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

Chapter 246 The Americans Came to Ask for Advice? Their ATF Plan Was a Deception!

Autumn is the season of harvest.

Everywhere was golden. In the rice paddies, golden rice ears swayed in the wind, and on the trees, the leaves began to slowly turn yellow, swaying gently in the breeze.

At Northwestern Polytechnical University, countless students carrying books hurried past in the corridors. For them, life in the ivory tower is intense and fulfilling.

“Northwestern Polytechnical University is truly an amazing place!” Ben Richie exclaimed.

“That’s right, the Super-7 and J-8 were both designed or improved by them. This is clearly a university, but its design capabilities are more impressive than many large aerospace technology companies!” Dick Taylor said with emotion. “Our supersonic cruiser was developed in cooperation with them. Their thinking is very advanced.”

"Hmph, we at General Dynamics have never had any faith in the East. Coming here is destined to be fruitless." Chiracel shook his head; the failure to sell the F-16 still lingered in his mind.

Ben-Rich smiled and said, "Chiracl, facts speak louder than words. The energy maneuver theory is indeed very important, but... the start of this Iran-Iraq War also shows that high-altitude, high-speed travel is not outdated. Let's go to the aeronautics building."

The three men, representing Lockheed, Boeing, and General Dynamics respectively, came together for only one reason!
Having just returned to Northwestern Polytechnical University from the capital, the three of them came over. Qin Liang could only sigh that the Americans' strength was not without reason; they were very good at learning and summarizing!
Conference room in the Fifth Department Building.

"Last week, a conflict broke out between Iran and Iraq. In the air battle, the J-8 used its high-altitude and high-speed advantages to suppress the enemy's base fighter jets with long-range air-to-air missiles and provide air superiority. Meanwhile, the Super-7 fighter jets carried out ground bombing at low altitude. The two cooperated very well and destroyed almost all of the Tomcat fighter jets on the runway."

After exchanging pleasantries, Ben Rich brought up the matter: "Qin, how does Northwestern Polytechnical University view the situation in this battle?"

Qin Liang smiled and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, high altitude and high speed will never be outdated! With the continuous advancement of missile technology, the engagement distance in air combat will gradually increase. In the future, close-range dogfights will only appear at air shows, like a performance in a circus..."

"No, impossible! Close-range combat will always have its place. No air battle can be completely resolved at a distance. In many situations, it's impossible to resolve a battle at a distance, such as when close-range visual observation is required. On the battlefield in Vietnam, our fighter jets suffered because they lacked close-range combat capabilities!" Chiracl objected.

Qin Liang smiled. He was talking about the experience of the future! When the Rafale fighter jets intercepted the PL-15 with a 100% interception rate, the close-range dogfight that the backward side imagined would simply not happen! Air combat would become a performance like a computer game, and the side with inferior electronic technology would only be passively beaten.

“Yes, long-range air-to-air missiles have very poor maneuverability. As long as the target is prepared and the pilot is experienced, it is easy to shake off those missiles with only 17G overload,” Dick Taylor added.

Qin Liang smiled: "Alright, since you disagree, then you're right, Mr. Dick Taylor. Our Sonic Cruiser project has been progressing steadily. This passenger aircraft will be the most important cooperative project between our two sides. Next..."

Qin Liang decided to change the subject.

So, the others awkwardly listened to Qin Liang's incessant rambling for half an hour. After finishing his third cup of tea, Qin Liang finally spoke: "Everyone, today's meeting is adjourned. We..."

"Qin, shall we continue our previous topic?"

"Just now? What was the topic?"

"The question is whether long-range air combat will replace close-range dogfighting..."

"Oh, well, you're right. Come on, let's go eat! Autumn is when the sheep are at their fattest and most delicious; the mutton is best at this time of year..."

"Ahem, Qin, we want to hear your opinion. Chirac, stop sticking to your old theories!"

Chiracl's expression changed: "The theory of energy mobility will never be outdated..."

"Let's go, everyone, let's go eat!"

“No, no, Chiracl, if you still want to join our advanced tactical fighter program, then shut your mouth!” Ben Ritchie snapped.

So they came here for the ATF project after all!
The US military has always pursued leading technology. Every upgrade of fighter jets was proposed by them, cough cough, only before stealth aircraft. When it came to sixth-generation aircraft, they were far behind us.

In the 1970s, while the U.S. military's third-generation fighters were still undergoing testing, the U.S. Tactical Air Force Command proposed a development plan for a next-generation fighter. This continued until the early 1980s, when Russia's third-generation fighters were gradually taking shape, and the MiG-29 and Su-27 were about to enter service. The U.S. military then began to raise the requirement for a new generation of air superiority fighters as a replacement for the F-15.

Although the Russians define the MiG-23 and MiG-25 as third-generation fighters and the MiG-29 and Su-27 as fourth-generation fighters, that is just self-deception, just to avoid a generational gap on the battlefield. In the eyes of the Americans, the MiG-21 to the MiG-25 all belong to the same generation.

The new technologies for fighter jets were first proposed by the Americans, who developed advanced fighter jets. The Russians, on the other hand, would propose even more advanced specifications based on the specifications of the American aircraft, striving to build advanced fighter jets that could suppress American aircraft.

For example, the Su-27 was designed so badly that its prototype could not suppress the F-15 that its chief designer, Simonov, decided to scrap it and start over!
The final target was achieved, but... the service entry time will be five to ten years later! This means that on the battlefield, the Americans will always have the advantage of generational difference, using third-generation aircraft to fight second-generation aircraft, and fourth-generation aircraft to fight third-generation aircraft... The Russians were not willing to accept this, so they simply reclassified the generations themselves, taking out the MiG-23 and MiG-25, which are still high-altitude and high-speed aircraft, and treating them as third-generation aircraft.

The name can be changed, but the performance cannot. On the battlefield, it is still being suppressed by Western third-generation fighters.

Now, the Americans are going to develop a fourth-generation fighter jet. What exactly are the standards for this fourth-generation fighter jet?
Stealth technology, short takeoff and landing, supersonic cruise... these technologies are already established, but what else is there? The air battles that broke out in the Iran-Iraq War prompted the humble Americans to come to the East to learn from their experience!

When faced with their questions, Qin Liang didn't hold back; he had to lead them astray!
The high-altitude, high-speed metric is outdated! Third- and fourth-generation fighters prioritize maneuverability. Even fourth-generation fighters with supersonic cruise capability still have super-maneuverability as a metric! As for top speed... that's not a big requirement.

Look at the Flying ...

Even the F-22, which prioritizes air superiority, has a maximum speed of only Mach 2.25, and it's unclear whether this figure is accurate.

With the advent of sixth-generation fighters, high-altitude and high-speed flight seems to have returned, but that only came about when avionics technology reached its peak. Don't even think about it now.

Since it can't be achieved in a short time, we have to keep fooling them!

"Qin, please state your opinion."

"As I just said, high altitude and high speed will never be outdated," Qin Liang said. "Higher speed and higher altitude mean greater advantages."

"What advantage?" Chirac asked, completely ignoring Ben Ritchie's warning.

"The advantage of altitude is gravitational potential energy, and the advantage of speed is kinetic energy. You keep talking about energy mobility theory, but you don't even know where this energy comes from?" Qin Liang cast a disdainful glance at him: "To be honest, someone of your level would better just shut up and avoid making a fool of yourself."

"you!"

The fighter jet mafia was actually looked down upon!

Before Chirac could retort, Ben Ritchie's face turned icy: "Chirac, if you say another word, you can forget about joining our ATF program. I'm not joking! Qin, you continue!"

"That's all I have to say. Nothing more to add."

Dick Taylor spoke up: "Qin, if you want to achieve high-altitude, high-speed performance, you have to sacrifice other performance aspects. Trying to achieve both... I'm afraid it will be very difficult."

"What's so difficult about that? It's a variable-sweep wing!" Qin Liang said. "It can handle both high altitude and high speed, as well as close-range combat. We say that high altitude and high speed will never be outdated, but we don't say that we can't do close-range combat. It's just that some people are stubbornly sticking to the old ways."

"you!"

"Chiracl, shut up!"

This guy caused a lot of trouble for his side in his efforts to promote the F-16. Now that we've seen him, of course we should kick him while he's down!
Seeing the guy's frustrated expression made Qin Liang feel quite satisfied. "Variable sweep wings can indeed achieve both, but they bring structural weight, which is somewhat counterproductive," Dick Taylor said.

Grumman is most adept at using variable-sweep wings, and the Tomcat fighter jet destroyed this time was their masterpiece!

Chiracle wanted to say that the variable-sweep tomcat was getting utterly crushed, but... Ben Ritchie seemed genuinely angry, so he suppressed his rebuttal.

"You can't have your cake and eat it too. Variable sweep wing fighters are powerful and unparalleled." Qin Liang said, "Don't be fooled by the fact that Langtuo suffered losses at the beginning of the war. That was only because they were caught off guard. Once Langtuo reacts, especially once they release their experienced pilots, they will gradually gain air superiority. Variable sweep wing fighters will become the kings of the skies."

"Just kidding, Langtuo's Tomcats have already been destroyed, and the few remaining ones are all junk and can't be of any use."

This time, Qin Liang wasn't angry. He just looked at Chiracler with a smile and said, "Mr. Chiracler, shall we make a bet?"

"What bet?"

"On the Iran-Iraq battlefield, variable-sweep wing fighters will shine. If I lose, I, Qin Liang, will leave the East and go to my father-in-law. If you lose, you just need to issue a public statement admitting that your energy maneuverability theory is too one-sided and that high-altitude, high-speed will never be outdated. How about that?"

“Okay!” Chiracl agreed immediately.

He knew that Qin Liang was a rare talent, and Ben Rich had been racking his brains to get Qin Liang to the United States. Now, this gamble, regardless of winning or losing, would be beneficial to his side, so he agreed!

Sure enough, Ben Richie's eyes were sparkling.

"Qin, besides variable-sweep wings, do you have any other technologies?"

None of these companies are familiar with this technology!

Qin Liang pondered for a moment: "If we don't use variable sweep wings, then in order to improve high-altitude and high-speed performance, we can only use variable cycle engines."

Ordinary engines are single-mode engines; a turbojet is a turbojet, a turbofan is a turbofan, and a ramjet is a ramjet. A variable cycle engine, on the other hand, combines these engine types.

For example, during takeoff, all the air intakes are open, and the engine is in turbofan mode. However, at high altitudes and high speeds, the bypass duct of the turbofan not only fails to provide stronger power but also generates more drag due to its larger frontal area. At this point, the bypass duct can be closed, leaving only the core engine, and the turbofan can be switched to turbojet mode.

At even higher speeds, the incoming airflow is directly compressed, rendering the compressor in the core engine redundant. The intake air can be directly introduced into the combustion chamber through pipes, burned, and then ejected, thus transforming it into a ramjet engine mode.

These technologies are theoretically the best, but in practice they are the most complex.

Therefore, so far, the only mature one is the Blackbird's engine.

Pratt & Whitney engineers creatively devised a combination of turbojet and ramjet engines. By adding six extra pipes to the outside of the engine, they achieved the goal of directly injecting airflow into the combustion chamber from the front, turning the turbojet engine into a ramjet engine.

Although the MiG-25 can fly at Mach 3, it can only fly for a short time, as its engine will burn out if it flies for too long. The Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft, on the other hand, can fly at supersonic speeds of Mach 3 or higher for extended periods, and can even fly at Mach 3.5 or higher. What's better is that it is more fuel-efficient when flying at this speed than when flying at low speeds!

As for the second one, when bidding for the ATF project, GE's YF120 variable cycle engine suddenly appeared. Compared to the previous six pipes, it was simpler and used a bleed valve, or bleed ring. At this time, GE's engineers should still be racking their brains to come up with the idea of ​​variable cycle.
"Tell me about it?" Ben Richie immediately became interested.

Lockheed Martin manufactures aircraft, and the engines are developed by specialized engine companies. However, the choice of engine for a fighter jet directly determines its performance!

When the F-16 was equipped with the F100 engine, it was a king; when it was equipped with the J79, it started to falter.

Qin Liang shook his head: "No, we can't say. This technology is our secret."

Ben Rich was taken aback at first, then realized what he meant: "I understand. We in the United States can conduct joint research and development. Our domestic aero-engine companies are definitely interested in this kind of technology. For example, General Electric's F404 engine has been installed in the J-7 and J-8, as well as the brand-new JF-17. With such close cooperation between you and General Electric, we should have a breakthrough in aero-engine research soon!"

“That’s right!” Dick Taylor nodded. “Their engines are top-notch, and Northwestern Polytechnical University can provide some new ideas. Your cooperation is the best option. We can verify the technology on the F404 engine.”

Chiracler's throat bobbed twice, but he ultimately said nothing.

"Yes, the F404 engine is weak at high altitudes. With this technology, its high-altitude and high-speed performance can be greatly improved. It is definitely the best choice!" Ben Rich continued to entice.

Qin Liang shook his head: "No."

"why?"

"The variable cycle engine is meant to significantly improve engine performance. Improvements to medium-thrust engines don't offer much of a performance boost; we still need to use high-thrust engines!"

To date, the East has no means to acquire high-thrust turbofan engines from the United States. Now that the other party wants to cooperate, so be it. After all, variable cycle engines have many problems. The YF-120 engine was eliminated in the bidding process not only because it failed to win the bid for the YF-23 fighter jet, but also because of its own unreliability.

Even into the new century, fighter jets used ordinary turbofans, so the variable cycle technology was a crooked path!
Using this crooked method to fool the Americans is the most suitable thing to do now. If we can also get in touch with the Americans' advanced large-scale thrusters, it will be of great benefit to our own large-scale thruster research and development!

Upon hearing Qin Liang's words, everyone else frowned.

Are you kidding? The super-powered propulsion system is a top secret in the aviation industry! How could this product possibly be sent to the East? Wouldn't that be a leak?
"Qin, could we... move this research and development project to the United States?"

"Of course not." Qin Liang shook his head: "There are many of our secrets involved. Even if we were to modify the large-scale rocket for you, our superiors might not agree, let alone develop it in the United States. From the very first collaboration, we specified the location of our cooperation. There's no point in arguing about that. Come on, let's go eat. I'm hungry!"

The group looked at each other, then followed Qin Liang to the cafeteria.

What we eat isn't important; the key is to find out about Eastern techniques!

In the canteen, each person received a bowl of mutton stew with bread. This was the treatment the Americans received when they first came. They didn't think it was beneath them, since they hadn't come to the East just to eat.

"Qin, are you testing the variable cycle engine on the Spey?" Ben-Ritchie asked. "If so, we can ask Rolls-Royce for help; they are the most familiar with this engine."

Qin Liang shook his head: "Of course not. Spey is just a second-generation turbofan, which can no longer meet our needs. If we're going to develop one, it will definitely be a third-generation high-thrust turbofan... Never mind, let's eat!"

The East also has a third-generation turbofan research and development plan!
The group exchanged another glance. For Dongfang, the last remaining weakness was the engine. If they could overcome this weakness…

"Qin Liang, you're here! Our engine department has been researching variable pitch turbine blades recently... Wow, foreigners!"

A student who had just gotten his lunch came over and greeted Qin Liang. He had only said one sentence when he saw the person sitting next to Qin Liang and quickly stopped.

Whether this tactic will work depends on whether the foreigners understand Chinese. After all, Qin Liang has always communicated with them in English, but now…

Ben Richie's eyes lit up instantly: "Qin, you guys are actually working on variable pitch turbine blades? This is a key technology for variable cycle engines!"

This guy has realized the importance of communication with the East, and sure enough, he's already learning Chinese!
(End of this chapter)