World War: Battleship Arms Dealers

Of course, it was much simplified. There was no advanced gyroscopic sight; an optical sight was used instead. There was no fully pressurized cockpit; pilots needed oxygen at high altitudes. There was no reliable autopilot; long-haul flights were a huge challenge for the crew.

Even so, it remains the most advanced bomber of its time, bar none.

"Is it a test flight today?" Chen Feng asked.

"Yes, in half an hour." Zhao Xuecheng checked his watch. "The pilots are in position and are conducting final checks."

"I'll go check on the pilot."

In the preparation area beside the runway, five crew members were making final preparations. Upon seeing Chen Feng approach, everyone stood at attention and saluted.

"At ease." Chen Feng returned the salute. "Who is the captain?"

A young man in his thirties stepped forward: "Reporting to the Commander-in-Chief, I am Li Zhenhua, Major of the Air Force, Captain of the 'Kunpeng' No. 2 aircraft."

Chen Feng sized him up. Li Zhenhua wasn't tall, but he had broad shoulders, calluses on his hands from years of operating the joystick, and bright, confident eyes.

"Are you scared?" Chen Feng asked.

Li Zhenhua paused for a moment, then laughed: "Reporting to the President, I'm scared. But even more excited."

"Why are you afraid?"

"Because the first aircraft crashed, and Wang Mingde was my instructor." Li Zhenhua's expression turned serious. "But why am I excited? Because I know we are making history. No other aircraft in the world can fly as high, as fast, or as far as the 'Kunpeng.' We are the first."

Chen Feng patted him on the shoulder: "Remember, safety first. I want you to come back alive and continue to make history."

"yes!"

Chen Feng then looked at the others: the co-pilot, the bombardier, the navigator, and the mechanic. Everyone was young, and everyone's eyes shone with light.

"Go, let me see how high the 'Kunpeng' can fly."

Half an hour later, at 10:00 AM.

The second Kunpeng aircraft began taxiing on the runway. Its four engines roared deafeningly, blue flames shooting from their exhaust pipes. The speed increased rapidly, the nose lifted, and the landing gear took off—the aircraft had ascended.

Chen Feng and everyone else looked up. The giant silver-gray bird rose into the sky, like a real Kunpeng, spreading its wings and soaring.

"The climb rate is excellent." Zhao Xuecheng said, holding his binoculars. "Altitude 500, 1000, 1500... no vibration, the engine is working normally."

The aircraft climbed to 3,000 meters and began level flight. Then it performed a series of maneuvers: a steep turn, a dive, and a pull-up. Each maneuver was smooth and stable.

"Bombing test!" Zhao Xuecheng shouted.

In the distance, at the firing range in the mountains, red signal flares rose. The "Kunpeng" began its bombing run. At an altitude of four thousand meters, the bomb bay beneath the fuselage opened, and four training missiles were dropped.

A few seconds later, a muffled explosion echoed from the firing range. The observer reported by phone: "Three out of four shots hit! Average deviation of fifty meters!"

"Great!" Lin Hwai-min clapped his hands excitedly. "This level of accuracy surpasses that of German and British bombers!"

Chen Feng smiled too. But he knew that a 50-meter deviation was not enough in actual combat. He needed better aiming devices, better bomb-deploying computers, and even more importantly—more training.

An hour later, the "Kunpeng" landed safely. A wisp of smoke rose as the tires touched the ground, and then it came to a steady stop on the runway.

When the crew disembarked, everyone crowded around to congratulate them. Li Zhenhua's face was flushed, whether from excitement or altitude sickness, it was hard to tell.

"How are you feeling?" Chen Feng asked.

"Excellent!" Li Zhenhua exclaimed. "It's much more stable than the first aircraft, and the handling response is incredibly sensitive. The engine isn't overheating either. President, this plane can change the course of the war!"

"It will," Chen Feng said, "but first, we need more pilots like you."

He turned to Lin Hwai-min and Chao Hsueh-cheng: "Now let's go take a look at 'Falcon'."

The Falcon dive bomber was parked in another hangar. It was much smaller than the Kunpeng, but also much more ferocious.

"A single 1,200-horsepower engine can achieve a top speed of 400 kilometers per hour," Zhao Xuecheng explained. "Its biggest feature is its ability to perform a steep dive of over 70 degrees and drop bombs from a height of 500 meters with extremely high accuracy. We have tested it, and the hit rate against stationary targets exceeds 80%."

He pointed to the pylons under the wings: "It can carry one 500-kilogram bomb, or two 250-kilogram bombs. There are two 7.92-millimeter machine guns in the nose, controlled by the pilot, for strafing ground targets."

Looking at the plane, Chen Feng thought of the Stuka in history. That piercing, screeching sound of a dive was an important symbol of the German Blitzkrieg in the early stages of World War II.

Now, it has appeared twenty years ahead of schedule in the deep mountains controlled by the Chinese.

"Where's the test pilot?" he asked.

A tall, thin young man ran over and saluted: "Air Force Captain Sun Liren, Chief Test Pilot of the 'Falcon'!"

"Try flying it for me."

"yes!"

Half an hour later, the "Falcon" took off. It was much more agile than the "Kunpeng," soaring and circling in the air like a real falcon.

Then it began to dive.

The plane was almost vertically descending, and the roar of the engine turned into a sharp shriek—this was a sound-generating device specially designed by Zhao Xuecheng, which used airflow through a whistle under the wing to produce a terrifying shriek.

"Dive angle 75 degrees! Speed ​​520 kilometers per hour!" the observer reported.

The bombs were dropped when the plane was only 500 meters from the ground. The plane pulled up sharply, and the G-force pressed the pilot tightly into his seat.

The bomb hit the bullseye precisely—a cross drawn on the ground.

"Perfect!" Zhao Xuecheng exclaimed excitedly, gesturing wildly.

Chen Feng also applauded. But he knew in his heart that this dive bombing tactic placed extremely high demands on pilots; psychological qualities, skills, and physical strength were all indispensable. Moreover, in actual combat, the survival rate would not be very high when facing dense anti-aircraft fire.

But that's war—using the best people to carry out the most dangerous missions.