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

Chapter 228 I got beaten up! I got beaten up!

Shenyang, Factory 112, runway.

Under each wing of the J-8, a robust air-to-air missile was mounted on the inner side. The red paint on the SD-20 missiles was still wet, making it look particularly impressive. The outer pylons were newly made composite pylons, with a Lightning-10 missile on one side and a PL-8 missile on the other. With the addition of the auxiliary fuel tanks under the fuselage, the entire aircraft looked menacing.

"Our J-8 upgrade set a time record!" Old Gu exclaimed with emotion.

The development of the J-8 was a long process, taking more than a decade, and the modification process would also be lengthy. Unexpectedly, with the help of Northwestern Polytechnical University, it was completed so quickly!

Although it cost tens of millions of yuan to ask Northwestern Polytechnical University for help with the research and development, it has proven to be worth the money. All kinds of problems were considered in advance, and in just one week, the final test flight with the missile will be carried out!
Brigadier General Haidar stood to the side, his eyes filled with anxiety.

"If there are no problems with today's test flight with the missiles, we will fly this aircraft back!"

"Huh? So fast?" Old Gu frowned. "Everyone, we haven't even conducted the final target practice flight yet!"

"We can't wait any longer. Today's test flight is also a transfer flight. We'll fly directly from Shenyang to Chang'an, conduct a test flight at maximum supersonic speed with live ammunition en route, and once everything is fine, we'll fly directly from Chang'an to the plateau, refuel at the plateau base, and then fly directly to our Kamra base!"

"So urgent?"

"Yes, if our intelligence is correct, the Indians will conduct a second aerial reconnaissance tomorrow. We can't let them leave so arrogantly again!"

“Okay. We will send technicians today to your base to carry out maintenance work. That's good, it saves us from having to build a target drone…”

Although the aircraft is newly modified, its subsystems have already been tested. After all, the twin-engine Q-6 in the south has already conducted test flights with live ammunition, and the domestically produced Lightning-20 has also conducted target practice on the twin-engine Q-6. Now, as long as the J-8 airframe is in good condition, there shouldn't be any major problems!

Amidst everyone's discussion, Imtyaz, carrying his flight helmet, strode towards the fighter jet. In the past few days, he had flown the J-8 for more than ten hours. Although the time was not long enough, he had already mastered the basic operation of the J-8.

In this kind of air interception mission, the J-8 is actually just a carrier aircraft, responsible for delivering missiles to the corresponding locations. Simply put, it just needs to be able to fly steadily!
The roar of engines filled the air, and the entire base came alive once again.

"Fox Hunt calling base, all normal, requesting takeoff!"

"Ready for takeoff!"

"Fox Hunt in progress!"

Orange flames emerged from the tail of the J-8. Fully loaded with ammunition and fuel, the J-8 taxied for three or four hundred meters on the runway before taking off.

The engine is different now!

Since it was still fully fueled and had external fuel tanks attached, the fighter jet did not enter supersonic mode. It climbed to an altitude of 10,000 meters, aimed at Chang'an, and began to fly straight.

The straight-line distance is about 2,300 kilometers, which exceeds the original maximum range of the J-8. However, with the replacement of the fuel-efficient engine, the J-8's range has exceeded 3,000 kilometers. This distance is nothing, and there is still extra fuel to test the supersonic flight performance with missiles.

After flying out of Northeast China, Imtyaz jettisoned the auxiliary fuel tank and then calmly turned on the afterburner.

A feeling of being pushed back came from behind. A cone-shaped shock cloud appeared in front of the fighter jet's nose. The shock cloud expanded rapidly until the fighter jet's nose pierced through the shock wave!
Supersonic!
Imtyaz felt the plane as it accelerated. If a tremor occurred, the plane could disintegrate in mid-air at any moment, and he could die in the sky. But he was not afraid. Someone had to test fly it. Old Ba was in a hurry. These subjects had to be flown by Old Ba's pilots!

Mach 1.2, Mach 1.4... When we reached Mach 1.6, the feeling of being pushed back in my back disappeared.

The F404 engine, which weakens at high altitudes, experiences a rapid drop in thrust after speeds exceed Mach 1.6. To continue accelerating, it would have to rely on…

Imtyaz turned on the newly added switch next to the throttle lever on his left.

Inside the machine, a small hydraulic pump in the extra 200-liter alcohol spray bottle starts working, and the liquid is then poured into the nozzle of the air intake. Like a shower head, countless alcohol solutions spread out in the air intake. As the alcohol evaporates and takes away the heat, the temperature inside the air intake drops rapidly, and the air density begins to increase...

Another surge of energy came from my back; the engine, fueled by drugs, began to accelerate again!

Mach 1.7, Mach 1.8...

The plane's speed eventually stabilized at Mach 1.8!
The original J-8 could fly up to Mach 2.2, but under those conditions, it could only carry four medium- and short-range air-to-air missiles, its maximum takeoff weight was not high, and its range was far worse. Now, with the F404 and the use of an alcohol spray system, the speed can reach Mach 1.8, which is already quite good!
Keep in mind, there's also the Lightning-20 missile mounted on the outside! If those external boosters were removed, it might be able to reach Mach 2, but that's pointless.

Shenyang.

"The J-8, with its long-range interceptor armament, has a maximum speed of Mach 1.8! That's quite good, we're very satisfied!" Sami nodded. "Everyone, we must take our leave now. We hope that subsequent fighter jets can be produced as quickly as possible so that we can assemble a squadron as soon as possible!"

"Good, good, good!"

Changan.

For the past two months, Qin Liang has been focused on the research and development of the JF-17 Thunder. Although Professor Sha is in charge of the work, Professor Sha will accept all of Qin Liang's suggestions.

That day, Qin Liang was still in the wind tunnel laboratory, calculating the efficiency of the JF-17's large leading-edge extensions to provide data support for flight control programming, when someone ran in.

"Qin Liang, Qin Liang, the Flight Test Center is calling and asking you to come over immediately!"

"What were you doing in the past? What difficulties did the flight test institute encounter?"

"I don't know, but they were in a hurry."

"Alright." Qin Liang nodded, went out, and mounted... a sidecar motorcycle.

That's right, it's a sidecar motorcycle. He had long forgotten about what happened in Nanchang, but he didn't expect them to remember. They went all the way to send him this sidecar motorcycle. I have to say, the Eastern Post Office is great. They accept such a big package and can deliver to any remote area.

Now, the sidecar has become Qin Liang's means of transportation, but Yang Duo'er is rarely seen on it.

Yang Duo'er has been busy working abroad for the past few months. Qin Liang feels both heartache and longing for his wife.

The sidecar roared as it headed straight for the flight test center. Before it even arrived, the roaring sound in the sky could be heard. When Qin Liang looked up, he almost lost his grip on the handlebars and fell into the ditch.

Damn, that fast?

Just by looking at its slender body, you can tell that this is the J-8, nicknamed the "Handsome Man of the Sky." However... the wingplates on the air intake, the flaps on the leading edge of the wing that have been lowered, and the round and thick missiles hanging under the wing all indicate that this aircraft is a modified version of the J-8 that our side only completed the design a few months ago.

In such a short time, the J-8 was actually built, and it even flew to the flight test institute. Is it going to undergo further type certification test flights?
Even so, there's no need to rush to find me!
Qin Liang calmed himself down and continued driving the sidecar into the flight test institute.

At this moment, the J-8 fighter jet had already aligned itself with the runway and begun to land. So... Qin Liang drove directly onto the runway, riding his sidecar motorcycle alongside the J-8. This scene... was just like a classic scene from Tom Cruise's Top Gun movie, except that his sidecar motorcycle wasn't up to par and he couldn't go too fast.

The J-8 landed with a roar, coming to a steady stop at the end of the runway. The hatch opened, and Qin Liang saw the face of... a Pakistani pilot.

"Hello everyone! Please fill up my plane with fuel, I need to continue flying."

"Don't worry, we will finish the work as soon as possible. Come on, let me take you to our canteen, have something to eat, and rest."

Qin Liang watched this scene with curiosity, and then the director of the flight test institute walked over.

"Comrade Qin Liang, this aircraft was developed with the help of your Northwestern Polytechnical University. It's about to fly over to Pakistan to prepare to intercept MiG-25s, so I called you over to see if there are any instructions or anything like that."

"It hasn't completed its test flight procedures yet, has it?"

"Yes, there are still many subjects to be completed, but time waits for no one. This aircraft just needs to deliver the missiles to the designated airspace," the director said. "Whether we can shoot down the MiG-25 is extremely important to us. According to reliable intelligence, once the Indians have received all the MiG-25s, they will not only cross the border to conduct reconnaissance against Pakistan, but also against our western plateau region, and may even fly as far as Chengdu." In the 1980s, the skies over the eastern plateau region were undefended! After acquiring the MiG-25s, the Indians flew here reconnaissance with impunity, and they actually did fly as far as Chengdu!

Now... Phoenix... cough cough, Lightning-20, is absolutely the best MiG-25 killer!
A MiG-25 flying at an altitude of 30,000 meters? Our missiles fly at that altitude using a high-altitude trajectory! The early Phoenix missiles had a high-altitude trajectory of 28,000 meters, but after the trajectory was optimized, the altitude was increased to 32,000 meters!
Radar warning receiver? This is an active seeker. It doesn't need radar illumination from the aircraft behind it. It doesn't emit continuous waves, so it won't trigger the outdated radar warning receiver on the MiG-25. The enemy won't easily change course at high altitude and high speed, just like a target drone!

"I don't have much to say. The current missiles are sufficient. Of course, we will continue to improve them."

“How can we improve it?”

“Modify its instructions and upgrade it to a data link system.”

The Phoenix missile uses an active radar seeker, which theoretically gives it the capability to fire and forget. However, in reality, since the seeker's maximum search range is only 20 kilometers, it can only rely on inertial flight during the first half of its flight to calculate the predetermined interception point based on the target's flight attitude.

If the target changes direction during flight, the Phoenix missile will definitely not be able to find it.

Therefore, in the initial stage, command guidance is required. The carrier aircraft will also provide the Phoenix missile with timely instructions to correct its course based on the target's flight situation. This can be considered a prototype of a data link.

"Without a powerful data link system, there is no way to win future air battles. Our military needs to popularize data links so that not only carrier aircraft can guide missiles, but even early warning aircraft can guide missiles."

The leaders of the flight test institute widened their eyes. Qin Liang's thinking was indeed quite audacious, with a longer-term vision than anyone else's. The fighter jet was merely a missile carrier; after launch, guidance would be handed over to the early warning aircraft.
That's really bold!

The refueling truck drove up to the side of the J-8 fighter jet. The refueling operator jumped onto the back of the aircraft, opened the cover behind the cockpit, and inserted the refueling nozzle. The refueling location was quite unique.

"Comrade Qin Liang, do you think the Air Force needs the J-8?"

"Ahem, I heard that the J-9 has already started building prototypes. I'm really looking forward to it."

Back then, the Air Force had its eye on the J-9. The J-8 was just a backup project because they were afraid the J-9 would be too difficult to develop. Unfortunately, due to the backwardness of domestic aviation technology, the J-9 did fail. The conservative J-8 project made it to the end. Therefore, the Northern Institute has regarded this as a classic case. Conservatism is not terrible. The most important thing is to be able to develop it!

So, in the competition for third-generation fighter jets, they came up with the J-13 project, which couldn't even compare to the F-16, but it was ultimately defeated by Song's J-10...

Imtyaz returned quickly, having eaten and drunk his fill and used the toilet, and was now full of energy again.

"Good luck, buddy! I wish you great success!"

“Yes, I’m confident!” Imtyaz replied to Qin Liang with a smile, then climbed into the cockpit.

Soon, the roar of the engines began, and in the afternoon sun, the J-8 calmly took off, climbed, and continued its journey southwest.

After parking at the high-altitude airport for refueling, the J-8 continued its flight in the afterglow of the setting sun, and finally, at 8 p.m., it slowly landed at Kamra Air Base.

It was a busy day!
The next day, at dawn, as the eastern sky was just beginning to lighten, the MiG-25 base in India was bustling with activity once again.

Samit Mukherjee lay on the map, carefully measuring each landmark and converting it into binary. Having learned from his previous experience, he no longer trusted anyone else. Only data he measured himself could guarantee accuracy. Trusting those damned guys was a recipe for disaster; they might as well fly to the Imperial Graveyard!

Borges yawned as he walked into the flight preparation room, looking at Summit, who was working with his head down, with great satisfaction.

"Due to the mistake last time, we missed detecting several bases. Therefore, today's reconnaissance flights will follow the same routes as last time, especially those air force bases. We must conduct thorough reconnaissance. We need to know exactly how many Super-7s Pakistan has. Based on the East's production capacity, it shouldn't exceed twenty..."

"Yes, I know. There won't be any more mistakes on today's flight path."

Two hours later, Summit ate breakfast, put on his bulky flight suit, and returned to the MiG-25.

"The fuel tank is full. Good luck. Your next flight may have to wait a while," the ground crew said during the handover.

"why?"

"Because we need to wait for fuel and tires."

At an altitude of 30,000 meters, ordinary K-50 aviation kerosene with a specific gravity of 0.77 cannot be used. Instead, K-60 aviation kerosene with a specific gravity of 0.84 is required. The higher the specific gravity, the higher the flash point. At high speeds, the friction between the aircraft skin and the air generates high temperatures, which could potentially ignite the aviation fuel!
The fuel inside the fuselage might be manageable, but the fuel in the external fuel tanks... Summit remembered the instructor saying that when flying at high altitudes and speeds, you should always pay attention to the fire alarm light on the external fuel tanks, and if you see it, you should immediately jettison the external fuel tanks!

Fuel had to be supplied by the Soviet Union, and so did the specially made high-altitude tires. Even though the West had better tires, the Russians just wouldn't let us use them!

Samite nodded, climbed onto the plane, and fifteen minutes later, the plane roared off the runway, and the second cross-border reconnaissance flight began again!
Apart from contacting the control tower during takeoff, the rest of the time is spent in radio silence. After all, there is no chance of interception in the stratosphere at an altitude of 25,000 meters. This will be a boring and tedious reconnaissance activity!

He had no idea that the Pakistani air force base he intended to scout across the border was making its final preparations for takeoff.

Imtyaz, wearing a full-body compensation-1A suit and carrying a TK-1A high-altitude sealed helmet, walked toward his aircraft.

These are necessary for any high-altitude, high-speed flight. When Dongfang introduced the MiG-21, it also introduced the BKK-3M high-altitude compensation suit and high-altitude helmet that were designed for the MiG-21. However, considering that most flights take place at an altitude of around 10,000 meters, these equipment are only worn when performing high-altitude flight missions.

"Imtyaz, today's interception is crucial. I hope you can live up to expectations and shoot down that intruding MiG-25!"

"Yes, General Haidar, I will definitely complete the mission. Even if it means ramming it, I will bring the MiG-25 down!"

"set off!"

"Yes!"

The roar of the engines filled the air as the J-8 fighter jet taxied onto the runway, with the same payload as yesterday. In fact, these missiles had not been removed; they were simply being tested again today!

"Attention, Fox Hunter, continue climbing along the existing route!"

"Fox Hunt in progress!"

"Attention, Fox Hunter, adjust your course five degrees to the right!"

"Fox Hunt received! Currently climbing to 20,000 meters! Accelerating!"

"Fox Hunter, be alert! Target is 200 kilometers away!"

"Fox received, accelerated to Mach 1.8! Prepare to activate onboard radar!"

At an altitude of 20,000 meters, the J-8 accelerated to Mach 1.8, while the MiG-25 opposite it was at Mach 2.5, resulting in a relative speed of Mach 4.3! At this altitude, the speed of sound has decreased to below 300 meters per second, and roughly estimated, they would approach each other by 1.2 kilometers per second.

After the airborne radar warmed up, a clear echo appeared on the radar screen.

"Fox Hunt has acquired the target, distance 150. Fire control system is calculating launch parameters!"

"Fox Hunt reporting: One hundred meters away, pre-launch preparations complete, requesting launch!"

"You are ready to fire!"

Bang!Bang!
The sound of the pylons detaching rang out, and one second apart, two Lightning-20 air-to-air missiles detached from the inner pylons of both wings, wobbling and falling three to five meters down, before bursting into flames from their tails!
　PS: The weapons that Eighth Master can carry, Eighth Master's high-altitude anti-G suit and helmet, and the Phoenix's throwing-type launch method.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)