aircraft can "see" the terrain undulations and automatically avoid hills. Communication also needs to keep up; we need to switch to digital anti-jamming radios, otherwise, in areas with heavy gunfire, you can shout yourself hoarse and no one behind you will hear you.
Now that the brain is working properly, the second step is to equip it with an even harder and more powerful fist!
Jiang Xia watched as the Il-28 began its ascent in the distance, his gaze fixed on its straight wings. A scanner was projecting dynamic parameters onto his retina.
"It has a large payload capacity and a wide wingspan. Cancel the internal weapons bay and replace it with fuel tanks! Hung all the weapons on the outside! Add several heavy-duty hardpoints under the wings and even under the fuselage."
"In this way, the combat radius can be further increased!"
"Anyway, guided weapons will get bigger and bigger in the future, so we won't have to worry about the size of the fighter jet being incompatible with them when they're mounted on the outside!"
Jiang Xia became more and more excited as he spoke. This modification seemed really feasible! Its original range was over 2300 kilometers, and with this modification, flying 3500 kilometers shouldn't be a dream!
The cheerful little idiot patted the dumbfounded Pang Guoxing next to him, "What are you standing there for! Write it down! If your brain works too fast and you forget anything I said earlier, I'll hang you up!"
"Oh oh oh..."
Ignoring Pang Guoxing's tense expression as he picked up his pen to start writing, Jiang Xia was overjoyed. She even took out a "Tai Sui" from her bag and swallowed it, disregarding that Pang Guoxing was right in front of her.
The rare and precious materials bestowed upon him by his ancestors have now transformed into immense energy, enabling Jiang Xia to utilize virtual space for real-time combinations.
"With brains and fists, and having overcome the problem of short legs, the next step is..."
"That's how you save your life! Hehehe..."
"The idea of the 'bathtub' on the previous drawings is correct. But we don't need to be so extravagant as to use titanium alloy. We just need to weld thick bulletproof steel plates to the key areas around the pilot: directly in front, below the sides, and under the seat!"
They built a simple but sturdy "iron bathtub." This way, bullets from ground-based anti-aircraft guns and heavy machine guns wouldn't kill the pilots outright. They also needed to find a solution for the engine and fuel tank area, adding bulletproof partitions or making it redundant, to prevent a single hit from wiping them out.
"The fuel tank is easy; just make it self-sealing. As for the engine..."
At this point, Jiang Xia put his hands behind his back, turned around, and began to frown in thought, temporarily pausing his voice output.
This gave Pang Guoxing a chance to catch his breath, and he unleashed a barrage of attacks on Jiang Xia, making it difficult for Pang Guoxing to keep up with the recording.
Seeing that Jiang Xia was clearly in the pre-cast animation phase of unleashing his ultimate move, Pang Guoxing wished he had two more hands...
Fortunately, his savior appeared—
Secretary Liu slid in through the door at some point, her hands busy as she took notes and nodded to Jiang Xia.
Several men in Zhongshan suits with four pockets followed Secretary Liu and quietly entered the conference room.
"No, no, the current RD-45F is definitely not good enough. Its thrust is only 2,270 kgf (22.3 kN). What should we replace it with?"
"Got it! Let's switch to the J-6's engine! Hahaha, the modified engine over there has a thrust of 2800 kgf, and it can even reach 36 kN when afterburner is engaged. Moreover, the engine diameter has been reduced, and the weight has been lightened! So, we've subtracted here, and now we can add to the rest!"
The appearance of the "best stenographer" made Jiang Xia's eyes crinkle with joy, and she spoke even more without restraint...
As for those men in Zhongshan suits, he was currently preoccupied with his ideas for modifications and was unwilling to allocate his "calculation" to things like guessing who they were.
"The turret on the tail is too bulky!"
"In low-altitude operations, there aren't many opportunities to face backwards, and that turret is too heavy and has limited effectiveness. It would be better to remove or simplify it, and add the weight saved to the armor and weapons. Keep a basic radar warning device and a device for deploying chaff and infrared countermeasures to deal with possible surprise attacks, which will be enough to save time and effort."
Pang Guoxing paused for a moment, then looked up, wanting to ask Xiao Dai Mao what the chaff and infrared flares were, and what he wanted to ask about the guided weapons in front of him...
Before he could finish speaking, Secretary Liu punched him, choking him back down.
……
"Now, my brain, fists, body, and legs are all taken care of!"
"As for the details, low-altitude penetration..."
Jiang Xia retrieved the scanned data on the Il-28's wings: "The Il-28 isn't naturally suited for low-altitude penetration, but it's not entirely hopeless. Let's investigate whether we can add leading-edge flaps or slats to the wing's leading edge to increase lift and handling at low speeds. Hmm, I saw this on Professor Guo's notebook; this point needs further investigation..."
"By the way, the landing gear also needs to be strengthened and reinforced, so it doesn't break down after a couple of bumps on the field runway. The flight control system also needs to be adjusted and optimized so that it can fly more stably and obediently at treetop height."
"So, after this modification, what do you see?"
Jiang Xia turned to look at Pang Guoxing and tilted his head.
“Uh…uh…” Pang Guoxing stared at the paper filled with words like “radar,” “hanger,” “armored bathtub,” and “chaff,” and was speechless for a moment.
Jiang Xia didn't wait for him to hesitate for long before giving his own answer, his voice filled with the excitement of a newly formed blueprint:
"In this way, it has completely bid farewell to the past! From a bomber that could only lay eggs high above, it has become an 'airborne fortress' that can carry heavy ordnance, fly close to the ground in the dark relying on radar, and deliver precise destruction to the enemy under a hail of bullets, while also being covered in iron armor!"
"Hahaha!" Jiang Xia burst into laughter, all the pent-up emotions in his chest dissipating. He suddenly raised his arms, the pencil and sketch in his hands drawing powerful arcs in the air, finally crossing and overlapping passionately above his head.
"How about it? Modifying it costs far less money and carries far less risk than building one from scratch! Yet, the chances of success are much greater!"
Outside the window, the nine o'clock morning sunlight was generously pouring in, showering Jiang Xia without reservation.
The golden light outlined his slightly thin but straight back, and tinted his flowing hair and the drawings he held tightly in his hand with a fiery golden-red hue.