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

Chapter 244 The combination of J-8 and Super-7 is so powerful
September 22, 1980, early morning.

The Shobia Air Force Base was bustling with activity, as large numbers of ground crew members moved back and forth, attaching missiles and bombs to the wings and undersides of fighter jets.

Since these fighter jets have a long range, they don't need to carry external fuel tanks; they can be used entirely for carrying weapons and equipment.

The Super-7 fighter jet's outer pylons are loaded with PL-5 missiles for self-defense, while the inner and belly pylons are full of bombs, exuding a sense of power.

The four milky-white Lightning-20 air-to-air missiles beneath the wings of the J-8 fighter jet inspire confidence.

Wearing a flight suit and carrying a flight cap, Reyer strode towards his fighter jet. He circled the aircraft once, then signed the handover documents with satisfaction before boarding the plane.

Having completed flight preparations, Reyer shouted into the radio, "Skyhawk calling tower, requesting takeoff!"

"Ready for takeoff!"

Four J-8 fighter jets formed a four-aircraft formation and took off first. Following them were sixteen Super-7 fighter jets. After all of them took off, the large formation flew towards the boundary at an altitude of 1,000 meters, and then descended to low altitude to fly towards the target!
Meanwhile, within Iraq, fighter jets were constantly taking to the skies from various air force bases, thus launching a large-scale offensive operation!
Central Langtuo, Isfahan.

As the first rays of sunlight shone down in the morning, Minuseper appeared at the air force base. He looked at the two Tomcat fighter jets waiting on the tarmac with a hint of worry on his face.

“We recently received news from the Easterners that Izvestia is urging them to deliver their fighter jets as soon as possible. This suggests that Izvestia may be planning a large-scale operation, and we must be on high alert,” Minuseper said. “The pilots on duty should also be ready to sortie at any time. Let’s not stay in the duty room, let’s get on the planes!”

"Yes!"

Inside the duty room, two pilots and two radar officers were on high alert. Upon receiving the order, they immediately grabbed their flight helmets and strode out.

Combat readiness duty is divided into different levels. The ordinary level is to wait in the duty room and run to the aircraft immediately when needed. The next level is to sit on the aircraft and wait. The highest level is to sit on the aircraft, start the engine, and wait, which is the way to take off directly.

The pilots and radar officers had just settled into their cockpits when the air raid sirens wailed throughout the base.

"Radar detected four targets 100 kilometers away!"

"Quickly, take off!" Minuseper shouted.

The roar of the engines soon filled the air as the two WP-15 turbojet engines started up in succession. The lead pilot, Moratti, quickly taxied the aircraft onto the runway, and amidst the roar, the fighter jet took off rapidly.

The wingman pilot also tried to taxi his plane over, but... a malfunction indicator light appeared on his instrument panel.

"Damn it, variable sweep wing malfunction!" the pilot yelled in frustration.

The variable-sweep wings endowed the Tomcat with formidable combat capabilities, but also made it extremely complex to operate, frequently resulting in inexplicable malfunctions. And now…

Upon hearing the report, Minuseper was furious: "What are our ground maintenance personnel doing?"

They messed up at the crucial moment!

"General, half of the ground crew originally responsible for maintaining the variable-sweep wings have already fled to the United States, and the other half are in prison. We're learning on the job..." The subordinate was somewhat uneasy.

Although a year has passed since the domestic turmoil, the Air Force has still not recovered. Those experienced pilots and ground crew have either gone to the United States or gone to prison. Those who remain are not very skilled! If it weren't for the experience of cooperating with the East during this period, they probably wouldn't even be able to assemble a complete maintenance squadron.

"What are you waiting for? Drag more tomcats out of the hangar right now!" Minuseper gritted his teeth. "I refuse to believe that all those tomcats are bad! Hurry up and get ready, I'm going to change into my flight suit too!"

With insufficient ground crew and pilots, Minuseper decided to take matters into his own hands!
At this moment, Moratti had already piloted the Tomcat away from the base, with the two WP-15 turbojet engines at the tail releasing surging thrust, propelling the fighter jet to climb rapidly, and climb even higher.

In air combat, altitude and speed are crucial regardless of the distance at which the attack occurs! The afterburner of the WP-15 turbojet was already at its maximum, allowing the Tomcat fighter to quickly seize the attack position.

In the rear cabin, the radar officer had already turned on the radar, which would be ready to operate normally after a few minutes of warm-up.

When talking about radar, some people say that Russian radar uses vacuum tubes, while Western radar uses transistors and integrated circuits. In reality, the later processing circuits of radar can be made into transistors or integrated circuits, but the front-end transmitter, unless it is an active phased array radar, must require a radar tube. This is a special vacuum tube that needs to be preheated before it can work.

Of course, it only takes a minute or two. The warm-up can be completed during their ascent. Once they reach the launch position, they can lock onto and attack as soon as they spot the target!
but……

When the urgent sound of the radar alarm receiver came through their headphones, both of them were dumbfounded.

what's the situation?
We were locked on right after takeoff?

"Sleepyhead report, Sleepyhead report, I've been locked on by enemy aircraft!" Moratti shouted into the radio. "I'm about to make a breakaway maneuver!"

As Moratti called out, he began to turn to the side. As a pilot who had not received training in the United States, Moratti's movements were slightly rusty. He struggled to turn the fighter jet ninety degrees, but the sound of the warning receiver in his headset was still echoing.

what happened?

"The radar is warmed up!"

Moratti gritted his teeth, turned the plane back again, pointing it at the incoming airspace in the distance, and then...

The radar officer exclaimed in alarm: "A large number of enemy aircraft are approaching at low altitude! They are 30 kilometers away. Calling base! Calling base! Prepare for air defense immediately! Prepare for air defense!"

These damned guys actually resorted to sneak attacks!
At this moment, Tomcat fighter jets were being towed out of the hangar. The first one had reached the end of the runway, and the last one had just come out of the hangar. After receiving the news, Minuseper did not hesitate at all and immediately stepped onto the plane.

"General, no, the missiles haven't been deactivated yet!" shouted the ground crew pushing the missile vehicle.

"It's too late! A machine gun will do!"

Loading ammunition will take time!
At a distance of 30 kilometers, for a low-altitude, high-speed fighter jet penetrating the enemy's defenses, if it flies at 300 meters per second, that's only 100 seconds, less than two minutes! Our ground crew is too clumsy; even if they only carry two Sidewinder missiles, it would probably take more than two minutes.

That's too late!

Once, aircraft designers believed that fighter jets did not need cannons, and that missiles were enough. However, the painful experience of the Vietnam War taught them that it was impossible to do without cannons, since the missiles at that time were too poor in performance.

And so, the machine gun is back!
As the first third-generation fighter jet, the F-14 was equipped with the American-made M61A1 "Vulcan" 20mm six-barrel cannon, with 675 rounds of ammunition. As an experienced pilot, Minuseper was confident that he would fire less than 100 rounds each time he fired, which would give him six opportunities to fire, enough for him to take down six enemy aircraft!

We must do it!
Minuspel climbed into the cockpit, and before even the radar officer in the back seat could follow, he had already closed the canopy. Close-quarters combat didn't require a radar officer!

The two engines started in sequence, and Minuseper released the brakes and began to taxi. At this time, the sound of anti-aircraft guns could be heard around the airport.

The enemy planes have arrived!

Take off! Take off quickly!
Minuseper was very confident in his fighter jets; once they took to the skies, the sky was his!
Glide, lift the front wheel! The rear wheel leaves the track, a feeling of lightness washes over you, and from then on, the sky is yours!

"General, watch out behind you!" Just then, a shout came through the headset. Minuseper was startled and immediately pulled back on the stick and applied rudder. Although they hadn't gained altitude yet, he was confident in his aircraft! At the same time, a series of flares were launched.

A milky-white missile grazed past his plane. Minusepel glanced at it from the side of the cockpit and thought to himself, "Thanks to the powerful engine, otherwise my plane would never have had a chance to take off!"
boom!
Just then, an explosion was heard, followed by the fire alarm light on the dashboard in front of us.

Clearly, the Izvestia Air Force was very wary of the powerful Tomcat fighter. So, the first Super-7 that flew over to bomb the base immediately dropped its bombs and launched two PL-5 missiles at the Tomcat's rear after spotting the Tomcat preparing to take off on the runway!

The first Thunderbolt 5 was thrown aside, but the second Thunderbolt 5 accurately hit Tomcat's engine!

Minuspel's heart sank. Those damned Itau people! If he had just ten more seconds to get his plane to a certain altitude, he could have taken them down! Now... he'd been attacked the moment he left the runway. These guys had won unfairly, unfairly!

Filled with resentment, Minuseper struggled to pull the control stick, leveled the aircraft, and then pulled the ejection pin above his head.

The canopy flew off his head, and then, flames flickered beneath his rear as Minuspel's body was lifted from the cockpit along with the seat. Despite the immense G-force, he still struggled to keep his eyes open, watching the flames rise around him.

Ito's fighter jets attacked their base! One after another, Tomcats ready for takeoff were destroyed on the runway! These powerful fighter jets are being turned into scrap metal.

I'm not reconciled! I'm not reconciled!
But... what good is being unwilling to accept it?

Once he was out of the fighter jet, he became a weakling, unable to do anything!
The reason for the defeat was not the poor performance of the fighter jets, but the lack of sufficient ground crew and pilots! Now that the war has begun, those people imprisoned in jails must be released!

Above him, the umbrella opened, but Minuseper was still lost in thought.

What about Moratti? Are Moratti and his radar officer still alive?
Suddenly, a fireball burst open in the distant sky.

After realizing he couldn't break free of the lock-on, Moratti simply flew head-on towards them and took them down!

During his flight, the radar officer in the rear cockpit was working feverishly to lock onto the target and launch missiles, but... before he could even jettison the massive Phoenix missiles, the missiles from the other side were already flying over.

The missile body is large, with four delta wings, and looks exactly like their phoenix!
Moratti performed high-G maneuvers and barely dodged the first missile, but... the second missile hit his plane precisely.

The missile's warhead was so massive that countless linkage warheads penetrated the cockpit, leaving neither of the two men with a chance to eject. They died inside the cockpit, turning into fireballs along with the aircraft.

Langtuo suffered heavy losses in this sneak attack!
The Super 7 dropped its bombs, arrogantly flapped its wings, and flew away. Several fighter jets even swooped down and strafed the crowd fighting the fire on the ground!
Four J-8 fighter jets circled and flew arrogantly at high altitude until the Super-7s dropped all their bombs and left, at which point they returned to base.

The ground was ablaze with fire, and filled with terrified screams.

Minuseper landed on both feet and, after a moment's hesitation, threw himself into the base's rescue efforts.

"General, more than forty of our Tomcat fighters have been destroyed..." his subordinate said, his voice trembling with tears.

"Yes, we still have more than thirty aircraft. Immediately restore the base and the runway. We'll fly over this afternoon and launch a counterattack!"

"Yes!"

At the same time that the Isfahan airbase was bombed, the capital of Iran, Tehran, was also bombed.

Air raid sirens echoed throughout the city, leaving its residents stunned. They ran out of their homes in a daze, watching people scatter in the streets, unsure of where to go.

Langtuo has been peaceful for decades. Even the unrest last year was just internal turmoil, at most involving the police. What's going on with this sudden air raid siren?

A whistling sound came from the sky. A citizen looked up in alarm, his eyes filled with terror. He saw a shooting star streak across the sky, passing over the city and heading towards the suburbs...

boom!
A fire was seen in the distance; judging by the distance... it must be at least three kilometers away from the city.
The next moment, another meteor streaked across the sky, crashing into the city and landing near... the embassy that had attracted global attention last year.

boom!
Fire, explosions, blood, death... the most terrible war has arrived!
The citizen crouched in a corner, trembling, with his hands covering his head.

After an unknown amount of time, the explosions subsided, and the entire city was left in ruins.

An underground command post in the suburbs near the capital of Yituo.

Shadama held the battle report, grinning from ear to ear.

"Good, good, good! Our air raid was a great success! All the targets have been destroyed!"

"Should we press our advantage and take off again with our fighter jets when they return, to bomb a few more rounds?" Hamid asked.

“No.” Shadama shook his head: “What’s blocking our way is just a thin layer of paper. Now, it’s time for the ground troops to be deployed!”

Hamid was somewhat worried. This one round of bombing had only destroyed the weapons and equipment at the enemy's airfield. They still had a lot more combat reserves, so it would take several more rounds of bombing!
Now is the perfect time to press our advantage!

He hesitated for a moment, then spoke again: "Then let the other units remain stationary, and let our J-8 and Super-7 formation bomb again? Those units are already prepared."

"Alright, let them attack again!"

The sortie rate of fighter jets is also an important indicator of their performance.

Fighter jets are not like trucks, where you can unload and reload. They require various routine checks and maintenance. Fortunately, fighter jets produced in the East place particular emphasis on sortie efficiency. When the jets return, routine checks are performed, and any faulty parts can be replaced directly. In some cases, the engines of a few aircraft may have problems, so they can be removed and replaced with spares. The efficiency is quite high.

The pilots disembarked, took care of their personal matters, and then boarded the plane again to prepare for the second attack.

Isfahan.

The remaining Tomcat fighters were towed out, refueled, armed, and ready for takeoff.

Minuseper stepped into the cockpit, but before he could even start the engine, the piercing air raid siren blared again!
This time, the enemy's J-8 fighter jets were about 100 kilometers behind the bombing formation. By the time the J-8s began to climb, the formation of Super-7 fighter jets had already reached the target area. They flew over the bombed-out anti-aircraft artillery positions and dropped bombs on the Tomcat fighter jets on the tarmac...

"Oh, damn it, don't pull me! I want to go up! I want to go up and fight them!" Minuseper was dragged away by two loyal subordinates, still furious. The missiles were already loaded, and they could take off to meet the enemy!
But... there was no chance at all. The enemy came too fast this time. No one expected that the Soviet Union would launch a second sneak attack in such a short time. According to the Soviet training method of the Soviet Union, the second bombing would not happen until at least the next day!
Explosions rang out one after another, and the second batch of Tomcat fighters were blown to pieces again. This time, apart from the dozen or so Tomcats in the hangar that were not properly maintained, all the other aircraft were destroyed!
On the first day of the war, the strength that Iraq displayed shocked the world. It seemed that Iraq had become the world's fourth strongest military power overnight. In particular, the combination of J-8 fighters and Super-7 fighters became the most eye-catching force in this surprise attack.

Numerous military commentators have noted the advantages that the combination of these two types of fighter jets brings.

The J-8 was responsible for high-altitude cover, while the Super-7 was responsible for low-altitude penetration. The close cooperation between the two brought the strongest combat power. In fact, high-altitude, high-speed interceptors have once again come into the sights of many air forces. Many military experts have repeatedly studied the bombing of the Isfahan base and summarized the lessons learned from various successes and failures.

　P.S.: Let this guy who died on the battlefield show his face.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)