Back in 1978, I was admitted to Northwestern Polytechnical University.

Chapter 225 Super 7 completely outclasses F-16!

Morning, half past ten.

Donald McMonagel, carrying his flight helmet, walked toward the F-16 fighter jet that had undergone routine ground maintenance.

Born in 1952, he is not yet thirty years old, but he is already a very experienced veteran!
After completing his flight training at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi, he spent a year at South Hills Air Force Base as an F-4 fighter pilot in operational deployment before moving to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico to serve as an F-15 flight instructor.

Then he entered the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, graduated with top honors, and became the operations officer and chief test pilot for the F-16 fighter jet program, integrating advanced fighter technology!
Judging from his experience, he's a seasoned pilot! He flies over 500 hours every year! Moreover, he holds the dual roles of test pilot and combat pilot!

He has 1,500 hours of flying experience in the F-16 alone, and now he is the best pilot in this flight contest!

Ordinary fighter pilots cannot push the aircraft to its limits. Test pilots can fly beyond the boundaries of a fighter jet, but they do not understand air combat. There are not many pilots who possess both skills and knowledge. McMonagel is one of them!

He climbed into the cockpit, put on his helmet, fastened his seatbelt, and as the canopy slowly closed, he glanced outside, a hint of pride in his eyes.

This was a simple aerial hunt!

With the roar of its engines, the F-16 fighter jet quickly taxied down the runway. It carried no external fuel tanks, only two Sidewinder missiles on its wingtips, allowing it to take off in less than two hundred meters.

"The latest aerodynamic achievement of third-generation fighter jets is the utilization of vortices." On the ground, watching the plane fly away, Chiralk was still there explaining at length: "For aircraft with normal aerodynamic layouts, the vortices generated by the leading-edge extensions can increase the lift of the wings, thereby improving the performance of the fighter jet in all aspects."

"For this wing, is it true that the bigger the wing, the better?" Sabil asked.

"That's natural! However, the leading-edge extensions have a great impact on flight control. Take our aircraft for example, at low speeds, the static stability is negative, and it only turns positive after supersonic speed. This is called relaxed static stability, which requires excellent flight control to control."

"Then the leading-edge extensions of the F-16 aren't big enough. If they started from the sides of the cockpit and protruded outwards, wouldn't the vortex-generating effect of the leading-edge extensions be even better?"

Although the F-16 has leading-edge extensions, they are concave and not particularly large. The F-18, with its outward-protruding leading-edge extensions, would have a better effect on generating vortices, but it would also be more difficult to control.

Upon hearing Sabil's words, Chiralk instinctively assumed that the other party was referring to the F-18, and said with disdain, "That's right, it would be better if it protruded outwards, but that would also require more advanced flight control. The Navy's F-18 is a product of our failure in the air competition back then."

The Pakistanis looked at each other with complicated expressions. Did this mean that the design of the JF-17 Thunder was more advanced than that of the F-16?
"Even if your Super-7 has been fitted with a delta wing and maneuvering flaps, it's still second-generation technology. Without leading-edge extensions, it can't effectively utilize vortex lift," Chiralk continued, eloquently describing how good his aircraft was.

"Look at the tail section again. Our fighter jets have started using all-moving horizontal stabilizers. This maximizes the control surface area and provides the strongest control torque. It can even use differential control to improve the aircraft's roll rate..."

In older second-generation aircraft, most of the tail fins are fixed, with only the long strip at the tail being movable. This makes the control surfaces very inefficient. In new third-generation aircraft, the entire tail fin is movable, which greatly increases the control torque!
Moreover, it can also differentially deflect, one upward and the other downward, thus making the aircraft roll faster. This is something that only fly-by-wire control can tame; hydraulic control is not as sensitive.

The old men present exchanged glances and then nodded in agreement. The JF-17 Thunder of the East also possessed these technologies!
Chiralk was unaware that he had been playing a crucial role in helping the East. At this moment, he watched the planes in the sky gradually disappear, his face beaming with excitement. Unfortunately, he couldn't see the air battle directly and could only listen to it over the radio.

Just then, a voice came through the radio.

"Hunter calling! Radar has detected the target at a distance of 70 kilometers. Preparing to lock on!"

The sudden voice startled Shiralk: "Hunter? Super 7 pilot?"

"Yes."

"How is that possible! Seventy kilometers away, detecting our F-16s? What kind of radar is that?"

What size antenna can the Super-7's nose cone hold? What's its detection range? Even if it has the same performance as the F-16's radar...

There's also the issue of the aircraft's own radar cross-section!

Although the F-16 is a medium-sized aircraft, its radar cross-section is four square meters. The Super-7's radar was focused on scanning the direction of Kalam Air Force Base and quickly detected the target!

"Falcon reports: Target spotted, distance 60 kilometers!"

Then, the F-16 also spotted the target, even later than the Super-7!
Unfortunately, although the F-16 is larger, its nose is flat to pre-compress the air intake below the nose, and its radar antenna is also elliptical. In addition, the Super 7's fuselage is smaller, and the side air intakes effectively shield the fan blades. As a result, the F-16 is at a disadvantage in beyond-visual-range combat!
“Ten kilometers is not a significant difference,” Chiralk said. “On the battlefield, with the support of AWACS aircraft, our F-16s can even turn off their radars and silently approach the enemy…”

This is just self-aggrandizement. Your US Air Force has well-developed early warning aircraft support, do we Pakistanis have that?

Since we only have ground-based air defense networks for guidance, detection distance becomes a very important factor!
The scales in everyone's hearts have begun to tip slowly.

"Oh, damn it, I'm locked on, what's going on?" McMonagel exclaimed in the air. The sound of the radar warning receiver in his headset left McMonagel somewhat bewildered.

On the ground, on the radar screen, the dot representing the Super-7 was rapidly approaching the dot representing the F-16, and the information transmitted back indicated that the Super-7 radar had locked onto the F-16!

After a moment of panic or disbelief, McMonagel reacted, pulled back on the stick and applied the rudder, executing a beautiful 9G overload to shift the flight direction to be perpendicular to the other side!
According to the experience of the U.S. Air Force, to deal with pulse-Doppler radar, simply turn 90 degrees to the side and make the radial velocity of the radar zero, and it will be filtered out as clutter!
It's nothing special...

Damn it, why is the radar alarm receiver still going off?
Locked in, unable to break free!

The Super-7 continued its steady flight, with the radar locked onto the target.

If it's just PDS, which is pulse-Doppler search mode, a side turn will indeed make it disappear from the radar. If it's PDSTT, which is pulse-Doppler single-target tracking, there's a certain chance of breaking free from lock-on, since both are pulse-Doppler systems.

Therefore, to avoid this defect, airborne radar also has a PS mode and pulse search. Without the Doppler effect, there are fewer blind spots, such as targets moving in the same direction and at the same speed, or targets crossing the track.

This mode can only search. Change it to PSTT, which is pulse single target tracking. This mode locks onto the target, making it very difficult for the opponent to escape!

At this moment, the F-16 was constantly tumbling in the sky, creating one high-G target after another. McMonagel had tried his best, but all his actions were in vain, just like the pilots of the Indian Rafale in later generations.

The radar warning receiver kept emitting a continuous, increasingly higher frequency sound, indicating that the other party was rapidly approaching!
"In medium-range air combat, the F-16 has failed!"

Back at the base, upon hearing this, Chiralk's face flushed red: "Just locking onto a target isn't enough to determine whether it's been shot down! Our F-16s are constantly performing high-G maneuvers, which can quickly deplete the energy of the Skyflash missiles!"

Current medium-range missiles are still mostly semi-active guided. The carrier aircraft remains stationary, and the target is continuously illuminated by radar. The reflected echo enters the missile's seeker head, and the trajectory is adjusted according to the echo. Simply put, if the target climbs, the missile must climb as well; if the target dives, the missile must dive as well.

Therefore, the missile will spend a lot of time tinkering with the target, and it will also spend a lot of time tinkering with the target. As a result, the missile's energy will be quickly consumed, and it will eventually be unable to attack the target.

“Then we can open fire at a distance of fifteen kilometers, right?” Sabil’s voice rang out again.

“That’s already close-range combat!” Shiralk said with a grim expression.

Even if you can't beat them, you can't admit defeat verbally!

The F-16's current lack of medium-range air combat capability is due to a combination of factors. Besides the "fighter mafia" advocating energy maneuverability theory and developing close-range fighters, another reason is that in the US Air Force's inventory, the F-16 is considered a lower-end aircraft, a project developed to compensate for the high price of the F-15, which prevents a full replacement. If the F-16 could also fire medium-range missiles, would the F-15 still be relevant?
Therefore, the avionics of the lower-end F-16s are more rudimentary, and they do not have a continuous wave illuminator at all, so they cannot launch medium-range missiles.

Now, due to the lack of medium-range missiles, they are at a disadvantage in medium-range air combat. However, the Americans will not admit defeat. In their eyes, the upcoming close-range dogfight is the most crucial! No matter how advanced the fighter jets are, they cannot avoid entering close-range dogfights. In fact, this is the key to determining the outcome of the battle!
At this moment, after a series of tumbling, McMonagel gasped for air from his oxygen mask. After a few breaths, he switched his weapon system to close-range combat. Hmph, let those damned second-generation fighters experience the power of third-generation fighters!

At this moment, the two were only a dozen kilometers apart, flying head-on and then whistling past each other.

First round over, second round, close-quarters combat!

In the instant they passed each other, McMonagel pulled the lever and began a high-G steering maneuver.

The F-16 only takes 22 seconds to circle once, but now it only takes half a circle to catch up with the opponent. Once the opponent is caught in the head-up display, the opportunity to launch a missile can be obtained!

In close-range dogfighting, the F-16 is the strongest in the world. As long as the F-15 doesn't perform any fancy maneuvers in the vertical direction, it can't beat them!

Turn around, turn around!
The immense G-force pressed McMonagel's body firmly into his seat. His eyes were fixed on his nine o'clock position, turning, turning again! The Super 7 fighter jet appeared in his field of vision!

The other side is quick on their feet! But... it's not enough!

In aerial combat, even a second's delay can mean the difference between life and death!
McMonagel's eyes held a hint of mockery. He was bound to lose if he tried to engage in close-quarters combat with an F-16!

The nose of the aircraft continued to turn, and the target became clearer. If it turned another thirty degrees, it would definitely be able to trap the target!
Twenty degrees, ten degrees, five degrees...

and many more!

Just then, the Super 7 pilot opposite stared at the F-16 fighter jet with cold eyes, as if looking at prey about to be shot. That gaze... could kill!
At the same time, the Super 7 pilot's hand had already pressed the missile launch button on the control stick.

"In close-quarters combat, the Super-7 has the first opportunity to launch a missile!"

On the ground, Chiralk was completely dumbfounded upon receiving this news.

"Damn it, impossible, absolutely impossible! Our F-16s can't lose in close-range combat! According to the data transmitted back from the aircraft, our F-16s are pointing their noses at the target at an angle of only 25 degrees! Your Super-7s are pointing their noses at the target at an angle of 30 degrees!"

The Super-7's instantaneous turning ability is definitely not as good as the F-16's. The pilot had already pushed the Super-7's performance to its limit, but it was still a little short. How could it possibly launch a missile?
“Cheating! This is blatant cheating! The AIM-9J missiles you have don’t even have this capability!” another engineer exclaimed.

"Yes, the AIM-9J missile doesn't have that capability, but the new generation PL-8 missile from the East has a 30-degree off-axis launch angle."

"The PL-8? Is it a copy of the Python-3 missile from the United States? Yes, this missile has a 30-degree off-axis launch angle, but due to the limitations of the head-up display's field of view, it can only reach a maximum of 25 degrees, and even to ensure a high hit rate, it can only reach 20 degrees!"

"That's right, so our Super 7 is equipped with a helmet-mounted sight. This 30-degree off-axis firing capability is not the best, and it will soon be improved to 45 degrees."

Hearing Sabil's words, Chiralk's face darkened even more: "This is unfair! There has to be a comparison using the same missiles. Our F-16s have an absolute advantage in close-range combat due to their maneuverability! Even if the F-16s fail this time, it's not because the aircraft is bad, but because of the missiles!"

"Could you open up the weapon interface and allow us to integrate Eastern helmet-mounted sights and missiles?"

“Of course not!” Chiralk said. “If you abandon our F-16 fighter jets, it will be a huge loss for you! Eastern aircraft are still just second-generation fighters!”

After saying that, Chiralk turned and left. He couldn't say anything else. He had lost in both medium-range and close-range air combat!
However, after walking a dozen steps, he came back: "Of course, if you want to install these devices, that's no problem either. Have the Easterners provide us with all the product information so we can match it!"

"I'm sorry, we don't have that authority."

"let it go!"

Chiralk continued striding back: "We'll be waiting for you to change your mind in America!"

Even the F-16s in the sky, after getting covered in dust, did not continue to land. Instead, they flew away directly, and after leaving Pakistani territory, they found a refueling plane, filled up their tanks, and flew to a nearby US overseas military base.

What a disgrace! But we can't blame them. It's not that the F-16's maneuverability is bad; it's that the Easterners are too cunning!

Having completed its air combat mission, the Super-7 did not return to Peshawar Air Base, but flew towards Kamra Air Base and landed slowly.

After the plane came to a stop, the pilot, Yasser, nicknamed "The Hunter," got off the plane and walked up to Jamal.

"Report: Hunter, piloting the Super-7 fighter jet, has completed all aerial combat missions. Requesting further instructions!"

"Hunter, what do you think of our Super 7's performance?"

"This is a very advanced aircraft! I am very satisfied with it!" Yasser had been flying the Super-7 in the East for some time and had also flown the latest modified version. He was very satisfied with the performance of this aircraft and was even more excited about the upcoming JF-17 Thunder fighter jet!

"Yes, the Air Force is very satisfied with this aircraft and highly agrees with the air combat theory proposed by the East!" Jamal nodded. "We have decided to support the JF-17 project! Please invite our friends from the East to Cheklama; we will have a detailed discussion there!"

Peshawar Air Force Base.

"We won?" Tu Lao asked incredulously, "We didn't even need the JF-17; our Super 7 defeated the F-16?"

"Yes, the victory of the Super-7 means that the second-generation aircraft platform, equipped with advanced weapon systems, is fully capable of competing with third-generation aircraft. However, the foundation of the second-generation aircraft still limits it. Next, we will develop the JF-17 Thunder fighter jet. The maneuverability of this aircraft will be comparable to that of the F-16. Combined with our weapon systems, it will be able to crush the F-16!"

"Okay, Liangzi, we'll do as you say!"

"Next, we need to instill the concept of system warfare in Pakistan and reveal to them our project to develop an early warning aircraft, so that it can become a system and facilitate combat operations."

Meanwhile, the furious American boarded a plane and returned to the United States.

"Hmph, we absolutely cannot let Pakistan continue purchasing fighter jets from the East! We must never let anyone know that they defeated our advanced fighter jets with their outdated ones!"

"It wasn't their fighter jets that defeated them, it was their advanced fire control system, their missiles, their head-on attack capability, and their ability to launch from off-boresight...etc!"

The American suddenly remembered something: "If I remember correctly, when the United States exported Python-3 missile technology to the East, it imposed restrictions, stipulating that the East could only use this missile themselves and could not export it!"

Chiralk's eyes lit up: "Change course immediately and head to the Kingdom of David. We need to have a good talk with the people of David and put pressure on the Easterners! As long as these missiles aren't provided to Pakistan, they'll have no choice but to purchase our F-16s!"

"Yes!"

(End of this chapter)