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

Chapter 357 Using High Technology to Teach Monkeys to Be Human

The capital city, Princess Tomb, Airplane Building.

"Recently, Northwestern Polytechnical University has been making quite a stir!"

"That's right, they're getting into the space race. Our country doesn't have a single penny, and Northwestern Polytechnical University..."

Listening to everyone's discussion, Old Lin smiled and said, "That's right, they're using the Russians' money to do our research and development! Can't you all see what Qin Liang is up to? The most critical technologies are all from Northwestern Polytechnical University. In the future, we will have all the technological reserves in the East. Whenever there is a need, we can produce the supporting equipment. Without Northwestern Polytechnical University, those Russians are nothing."

Old Lin had already guessed Qin Liang's next move.

In the future, the Air Force may issue an order at any time to terminate the cooperation between the two parties. Northwestern Polytechnical University will definitely have to follow the arrangements of its superiors. As for the Russians, they have to accept the loss, as this falls under the force majeure clause in the contract.

As for whether the Russians would be enraged and send a million troops to invade... that possibility is almost zero. Right now, the Russians are having such a hard time conquering Afghanistan, which fully demonstrates that the Russians' strength is not as great as imagined.

"Report!" Just then, someone else walked in: "We just received a message from Northwestern Polytechnical University. In the cooperation terms proposed by Comrade Qin Liang to the Russians, the difficulty of agreeing to the three conditions has been reduced. Instead, the Russians are asked not to interfere in the monkey's affairs, so that we can go all out and teach the monkey a lesson!"

Old Lin was instantly excited.

"Great! These are excellent conditions! Come on, everyone, let's quickly discuss how to make this a big one!" Old Lin said enthusiastically.

“For a long time, our air force has been primarily focused on territorial air defense. We haven’t conducted any proactive attacks before.” Air Force leader Zhang said from the side, “I think we should call Liangzi to Gongzhufen and see what he thinks.”

Old Lin nodded.

Everyone here has spent half their lives in the air force, but when it comes to proactive attacks, they don't really have much experience. In history, the only large-scale combat operation the air force ever carried out was the deployment of 9 bombers, under the cover of dozens of fighters, to bomb Dahe Island.

Now, the Air Force is about to launch another operation, but it doesn't know where to start, how many fighter jets and attack aircraft to deploy, what the target is, what the scale is, and what strategic objectives to achieve.
The only relevant example is Operation Rolling Thunder by the U.S. Air Force, which bombed the monkeys from March 1965 to November 1968. This three-and-a-half-year bombing campaign ended in failure for the Americans. Ground-based air defense weapons and the ubiquitous MiG-15s and MiG-17s often left the Americans struggling to cope.

If our Eastern Air Force is to bomb, we absolutely cannot end up like the Americans. So, what should we do?
No one was sure what to do.

The next day, when Qin Liang arrived at the Princess Tomb Aircraft Building, he saw a group of leaders with red eyes.

"Leaders, is it because...didn't you sleep well last night?"

"We didn't sleep at all yesterday!" Old Lin said angrily. "We've been analyzing how to conduct this large-scale military operation. The first batch of planes to enter the battlefield will encounter strong resistance. The opposing air force pilots are all experienced, many of them have fought against the Americans for many years. We..."

The Air Force is uncertain!
The current stalemate in the southern fighting is also a training exercise. The army is taking turns to fight and giving the Vietnamese a good beating. But what about the air force? In this war, the air force has achieved almost nothing. In the years since the founding of the nation, the air force's main task has been homeland air defense, which means intercepting high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft under the guidance of ground radar.

Now that we're going out to bomb, there are many things we have to do again. If the plane is shot down and the pilot parachutes into enemy territory, the subsequent rescue will be a big problem!

"Leaders, those high-threat targets definitely need to be attacked first with cruise missiles!" Qin Liang said. "The enemy's airport runways and air defense missile sites are the first targets our cruise missiles will visit. As long as we use cluster munitions, we can completely paralyze their forces."

Everyone present stared wide-eyed.

That's right, the Air Force already has cruise missiles. These are powerful weapons developed by Northwestern Polytechnical University. They are an improved version based on the YJ-81, with a range of several hundred kilometers. They can attack the front-line positions on the other side. The newly developed cruise missiles have a range of over a thousand kilometers and can hit the southernmost positions of the enemy!
We don't need many; two for each position will suffice, because Qin Liang was referring to cluster munitions!
This thing looks very big, like an auxiliary fuel tank. It explodes in the air above the target, but it has no destructive power. It only launches the submunitions it carries. Hundreds or thousands of submunitions are scattered and explode in various places on the target, achieving the goal of widespread explosion.

This is an area-effect weapon. Even if only one is detonated over an airport, the airport will be completely paralyzed. Submunitions that fall directly onto fighter jets can set them on fire. Submunitions that fall on the runway may not be as damaging as they might be to create a large crater, but...

All weapons have a degree of reliability. Of these hundreds or thousands of submunitions, some will inevitably fail, meaning they won't explode when they hit the ground.

Those that haven't exploded yet are the most terrifying, because if they don't explode now, no one knows when they will!
Thus, firefighters extinguishing blazes and engineers repairing runways might suddenly be caught in an explosion, blasting them to pieces.

Under such a threat, no one would dare to advance rashly; they had to proceed with extreme caution. Restoring the airport to combat readiness would take a long time, enough for the air force to fly over without taking any risks!
"We need to improve our intelligence gathering efforts to locate the enemy's forward positions, their rear positions, all their air defense weapons, and their air force aircraft. We're not going to do it at all; if we're going to do it, we have to do it big!" Qin Liang said. "A piecemeal approach is the worst possible strategy. After this first wave of attacks, the enemy's entire airspace will be undefended!"

The air force leaders widened their eyes. Sure enough, Qin Liang was the most professional. The air force leaders were still limited by their past thinking and always thinking about past tactics. Qin Liang came up and provided a completely new solution!

"Once the strike effect is assessed, the main bomber group of the Air Force can move over. In addition to having an early warning aircraft to coordinate the overall situation, the bomber group needs to be accompanied by electronic jamming aircraft. Even if it is a group of twin-engine Q-6 bombers, one or two aircraft should be equipped with electronic jamming pods. In this way, even if there are any remaining air defense missiles, they will be rendered ineffective in the face of our jamming."

The Air Force leadership was once again shocked; these things... they hadn't expected either.

This is definitely a Western-style playing style!
First, cruise missiles will fire a salvo, followed by electronic warfare. With the support of these technologies, the threat level on our bombing forces will be greatly reduced! These forces will then be able to advance unimpeded and reach their targets...

and many more!

"Where are our bombing targets?"

"Ammunition depots, oil depots, power plants, bridges..." Qin Liang began to describe them at length.

Monkeys don't have industry, so they can't destroy their economy by attacking industry. The reason they were able to recover from the Americans' bombing was partly due to their tenacious willpower and partly due to the blood transfusions they received!

We from the East provided one-third of the supplies, while the Russians provided two-thirds. As it turns out, the Russians are ungrateful; they took the supplies we provided and then turned against us.

The air force leader's brows slowly furrowed.

“Liangzi, to bomb a target, we need about thirty bombs, which is…too much money!” Old Lin was the first to speak.

The scale of the operation you've proposed is too large; I'm afraid the higher-ups won't approve it!
"Therefore, we need precision bombing; one bomb per target is enough," Qin Liang said.

Precision bombing?

"For precision bombing, we would have to dive-bomb, in case there are anti-aircraft guns around the target..."

When the Americans first launched Operation Rolling Thunder, six of their fighter jets were destroyed on their very first sortie, all by anti-aircraft guns! In fact, throughout the entire operation, 80% of the fighter jet losses were due to anti-aircraft guns.

However, the Americans also destroyed a large number of anti-aircraft guns. When Operation Rolling Thunder started, the monkeys only had 1,500 anti-aircraft guns. By 1967, that number had increased to 7,000, and by 1972, less than 1,000 remained.

Now, what we are facing is less than a thousand anti-aircraft guns. If it is just ordinary bombardment, the anti-aircraft guns may not be able to reach them. If we dive-bomb the enemy's position, that would be sending the anti-aircraft guns to their deaths!
"Therefore, we need a satellite positioning system," Qin Liang said. "Fortunately, our Northwestern Polytechnical University's research and development has yielded results, and we will be able to send navigation satellites into space soon. We only need to modify our existing aerial bombs, which will increase the cost of each one by about 500 yuan. I wonder if the Air Force can accept that?" Of course they can!
Without precision bombing capabilities, bombing a single target would require dozens of bombs. Cruise missiles are very expensive and cannot be used on all targets. Therefore, modifying iron bombs into precision-guided bombs by adding satellite navigation modules is the most cost-effective solution.

The JDAM, which the Americans later created, used the same method. Due to mass production, the entire kit cost less than 100 yuan. Of course, how much the unscrupulous arms dealers wanted to sell it for was their business.

Everyone nodded frequently, feeling deeply moved. With Northwestern Polytechnical University, the Air Force's combat style has completely changed!
"I never imagined that our Eastern Air Force could use navigation satellites!" Old Lin exclaimed with deep emotion. "This is a major project that could change our combat mode! Northwestern Polytechnical University is truly a blessing for our military!"

"Distinguished leaders, times have changed. Quantity is no longer important; the key is technological superiority. This operation can also sound the clarion call for the military to advance towards modernization and high technology. We at Northwestern Polytechnical University feel very fortunate to be able to participate. Next, please ask the Air Force to formulate specific plans according to this scheme. I need to go to the Xichang Satellite Launch Center soon."

"I'll go take a look too!" Old Lin said with a big smile.

The Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center was established in 1958, initially used as a land-based integrated missile test range. Later, it became a space launch base. Ten years later, the Jiuquan satellite base was insufficient, especially since its high latitude made it unsuitable for launching geostationary satellites. The Taiyuan launch base, built in 1967, was also unsuitable, necessitating a relocation.

Xichang thus came into the view of aerospace professionals. In 1970, the Xichang Satellite Launch Center broke ground and was completed in 1972.

With its high altitude, low latitude, concealed terrain, solid geological structure, and abundant water resources, the Xichang Satellite Launch Center has a greater advantage than Jiuquan. If there is anything better, it would be Hainan Island, but the situation was complicated back then, and coastal areas were obviously not as safe as inland areas.

Qin Liang, Lin Lao, and others arrived in Xichang on an Air Force passenger plane. Surrounded by mountains and with blue skies and white clouds overhead, the scenery was magnificent.

The towering lightning protection towers are truly awe-inspiring, as are the launch pads...

"Old Lin, welcome, welcome!" An old leader strode up and warmly shook hands with Old Lin.

"Come on, Lao Zhang, let me introduce you. This is Qin Liang from Northwestern Polytechnical University. He's a real expert in scientific research. Liangzi, come on, let me introduce you. This is Chief Zhang, the first Chief of Staff of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense!"

Zhang Min was born in Baoding, Hebei Province in 1925. During that special period, he joined the revolution at the age of 12. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, he served in the 44th and 54th Armies and later participated in the Far East War. He returned to China in 1958.

At the time, Mr. Zhang thought he could continue to serve in the 54th Army, but unexpectedly, he was assigned to the Jiuquan Base. From then on, Mr. Zhang forged an indissoluble bond with aerospace.

When the Taiyuan base was established, Zhang Lao was in charge. When the Xichang base was established, Zhang Lao was also in charge. After the Xichang base was established, Zhang Lao became the first leader of the base. In July of this year, when the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense was established, Zhang Lao was directly promoted to the core leader of this organization, which shows the importance attached to him by the higher authorities.

Logically, he should have already taken office. However, with the launch of Dongfang's first geostationary satellite and its networking to become Dongfang's first navigation and positioning system, he was still worried and came to personally supervise the work.

The Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense will also have frequent contact with Northwestern Polytechnical University in the future, as it is considered a direct superior.

Professor Zhang looked at Qin Liang with admiration in his eyes: "Comrade Qin Liang, I've heard of you before. Northwestern Polytechnical University's success today is inseparable from your hard work. The Beidou navigation system, which is about to be launched, is a major national defense project. You managed to build it without spending a single penny of the country's money. Impressive!"

Qin Liang smiled and said, "Old Zhang, I'll have to rely on you for a lot of help in the future."

"That's for sure. Northwestern Polytechnical University should establish a direct channel with the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense. If you have any needs, just report to us directly, and we will give you our full support."

"Uh-huh."

"Come on, let me show you the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. This is the canyon in Zeyuan Town, Mianning County, Liangshan Prefecture. It's divided into six major system areas: satellite launch and testing, command and control, tracking and measurement, communications, meteorology, and logistical support. Look over here, in the center of the canyon surrounded by mountains on three sides, is our launch tower. It can meet the launch requirements of the Dongfeng-3 satellite. Compared to the previous launch tower, it has added liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen refueling facilities..."

The Long March 3 was designed to launch geostationary satellites. It is essentially a Long March 2 with an added third stage. Because it needs to ignite again in space, it must use an engine that leaves no residue after combustion, namely a liquid hydrogen-liquid oxygen engine.

This is what makes the Xichang base different from other bases.

Looking at the tall launch tower, Qin Liang was filled with longing: "In the future, when our Northwestern Polytechnical University builds rockets, we will also need the support of the aerospace department's launch site."

"Of course, you're going to use the liquid oxygen and methane route, we veteran aerospace engineers have been watching! Come on, let me show you the other facilities. Inside the mountains on both sides are the supporting command, control, and water, electricity, and gas equipment. In the last half hour before the rocket launch, everyone on the ground goes inside the mountains..."

This can be considered a safety measure; even if the rocket explodes on the launch pad, it won't affect the operation of other departments.

"Mr. Zhang, where is the rocket assembly mechanism?"

"It's in the valley ahead. Come on, I'll take you to see the rocket."

A tall, milky-white building is hidden deep in the green trees. Rocket segments transported by rail are assembled and tested here. Once everything is ready, they are transferred from the final assembly and testing workshop to the launch pad via the rails.

What makes the people of China Eastern Aerospace most proud is that everything here was designed and produced by ourselves!

The Russians assemble and transport their rockets horizontally, only turning them vertically at the launch pad. This makes assembly and transport easier, but after they're upright, they have to test them again. In contrast, we assemble them vertically, so once they're tested, they can be launched directly, making us much more efficient than the Russians.

Old Lin walked behind, his tone complex.

"Hey, Lao Zhang, what do you mean by this? I'm also your guest, why are you only greeting Liangzi?"

"Old Lin, do as you please."

What?
Qin Liang and Zhang Lao walked forward, and along the way they could see many green military uniforms. To this day, the space base is still under the control of the military. If Oriental Aerospace wants to go global and undertake satellite launch business internationally, it must open up!
Just then, a communications soldier came running up from a distance.

"Report, Mr. Zhang, some foreigners want to come to our Xichang Satellite Launch Center to witness the launch of the BeiDou navigation system..."

Old Zhang was momentarily stunned: "A foreigner?"

His immediate thought was that this was a foreign attempt to spy on their military intelligence!
"Yes, Professor O'Neill of Princeton University, and his students, all hope to witness the grand launch..."

"Nonsense! No matter what university professor he is, he can't possibly enter our base!" Wang Sheng, the launch center director who was accompanying them, said, "Tell them we don't welcome them!"

"Wait a minute, these people... why do they sound so familiar?" Old Lin seemed to have read Qin Liang's mind and asked, "Liangzi, what's their background?"

(End of this chapter)