Chapter 248 Lao Maozi has a big plane there

 The threat of stealth machines is already coming quietly!

This kind of aircraft uses the shape of a polyhedron to reflect the incoming radar waves in other directions, and then uses absorbing coatings and other solutions to achieve stealth in front of the radar. Its radar reflection area is about the same as a table tennis ball. Therefore, ordinary radar cannot detect it at all.

American technology is very powerful. The F-117, the first stealth attack aircraft, was publicly displayed for the first time in 1988 after many years of service. Everyone was shocked by its sci-fi appearance.

As for the specific strength, it has been verified in the past two years. In 8*9, this kind of stealth aircraft participated in military operations for the first time, an air strike on Panama. In 1991, it even showed its talents in that war. , even though there are only a few dozen, the attack effect is better than thousands of ordinary fighters. They are always the first to go on various dangerous missions.

 The threat of stealth machines has arrived!

Institute 14 studies radar, and stealth aircraft are an important opponent for them. However, until now, they still have a headache on how to detect stealth aircraft.

At this time, hearing Qin Tao talking about this, Mr. Ben looked serious and nodded: "Yes, it is difficult for our Sea Star radar to detect stealth aircraft. Although according to our assumptions, all radars can be concentrated Use the beam to detect the stealth aircraft, so the echo may be larger, but you have to know where the stealth aircraft is in advance."

 This is an endless cycle.

Active phased array radar can detect stealth aircraft. This is determined by its unique principle. The flat-panel radar antenna can scan the surrounding airspace by changing the phase of the radar waves, which means that all radar waves can be detected. Concentrate on an airspace for focused scanning.

The stealth ability of the stealth aircraft is achieved through reflection and absorption, so that very few radar waves return to the radar antenna. However, if a large amount of radar waves are concentrated, the stealth aircraft can still reveal its original shape.

This is like shining a flashlight and unable to see something clearly in the dark. Then use the light of hundreds or thousands of flashlights to shine at it together, and that will be fine.

  However, there is a premise for this, that is, you must know in advance that there is a stealth aircraft in that airspace, and then it can illuminate the radar waves. But, how to know in advance? It is impossible to detect a stealth aircraft with radar waves that are scanned separately!

"If you want to detect stealth aircraft in advance, you have to use meter-wave radar." Qin Tao said: "So, even if we have a shield ship composed of four-sided phased array radar in the future, we still have to deploy meters on our warships. Wave radar uses meter-wave radar to find the approximate direction of the stealth aircraft, and then transmits the target data to Haizhixing, which then allows Haizhixing to concentrate the radar beam for scanning."

The radar experts present were all bright-eyed: "Meter-wave radar?"

“That’s right, it’s a meter-wave radar. In front of it, the stealth capabilities of various stealth aircraft will be reduced by 80%.”

 Meter-wave radar was used in the early years when radar first appeared, and was gradually eliminated later.

Although this kind of radar can see far, its accuracy is very poor. The error is often a few hundred meters, and it cannot guide the missile to attack. Therefore, the meter-wave radar can only be used for long-range early warning. If you want to provide guidance for the missile, you must also Get radar waves with shorter wavelengths.

The various carefully designed surfaces of the stealth aircraft are used to reflect radar waves such as centimeter wave and millimeter wave. In front of the meter wave radar, the shape design of the stealth aircraft has no effect, because the meter wave radar is Cataracts are just a blurry dot when viewed on a stealth machine. I don’t even know what shape this dot is.

"Our Radar Institute not only needs to develop advanced radar equipment, but also continues to improve the ancient meter-wave radar with Yagi antennas. For example, it will digitally transform its processing system so that the targets it captures can be directly transmitted to the sea. Star radar, in the future, after our new destroyers start to be built, these two radars can be used in combination."

What Qin Tao said is common sense.

In later generations, advanced Aegis battleships were launched one after another. The four-sided phased array radar and vertical launch system looked so dazzling. However, the ancient Yagi antenna squatting on the auxiliary mast behind the chimney was The meter-wave radar antenna is like returning to the past era. This 517 radar is already old, and it still continues to serve. Why?

The Star of the Sea radar consumes too much power, so it cannot be turned on casually. This 517 radar can work continuously for 24 hours and is usually used for early warning. Most of them are explained in this way, but this is only one aspect. Another important purpose is this An ancient meter-wave radar, after being transformed with digital equipment, can easily search for stealth aircraft!

This kind of radar has been improved. Later, the Yagi antenna turned into a fly swatter, which looked more beautiful, and Mrs. Niu also turned into Xiaotiantian.

Now that Qin Tao is asked to say something, Qin Tao will speak out in this direction.

 The radar experts present all started thinking.

 Stealth machine, why is it invisible? How should we discover it?

 Meter wave radar!

Soon, they will be able to think of the key technology. Using meter-wave radar to detect stealth aircraft is a perfect match!

Although Qin Tao did not talk about the technical details, it is more important to them to talk about these technical routes.

“Our 14th Institute has built L-band phased array radar before. This technology can also be developed. In the future, we can also put this radar plane on warships.”

In fact, the phased array radar originally built by the 14th Institute was L-band. The current S-band radar also has this L-band radar technology foundation. However, when Qin Tao said this, Mr. Ben asked curiously. : "You mean, let's integrate two different band radars?"

"Well, the integration of radars in different bands, but this is not just two. Our original S-band radar must be embedded with a part of the C-band radar antenna to guide missiles? If we integrate the L-band, it will be three Bands, combined together, it is integrated radio frequency technology.”

Since he was just talking, Qin Tao simply talked about the technology on the 10,000-ton drive.

For a warship, many radar antennas must be installed on it to solve electromagnetic compatibility problems. Therefore, the arrangement of various antennas must be spaced apart, resulting in the top of the entire warship being quite messy.

 Comprehensive RF mast is here to solve this problem. It converts all different antennas into phased arrays and integrates the emission and absorption of electromagnetic waves from all electronic devices into several phased array antennas!

Such information capabilities have been greatly enhanced. Different radar antennas do not do their own thing, but directly communicate with each other, transmit signals to each other, and process them comprehensively.

For example, if the L-band radar detects a stealth aircraft, it can immediately be transmitted to the S-band radar, which can mobilize more antenna components to radiate radar waves, accurately locate it, and then guide the missile attack.

  L band is not a meter wave. Its band frequency is 1 to 2 GHz, and its central wavelength has reached 22 cm. It is already in the ranks of long-wave radar. Therefore, it also has a good ability to detect stealth machines.

This comprehensive radio frequency capability is quite strong, and the technical difficulty is also very high. In later generations, only American and Chinese warships have this capability. The most that other countries can do is cover the mast with a beautiful cover. In fact, The internal equipment still does its own thing and is not integrated.

Qin Tao’s words opened a new window for these radar experts. They would never have thought that the electronic equipment on the warship could be used like this!

"Of course, what I'm talking about is very far away. Our 14th Institute has been able to complete the integration of these devices in twenty years, which is already very impressive. Twenty years later, I will be in my forties. At that time, it would be great if our Mingzhou Shipyard could build this kind of warship."

 Qin Tao is only in his twenties now, so he has enough time and patience to wait. He has to eat one bite at a time and do the work bit by bit.

When he thought of this, Qin Tao's stomach suddenly growled.

At this time, everyone was thinking about the great prospects described by Qin Tao. Even the leaders of the navy were thinking about it. No one spoke. In the quiet conference room, the sound of stomach growling stood out from the crowd.

Mr. Ben smiled and said, "I'm just concentrating on the meeting. It's already past dinner time. Let's go eat!"

The 14th Institute is an authority on domestic radar. The radars developed in the institute are selling well, so their welfare benefits are pretty good. You can smell meat in the cafeteria. If you were to change places, such as 611 Institute, the benefits would be very different.

“Leaders, there is a private room over there. I’ll ask the canteen to cook up some dishes.” Mr. Ben greeted everyone.

“Instead of eating stir-fried dishes, let’s just eat big pot dishes.” Wu Shengli said with a smile. Qin Tao had already taken the lead and ran to the window to check.

“Well, the chef in this canteen is pretty good at his craftsmanship. Give me some of this, this, and this!”

Soon, Qin Tao sat down at an ordinary dining table with a dinner plate and started eating.

Qin Tao likes to eat like this. Sitting in front of a big table, everyone drinking and mingling together, that kind of scene will make him uncomfortable. There is no better place to eat like this.

 Then, someone sat opposite him with a dinner plate.

 Qin Tao looked up and saw an old man who was about the same age as Mr. Ben. His eyes were also looking over, and his eyes were full of expectation.

“Mr. Qin, have you done any research on early warning aircraft?”

 Early warning aircraft?

Qin Tao's eyelids twitched. He looked at the old man in front of him carefully and said, "Are you Mr. Wang?"

 In institute 14, the one who has always been fond of early warning aircraft, and then was appointed as the person in charge of the early warning aircraft project, isn't it Wang Laoyao?

“Mr. Qin, do you know me?”

“Well, I’ve read about your deeds in the newspaper.” Qin Tao said: “You participated in the Air Police No. 1 in the past. Now, if our aviation force wants to modernize, we also need advanced early warning aircraft.”

Seeing Mr. Wang sitting opposite Qin Tao, Mr. Ben also came over with a dinner plate and sat next to Mr. Wang. Wu Shengli sat next to Qin Tao. There were four people on a table. During the meal, the discussion started again.

"Yes, we have built Air Police No. 1 before, but the performance was too poor, especially the lack of ability to detect targets in complex ground echoes, so the project was forced to be cancelled. But now, our technology has also developed. Flat-panel slot radar antennas are also being developed, so we should be able to produce a solution similar to the American E-3 early warning aircraft," Wang said.

Ultra-low-altitude penetration is a common method used by aviation forces. It uses the curvature of the earth to protect itself. No matter how high the ground radar is, it cannot detect targets beyond the horizon. The only way is to put the radar on the plane and look down from above.

 In this way, all ground targets will be invisible. This is an airborne early warning aircraft.

However, this kind of aircraft is very difficult. If it is just scanning on a calm sea, it will be fine. If it is a land with complex terrain and the ground echoes of various mountains and valleys, the radar screen will be full of snowflake.

In the 1960s and 1970s, China had developed the Air Police No. 1, but it was unable to overcome this problem and had to give up in the end.

Time has entered the 1990s, and the technical foundation is slowly being developed.

“We are already developing active phased arrays, why not just use active phased array technology?” Qin Tao said: “This way we can achieve better performance.”

"Active phased array?" Mr. Wang shook his head: "Currently, the only early warning aircraft in the world that uses active phased array radar is Israel's Falcon. However, this kind of aircraft uses radars on the nose and sides. With the antenna method, there is still a blind spot at the tail of the aircraft, so it’s not easy to use!”

"Then continue to make the plan of making a big plate on the top." Qin Tao said: "Just a big plate similar to the American E-3 early warning aircraft, put our radar antenna into it, such a big plate does not need to rotate, it can It can complete scanning of the entire airspace without any blind spots.”

"This is an idea, but..." When Mr. Wang said this, he shook his head again. There were too many problems!

“We have many problems, both on the radar and on the carrier aircraft.” Qin Tao said: “Our civil aviation aircraft cannot be used, and the most suitable platform is Lao Maozi’s Il-76.”

 Western AWACS aircraft are all modified from passenger aircraft. Passenger aircraft are relatively comfortable and the living conditions of the personnel on board the AWACS aircraft are very good. But this is not possible in China. Domestic passenger planes are imported and can only be used for civilian use. If a Boeing 707 is modified, Boeing will use this as an excuse to stop the supply of parts, and all domestic Boeing passenger planes will have to hunker down.

 The strategic early warning aircraft needs to be a big one, so we can only find a solution from Lao Maozi's IL-76.

Hearing what Qin Tao said, Wu Shengli suddenly thought of something: "Taozi, is there any way you can get a batch back for us?"

Qin Tao originally brought back eight Tu-104 passenger planes, all of which played a role in the navy. They were converted into maritime patrol aircraft, anti-submarine aircraft, navy transport aircraft, etc. Anyway, there were a large number of spare parts serving in the navy. For ten or twenty years, there is absolutely no problem.

It’s a pity that the foundation of Figure 104 is not good enough to modify the early warning aircraft. Otherwise, just use this product to modify it.

 Can Qin Tao follow the same method and get the Il-76 back?

 Qin Tao thought for a while.

"Well, there is still a possibility. But now, it is not convenient to exchange daily necessities with Lao Maozi, so US dollars are the best."

In the past, during the Red Empire, Lao Maozi's domestic supplies were scarce, so Qin Tao could spend a lot of daily necessities. Now, the Red Empire has collapsed, and Western merchants have made great strides into Lao Maozi's territory. All kinds of Western-made products Products have already begun to be placed on Lao Maozi’s counter.

Although the domestic gangsters can still make money, the profits are not that big anymore, and the people in power of Lao Maozi have also begun to raise their demands. All kinds of daily necessities are disdainful, and bribes have to be paid in U.S. dollars.

 It can also be seen from the import of Su-27 that for the first batch of Su-27, Lao Maozi agreed to exchange daily necessities, but for the second batch, Lao Maozi asked for US dollars and did not accept the daily necessities.

Wu Shengli nodded: "Of course. The Air Force is currently planning to update their transport fleet. The IL-76 should be the best choice. Even if it is settled in US dollars, the Air Force also has this strength."

At present, the main domestic transport aircraft are the Yun-7 and Yun-8. Needless to say, the Yun-7 has the largest transport capacity. The Yun-8 is just a copy of Lao Maozi's An-12 transport aircraft, with a maximum take-off weight of 60 tons. , with a maximum transportation capacity of twenty tons, it is really too weak.

 Looking at the Il-76 again, the improved model has a maximum takeoff weight of nearly two hundred tons and a maximum transportation capacity of nearly sixty tons. The two are not in the same order of magnitude at all.

 The Air Force needs strategic transportation capabilities and large aircraft!

"Now, Lao Maozi's side is in a period of chaos. The aircraft that are being produced on their production line can be sold at low prices." Qin Tao said: "As long as we have enough money, we can go there to pick up the leaks."

During the Red Empire, the aircraft factory only built aircraft, and Moscow had the final say as to who would equip them. But what now? They have all been separated, and the equipment that is still left in the various union republics is of course the wealth of their own countries!

However, those weapons and equipment cannot be eaten or drunk, they must be sold in order to exchange for money. Now, during this gap, the old men are selling the red empire’s property, and they are all at bargain prices!

etc!

Qin Tao suddenly thought of something, his eyes lit up, and he said to Wu Shengli: "Leader, does our navy still need a group of aerial tankers?"

In the past, there was no aerial refueling capability in China. Since the domestically produced Qi Ye and Ba Ye had short legs, they could only hang around offshore and did not dare to go deep into the ocean at all. As a result, the naval battle a few years ago , although he won the battle, he still had to run away quickly.

Faced with this situation, the Navy is also thinking about countermeasures. Aerial refueling has become a necessity.

Therefore, taking advantage of the international conditions at the time, we purchased an aerial refueling device from the United Kingdom, converted the existing H-6 into a tanker, and converted the J-8 into a refueling aircraft to conduct aerial refueling experiments. At the end of last year, The first docking was successful, which was a big step forward.

 With aerial refueling technology, Ba Ye can go around in the southern sea area. However, the performance of the H-6 modified aerial tanker is too poor and it carries too little fuel. It cannot meet the needs of long-distance voyages.

If there are advanced aerial tankers, the combat effectiveness of the naval aviation will definitely be raised to a higher level.

When Qin Tao asked, Wu Shengli nodded immediately: "Do you have any idea?"

"That's right, the Chkalov Aircraft Factory in Tashkent has a batch of IL-78 aerial tankers. They should have been built. As long as you have money, you can buy them back!" Qin Tao's heart skipped a beat when he thought of this. Jumping.

Since I have been reborn, of course I cannot take advantage of my third brother. Those six Il-78 tankers, which are priced at a bargain price, must be bought back for our naval aviation!

Even, Qin Tao has made up his mind. If the navy has no money, then Qin Tao will buy it himself and open an airline in the name of the army!

Speaking of large transport aircraft, people will first think of Ermao. After all, Ermao has the world-famous Antonov Design Bureau. The An-225 transport aircraft is the transport aircraft with the largest take-off weight in the world. It was built to carry the Buran space shuttle on its back. It was designed and has created many miracles since then.

This transport aircraft, which has a maximum take-off weight of more than 600 tons and can transport more than 200 tons of large cargo, dominates the sky and is a miracle in the history of aviation. It has even flown to China several times, causing a sensation.

 However, the final fate was to be destroyed at the airport. Thinking of that once powerful country makes people feel sad.

 The fate of the Antonov Design Bureau is even more tragic. This kind of tragic character will always attract people's attention.

Many people have overlooked that there is also a heavy transport aircraft production plant supported by the equally miserable but unknown Ilyushin Design Bureau. It is located in the capital of Uz, and there is also a heavyweight aircraft manufacturing plant!

 This country is located in Central Asia and is rich in cotton. It is the third largest cotton production base in the world, so it is also called the Platinum Country. (It will be called Platinum Country from now on.)

The capital, Tashkent, is the largest city in the country and is also an ancient city. The Silk Road once passed through here.

 After the establishment of the Red Empire, in order to balance industrial development, Moscow decided to establish a specialized heavy transport aircraft manufacturing plant here.

 From this point, we can see that Lao Maozi at that time really considered the overall situation, coordinated development, and would never favor one over the other and strive for too many benefits for Da Mao. It’s really a chess game across the country.

 So, a modern aircraft production factory appeared in the ancient city. In 1941, transport aircraft began to be produced here. It was not until later, after the separation, that Da Mao produced the IL-76 at the Ulyanovsk Aircraft Factory. Good things had to be in Da Mao's own hands. Anyway, this factory was producing An-76 in the 1980s. 124 transport aircraft, the production of IL-76 is also appropriate.

 (End of this chapter)