Great Power Long Sky

The Chief of Staff of the Air Force couldn't control the promotion and job adjustment of a mere lieutenant deputy company commander, and Wang Yong expressed his full support for Li Lu's choice.

He only said one thing: it's right for young people to focus their energy on solidifying their combat skills.

Li Lu is only twenty-four years old.

Within a week, all the details of the reconnaissance operation were compiled into a formal report, which was then submitted and archived.

Li Lu's first-class merit award was well-deserved.

The division headquarters promoted him exceptionally because of the first-class merit he had received and the historical significance of the reconnaissance operation.

This is the first time in the history of the People's Air Force, and its significance is undeniable.

Wingman Xue Shuang confirmed that he had reported a second-class merit award, and his cover laid a solid foundation for the success of the reconnaissance operation.

If Xue Shuang hadn't entangled the Mavericks' F-14 twin-aircraft formation, Li Lu's actions would have been much more uncertain.

Zhao Chaoyang was promoted to deputy chief of staff of the regiment. He was still a member of the tactical test group. Li Lu gave up his promotion. The division headquarters considered appointing Xue Shuang as the commander of the second battalion.

Xue Shuang had served as a squadron leader for three years before being transferred here, which fully met the requirements for promotion to battalion commander.

Xu Hailiang, representing the organization, spoke with Xue Shuang, saying, "When you were transferred here, it was only right and proper to at least arrange a position at the same level as you, because there were no suitable positions available before."

"The position of battalion commander of the second battalion is now vacant. You meet all the requirements and should be promoted to major and deputy battalion commander next year. The organization has decided to appoint you to this position."

Xue Shuang asked, "Chief of Staff, is this an order?"

Xu Hailiang was taken aback. "Did you have your own thoughts during the pre-appointment conversation?"

"Yes," Xue Shuang said crisply. "I want to work with Li Lu on ultra-low-altitude penetration tactics experiments, but that doesn't balance with the Second Battalion's daily training. If possible, I hope the organization will reconsider the candidate."

It's rare for someone to refuse a promotion to a higher position, so the fact that two such cases have occurred in a row has left Xu Hailiang, who is about to take over as the commander of the 7th Air Regiment, with mixed feelings.

The position of captain of the second brigade is like a hot potato.

Xu Hailiang reminded him, "Li Lu is now the captain of the seventh squadron. He can take care of tactical experiments, and you can too."

Xue Shuang shook his head and said, "I've thought it through. I want to focus on tactical experiments. The reconnaissance operation has shown me how to deal with aircraft carriers, and it has also made me realize the huge gap between us and the enemy."

"Developing the tactics and strategies for attacking aircraft carriers is more important than being a squadron leader."

And so, the position of captain of the second brigade was temporarily vacant, as there were no more qualified candidates.

A squadron is at the level of a full company, and a battalion is at the level of a full battalion. There are specific requirements for the appointment of full battalion-level positions. If any one of the requirements is not met, it is considered an exception. If the conditions for an exception are not met, then the position is naturally not within the scope of consideration.

The other squadrons' squadron leader positions were filled one after another, and there were simply no suitable candidates available. Furthermore, the Second Squadron had received commendations from the headquarters, the Air Force Command, and the military region, making it the ace squadron of the 7th Air Regiment. It was even less likely that a pilot who only met the basic requirements would be assigned to it.

We must select the best ones, ones that reflect their high value.

The position of captain of the second brigade already falls into the category of "better to have none than to have an unqualified one".

The position couldn't just remain vacant, so Zhao Chaoyang, who was promoted to deputy chief of staff of the regiment, concurrently served as the commander of the second battalion. Apart from that, nothing seemed to have changed.

One notable change is that the 7th Air Regiment has established a new department called the Psychological Counseling Room, which is placed under the Political Department and is a department without any official rank.

The problem is that the director of the psychological counseling room is Gu Ya, a major and a battalion-level officer. So in other people's eyes, this department is at the battalion level, which is half a level higher than other sections under the political department.

Fang Zhenwei was happy.

He was in charge of the political department, and the addition of a new department under it meant that his scope of authority had expanded. Moreover, after learning more from Gu Ya, he was surprised to discover that this department was actually in charge of pilot training!

Gu Ya said something that greatly encouraged Fang Zhenwei. Gu Ya's exact words were: "If a pilot cannot pass my test, he cannot perform a flight mission."

Isn't this just like an air ambulance clinic?

That's a lot of power.

Fang Zhenwei is the regimental political commissar. He doesn't understand pilots. To put it bluntly, he's just a general manager. He can't get involved in training and doesn't understand it. However, the political commissar is also a regimental leader, just like the regimental commander.

To fully utilize his abilities, or rather, to fully demonstrate his value, he must be in charge of training-related work.

Air force is a highly technical branch of the military. Flight, aircraft maintenance, radar, meteorology – any one of these positions requires a high level of technical expertise and cannot be filled by non-professionals.

For political work cadres who do not have a professional or technical background, it is extremely difficult to get ahead.

Fang Zhenwei is only in his thirties, the prime of his career. During the time his regimental commander was hospitalized, he has been strengthening his studies in flight-related fields, so that at least when discussing professional knowledge, he can present himself to the officers and soldiers as someone who knows a little about it, rather than someone who knows nothing at all.

Obviously, doing this is not very effective.

The officers and soldiers at the grassroots level respected him because he was the political commissar, and he himself knew that he did not have much prestige in the regiment.

Only those with real ability can earn prestige.

Air regiments are different from infantry regiments. You can't just fly an aircraft without sufficient systematic training. You won't even be able to understand the instrument panel.

The political commissar of an infantry regiment is much simpler; as long as he dares to fight and charge, he can win the approval of the officers and soldiers at the grassroots level. It is not uncommon for some political officers in infantry units to be even more ruthless than military officers in battle.

The military is a very special group, valuing martial prowess and strength.

Ordinary officers and soldiers don't have such complicated thoughts; they just recognize leaders who are good at fighting.

Fang Zhenwei is in his thirties and has a background in political ideology. It would be unrealistic to expect him to learn how to fly a plane or perform aircraft maintenance.

Now, a new department with a fancy-sounding name has been placed in the political department under his supervision, and this department is responsible for the mental health of aircrew members, just as important as the flight medical department.

As a result, Fang Zhenwei seemed to have experienced a second spring in his career, and he readily complied with Gu Ya's requests, fully supporting and cooperating with her in her work.

Li Lu patiently awaited orders from his superiors. Gu Ya, a newcomer, had a lot of things to do. The two hadn't seen each other since their last meeting, even though they worked in the same building.

In reality, Li Lu had neither the inclination nor often stayed in the government office building.

The reconnaissance mission made Li Lu personally realize the huge gap between our equipment and the enemy's. This time, we were fighting with good intentions but not with good intentions. The strong enemy also had concerns. If we were to open up and fight recklessly, the hope of successfully breaking through their defenses would be very slim.

Even a powerful military like the Soviet Union developed the Tu-22M "Backfire" supersonic strategic bomber specifically to break through the air defenses of US Navy carrier battle groups. That thing was fast enough to outrun most fighter jets.

What does our army have?

Using the still-struggling J-8 to do this job?

Should we still use the old Deng H-6?

Even if the People's Liberation Army Air Force pilots risk their lives to carry out one-way attacks, the success rate is not necessarily high.

Developing new tactics and methods is one aspect, but using more suitable fighter jets is another important aspect.

Before the orders came down, Li Lu wished he could live in the flight duty room and fly every day, using more training exercises to verify his ideas little by little.

The tactical testing team was fully prepared and pulled the lever hard!