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

Chapter 50: There is no fracture that a welding rod cannot fix.

These words immediately stunned everyone.

What? Welding? You can actually weld landing gear like that? Are you kidding me?
Maintenance captain Saleh looked up at the speaker: "We've been receiving MiG-23 fighters for seven or eight years now, and we've never heard of a fighter with a landing gear that can be welded... We also have other Soviet fighters on hand, and none of them have a landing gear that can be welded."

“That’s right, I received training in the Soviet Union, and the instructors there never said that landing gear could be welded!” The assistant chimed in, “Besides, who are you…?”

The person in front of me was wearing a white Arab robe and had a turban wrapped around his head. He looked like... a shepherd from a nearby village?
How did this guy sneak in?

At this moment, everyone in the delegation widened their eyes. What was Qin Liang doing? Was he just mumbling something in Arabic? What did he say?

"Yes, for the Russians, they have a strong industrial production capacity. If something breaks, they can just replace it. There's no need to repair it. But now... if we don't have a spare landing gear, this plane probably won't be able to take off again, right?"

“That’s right,” Mustafa began. “Ever since we decided to negotiate with the squid, everyone has seen us as traitors. The Russians have also abandoned us, and these planes have lost their source of spare parts, so they’ll have fewer and fewer pieces left to use…”

He felt heavy-hearted when he talked about it.

"Don't worry, the earth will keep turning no matter who's gone. It's just a broken landing gear, that's a piece of welding rod!"

"Sir, are you serious? You know, the inner and outer sleeves of the landing gear are both thin-walled structures. If the strength isn't enough, it will be dangerous during the next landing." Mustafa's words made Saleh realize that now it seemed like they had no choice but to try something desperate, but welding... it just didn't sound reliable at all!

"Of course it's true. The inner and outer sleeves of this landing gear are welded together during production. As long as the welding process is up to standard, the strength is absolutely guaranteed!"

When an aircraft takes off, its landing gear is subjected to lateral impact forces, and when it lands, it is subjected to longitudinal impact forces. This places high demands on the landing gear. In order to cushion the impact, the landing gear is a thin-walled structure, just like the shock absorber in an electric bicycle. So, a thin sleeve must withstand impact forces from various directions, which requires special steel!

In pursuit of high strength, the West uses a whole steel ingot and then cuts out a sleeve. The Russians, on the other hand, directly stamp steel into three pieces and then weld them together, which is the most economical method!

Since it was welded during production, it can theoretically be welded back together now that it's broken!

"Saleh, remove the landing gear and then hand it over to our Eastern friends for welding!"

The two sides chattered away for a while, while the rest of the Eastern delegation just stared at each other blankly. When the translator relayed the conversation, cold sweat instantly broke out on Director Tang's forehead.

We're here to inspect and take the plane away; we can't afford any complications. And you've taken on this job!
The landing gear of this MiG-23 looks like a crab's claw; we've never seen anything like it before. Are you sure it will work if welded on? What if it doesn't work, and the plane crashes during test flights, or even kills people...?

Thinking of this, Commander Tang's heart was filled with even more anxiety.

While the maintenance crew was disassembling the landing gear, Tu Lao pulled Qin Liang aside: "Are you confident?" "Tu Lao, according to my analysis, the Russians are simply unwilling to invest too much effort in the landing gear steel. The landing gear of this MiG-23 must be made of the common 30XrCH2A steel. Our country... should have this welding experience, right?"

There are still many things I can't say!
The experience in welding landing gear came from the H-6 bomber, which is an aircraft with a takeoff weight of over 100 tons. The landing gear has four wheels, so the landing gear actuator cylinders must also be sturdy. According to the old Russian experience, a three-part manufacturing process was used.

The Russians knew their landing gear had a short lifespan and would replace it as soon as a crack was found. But for the East, it was a matter of "new for three years, old for three years, and patched up for another three years." They were reluctant to replace it as soon as there was a crack, especially the landing gear of the H-6 bomber. So, the ground crew developed the unique skill of welding landing gear!
This guy knows about this, but he doesn't know that the MiG-23 also uses this type of steel. Twenty or thirty years have passed, and the Russians are still using the original steel.

Look at the West, how rapid their progress is! In the 1940s they were still using 4340 steel with three-piece welding, but in the early 1950s they had already developed the robust 300M steel, and later they developed A100 steel, so that the aircraft did not need to replace the landing gear throughout its entire lifespan!

"Hmm, if it's this kind of steel, we do know the welding process, but... do you know how to weld it?"

Everyone here is a techie. As for welding machines... that requires years of welding experience! The skill can't be developed overnight!

"Let's teach them how to weld, and let them weld themselves!"

"Ok."

Since I've taken on this task, I have to be responsible for it to the end.

The Egyptian maintenance crew worked quickly, and half an hour later, the landing gear was removed and pushed to the repair shop on a trolley.

"First, grind the crack to create a bevel, which will make subsequent welding easier." Qin Liang continued to chatter with them, "Next, use a gas welding torch to heat both ends of the weld to about 150 degrees Celsius, and then use E5015 welding rods... Understand? If there are no problems, you can get started!"

"How about... you give us a demonstration?" Saleh suggested.

"If we demonstrate with such a bad example, how are you supposed to learn? It's okay, don't worry, be bold and confident. With us in charge, we'll definitely succeed on the first try. Believe in yourselves!"

Sparks flew from the electric arc, and many people were no longer afraid of ultraviolet rays. They stared at the weld, watching the broken parts slowly being welded together, their eyes full of anticipation. If the landing gear could be welded, it would mean that the Egyptian Air Force maintenance personnel had acquired another skill!

"Alright! Let's install it on the plane and test it!" Qin Liang said. "Run it repeatedly on the runway, make circles, and as long as the welded joints don't crack, it means the strength is fine! Then you can try flying it. If you're too scared... then leave it to us to fly!"

Mustafa took a deep breath: "I'll try!"

Taxiing off the apron, onto the runway, braking, turning around, and continuing to taxi... After several attempts, everything at the weld was normal!
Then, Mustafa took the plane up again, made three turns to align with the runway, and landed! When the landing gear hit the runway, everyone watched with wide eyes. No problem, a smooth landing!
　PS: Thank you to reader 20190604092800981 for the reward, and thank you to all readers for reading and voting. Please continue reading! Please continue reading! Please continue reading!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)