Chapter 543 A friend came from afar

  The weather forecast is inherently inaccurate.

In the decades since the founding of the country, the weather forecast mainly relied on the predictions of weather stations and experienced personnel in various places. Until the 1980s, with the opening of the country, the domestic meteorological bureau specially introduced two M-160II and M-170 a large computer. Their performance was very advanced at the time, and they were mainly used in international meteorological communication services, and were also used to develop numerical forecasting models. Only then did the country begin to have advanced means of weather forecasting.

In 1988, the first experimental weather satellite was sent to the sky, and the meteorological numerical model forecasting business was booming. It also started in the 1990s. The beautiful female weather hosts would look at the satellite cloud images and predict when the weather would fall in China. Rain, what will the forecast temperature be like? The forecast time is only about two days, and it is not necessarily accurate in many cases.

Later, with the rapid development of domestic supercomputers, the Meteorological Bureau independently developed a new generation of global/regional general numerical weather prediction system (GRAPES), and the weather forecast time was increased to more than one week. Even so, weather forecasting is still a very important task. Difficult to operate.

There is a very interesting saying among them, that is, the butterfly effect. A butterfly flapping its wings will cause a tsunami thousands of kilometers away. mutation. What quantitative change leads to qualitative change is completely inappropriate here.

  So, even if the weather forecast in the east is wrong, there will be no problem. Few of the weather forecasts in the 1990s are absolutely accurate.

   If it was normal, it might be nothing, but now, seeing a new storm that is about to affect his aircraft carrier Chaoriwang, Ah San finally became anxious.

  Do you want to watch this aircraft carrier have an accident?

   Of course not!

   Chaoriwang is too important to them, they must rescue this aircraft carrier at all costs!

   Choudary came to the East again, and came to the Mingzhou Shipyard.

   "Boss Qin, we sincerely beg you to dispatch the Shenzhou floating dock immediately, and we hope to rescue our Chaoriwang as soon as possible."

   "Of course, as long as 500 million U.S. dollars is transferred to our Mingzhou Group's account, we can dispatch it immediately."

  Qin Tao's answer was also very straightforward. Choudary had a troubled look on his face: "However, our funds are still in the process of being approved, and we still need to go through the process. Can you dispatch immediately?"

"Of course not." Qin Tao is not stupid: "We took the risk of breaching the contract, and with the great spirit of international friendship, helped you rescue that ship. What happened? If you couldn't approve the funds, wouldn't we do it for nothing? What? When the funds arrive, when will we leave."

   To do business with people from these countries, you must get all the funds in advance, because these guys don't have any credibility at all.

   "Boss Qin, can we pay the deposit first?"

   "Yes, please pay a deposit of 480 million yuan first." Qin Tao replied happily: "If you want to default on the remaining 20 million yuan, then forget it."

   Choudhari's eyes widened. Is this still called a deposit? This is already called the full payment, okay? The remaining 20 million is already drizzle.

He was very confused, but Qin Tao had already stood up: "I'm very busy, so I won't accompany you. You have to hurry up and raise funds quickly, otherwise the rescue will be delayed in the end. Don't blame us , After all, our ships are slow, and it took three to five days in the past."

  Ah San had no choice, they could only collect all the money neatly, and that night, the Shenzhou floating dock was finally dispatched.

When the Chaoriwang was stranded, its hull was tilted, and it looked terrible. At the same time, a high-powered tugboat from an island country and Ah San's two tugboats were hired to force the Chaoriwang from the shoal. Pull it down vigorously.

   After the Chaoriwang floated up, the floating dock of the Shenzhou moved to the bottom, lifted the Chaoriwang up, and watched the entire hull of the huge aircraft carrier emerge from the water, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, it was safe now.

  Although the tugboat fee of 500 million US dollars is very expensive, it can avoid accidents. Compared with the cost of losing an aircraft carrier, the tugboat fee is still acceptable.

  More people are looking at the Mingzhou Group, isn't this too lucrative?

   While the most expensive tugboat operation in the world was going on, Qin Tao came to the 624th institute.

"What everyone is visiting now is the most important engine on our J-31A, the turbofan 15." Qin Tao smiled and said to the guests of Rainbow Country: "At present, we have been able to complete the prototype test. Production, the first phase of improvement work is currently underway."

A full set of turbofan fifteenth engines that have introduced R79 technology is not difficult to manufacture. At present, the first phase of testing work has been completely completed, and there are no problems in terms of life, thrust, etc. The next step is to improve .

   This will take a long time. After all, the turbofan 15 is not its own. It is easy to imitate, and it will be a very difficult process to improve and improve. However, this is also necessary. As long as this road is passed, it will be smooth sailing in the future.

  Oscar opened his eyes, looked at the Turbofan Fifteen that had completed the life test and was an exhibit, and said with emotion: "Your progress is really enviable."

  Although the defense exhibition was over, according to the original plan, Oscar and the others did not leave. They stayed for a few more days on the pretext of being sick, and then, when Qin Tao had time to come, he personally took them around to have a look.

Although Daniel has engaged in many aircraft projects, without exception, they all use a large number of foreign accessories, such as their Sculptor fighter jets, which only use the Atta 50K turbojet engine. After all, only this can Production, as for the armed helicopter project that Oscar is responsible for, it is actually a modification of the French transport helicopter. The engine and other components are all inherited from the transport aircraft. If it is to be mass-produced, it must find a way to solve the procurement problem of this subsystem .

  Orientals are different, they have always been self-developed!

   At this moment, a petite and thin woman walked by. Oscar felt a little familiar. At this time, when the other party came to him, he suddenly raised his head and took a look in this direction.

  Oscar's heart immediately started beating.

   "Vanessa? Is that you? Vanessa?" Oscar shouted excitedly.

   "Hey, Oscar, Helen... why are you here?" Vanessa pretended to be surprised.

   "We're here to visit, how about you?"

   "I work here." Vanessa said, "I have been working here for two years, and I have participated in the research and development of Turbofan 15 together, and I am currently the person in charge of the turbine blade project."

What? principal?

  Oscar was even more surprised.

  In the Rainbow Country, these people are being marginalized and excluded everywhere. Unexpectedly, they will be entrusted with important tasks when they come here!

   "Since you all know each other, come over together during lunch." Qin Tao greeted.

  So, when it was time to eat, there was a table full of people, almost all of whom came from the Rainbow Country, but their mental states were different.

  Those who have already worked here are full of high-spirited fighting spirit, optimistic and cheerful, while those who come to inspect the mood at this time are very complicated.

   "How is the East?" Oscar couldn't help asking.

"Yes, of course the East is very good." Vanessa said: "We have a good time here. We are doing the work we like every day, and the treatment is also very good. We occasionally go out to the streets, and the law and order outside is very good. People are very friendly to us.”

This sentence became the last straw that broke the camel's back. Now the rainbow country is already dominated by people with another kind of skin. They have to be careful in their conduct. If they are not careful, they may be punished. Robbery, beating, women may be insulted.

   For them, this is heaven!

   "Boss Qin, can we come and work here?" Finally, Helen couldn't bear it anymore and was the first to ask.

"Of course no problem. On behalf of Dongfang, you are welcome to work here." Qin Tao said with a smile on his face, "You can still engage in previous development projects, and all the treatment is the same as that of locals, and you will also get an extra An Jiafei, Helen, you are engaged in air-to-air missiles, I can introduce you to our air-to-air missile research and development department."

  Helen's face burst into excitement.

   "What about me?" Oscar asked.

   "Our relevant domestic departments are developing professional armed helicopters. Your experience can just come in handy. I will introduce it to you. You can be the deputy chief engineer of this project."

   After all, he is a newcomer, Qin Tao directly promised the position of deputy chief engineer, so what else does Oscar have to say?

   "Mr. Qin, thank you very much, I just need to be an ordinary designer, and we will stay in the East from now on!"

   "By the way, can we introduce more people?" Helen asked.

   "Of course no problem, I welcome it very much." Qin Tao said.

Although these are not shipbuilders, as long as they are engaged in technology, Qin Tao welcomes them. They can usher in a new development opportunity here, and the country will also obtain a large number of scientific and technological talents. For the helicopter project, the progress will definitely be faster.

  Although the Army’s project has nothing to do with itself, when it arrives, if the Navy has an amphibious assault ship, it still needs special attack helicopters. The Army’s armed helicopters can also come up temporarily when needed.

   It's just that Qin Tao didn't know that these people made more contacts, so that they attracted an ambitious guy.

   After fooling these people, Qin Tao went to Qiongzhou without stopping.

Two hundred and fifty NK-33 engines have been transported back by the An-225 transport plane. When choosing a warehouse, Qin Tao conducted some research and pondered, and finally decided to buy a piece of land in Yaxing Town, Qiongzhou, and build a There is a modern warehouse, and these engines are stored in this warehouse.

  There is only one reason for doing this: Qiongzhou will build the largest rocket launch site in the country to join in the fun.

  Back then, in order to protect the security of the motherland, ballistic missiles were developed in China. When the Dongfeng-5 intercontinental ballistic missile was developed, it also meant the arrival of the space age.

  Whether it is the United States or the Soviet Union, ICBMs were used at the beginning of the aerospace era. The Dongfeng-5 missile is modified to become the Long March 2 rocket.

   The rocket is there, but what about the launch site? The underground intercontinental ballistic missile silos dug specially in the mountains must not be used as launch sites for launch vehicles, and the country has begun to select sites for space launch sites.

   It is said that Qiongzhou Island is the southernmost point of the motherland. Launching from here can make the rocket more fuel-efficient or obtain a greater carrying capacity. However, considering the international environment during the Cold War, the launch site was built in the inland Xichang.

However, in the 1980s, with the easing of international relations, Qiongzhou was still valued. Although the construction of the Wenchang Launch Center was only started in the 21st century, as early as 1988, the first one was used for A sounding rocket launch site for scientific research was built on the west coast of Qiongzhou, mainly for launching suborbital rockets. This was also to fill a gap in the country at that time, and the rocket was successfully launched on December 19 of the same year.

  Of course, this kind of rocket is not very famous. Domestic rockets are all named after the Long March, but this rocket is called Vega. (It has the same name as the European rocket.) It is also small, about the same as an ordinary anti-aircraft missile. After all, it is used to detect high-altitude conditions and does not need to send satellites into orbit.

   Moreover, after the launch of the Vega-3 sounding rocket was completed, that is, in 1994, it was almost abandoned.

  The newly built warehouse of Mingzhou Group is right next to the sounding rocket base.

  When Qin Tao came here, he looked at the people who came to greet him with great interest.

   "Mr. Qin, you don't have to come here in person, we can help you do all the work well." Wan Zhenfu, the burly head of the base, said to Qin Tao with a smile.

  Qin Tao asked with a puzzled face: "Isn't this a launch base for sounding rockets before? Why didn't I see anything?"

   Wan Zhenfu smiled: "Boss Qin, come with me."

So, Qin Tao walked into the wall and walked up to the roof of a small two-story building. Wan Zhenfu pointed to the small house two hundred meters away and said, "Look, one of these two houses is built by a rocket. In the final assembly workshop, one is the control and command bunker, and further ahead, the cement platform is our rocket launch site."

  Qin Tao was a little speechless, it was completely different from the rocket launch base he imagined!

"Our sounding rockets are very small, and they use a mobile launcher that is launched at an angle." Wan Zhenfu said: "Vega-1 is more than seven meters long, and Vega-3 is only four meters long. At that time, there were two mobile radar stations nearby, which were used to track the launched missiles."

  Qin Tao finally understood why when it comes to the launch base in Qiongzhou, few people regard it as the beginning, it is simply a child's play.

   "Old Wan, are you engaged in aerospace?" Qin Tao continued to ask.

"Yeah, I've been in spaceflight for half my life, and I personally participated in the launch of these sounding rockets. Later, when everyone wanted to leave, I was reluctant, so I stayed." Wan Zhenfu said, "It's been a long time since this place is so lively. Your Mingzhou Group is really fast, you built the warehouse in a week, and installed the air conditioner."

  The climate here is too humid. If the air conditioner is not installed, Qin Tao is afraid that those rockets will be destroyed.

   "This is the speed of our Mingzhou." Qin Tao said with a smile: "The next step is to see how the Americans choose. If they build an engine test stand, then this place will be even more lively."

"Yeah, since the end of the project, there has never been any excitement here." Wan Zhenfu said, "Mr. Qin, the batch of engines you bought are too good. It is said that the thrust is a full 170 tons. With so many engines, if all It would be a pity to sell it."

   "Of course none of them can be sold. The Americans want dozens of them at most, and the rest will probably have to be kept." Qin Tao looked at Wan Zhenfu: "Old Wan, do you have an idea?"

"The thrust of our Long March 2 engine is only 75 tons, and the thrust of four engines connected in parallel is more than 200 tons." Wan Zhenfu said: "A single engine of this kind has a thrust of 170 tons. If the first-stage rocket uses four If we have an engine of this kind, that’s 680 tons! It’s more powerful than our most important Long March 2F strap-on rocket, and its carrying capacity in low-Earth orbit can reach ten tons.”

   Wan Zhenfu was drooling.

"This is just a single rocket. If four boosters are bundled outside, and each booster uses two engines, then there will be an additional eight engines, with a thrust of 1360 tons, plus the original 680 tons, that's a thrust of two thousand tons, a thrust of two thousand tons!" Wan Zhenfu was extremely excited when he said this: "The near-earth carrying capacity can reach at least 50 tons! If it is in our Qiongzhou base launch, it may reach 60 tons! Mr. Qin, do you know what this means?"

Looking at the excited Wan Zhenfu, Qin Tao smiled: "Of course I know. In 1992, our country had already started the manned spaceflight project. This process has to be divided into three steps. To launch an experimental space station, it is necessary to build a large-scale space station with people to take care of it, and in the final stage, a rocket with a stronger carrying capacity is definitely needed."

"That's right, Mr. Qin, if we can use this batch of NK-33 to manufacture our high-thrust launch vehicle, then our large space station can be built earlier, and we will also enter from the second-rate aerospace industry. To the field of first-class aerospace!"

"However, there will be some problems here." Qin Tao said: "For example, we are developing rocket engines with a thrust of 120 tons in our country. Now if we use these rocket engines with a thrust of 170 tons, will we still use them? To carry out self-research? After all, the country’s appropriation for spaceflight is certain.”

Hearing this sentence, the excited expression on Wan Zhenfu's face suddenly dimmed. Mr. Qin was right. No matter how good this batch of rocket engines is, they belong to someone else. No matter how many there are in stock, they will always be used up. What should I do after I run out?

  Once the country completely pins its hopes on these engines and gives up self-development, then the aerospace system will face a fault when the engines are used up.

"So, if you want to use these engines, you can't follow the path of the domestic aerospace system, and we need to invest in our Mingzhou Group." Qin Tao said, "Old Wan, if we invest in ourselves, do you think these rockets will How much does it cost to use the engine and turn it into a rocket?"

The investment in aerospace engineering is quite huge. Take the most famous moon landing project as an example. Because of the planned economic system at that time and the fate of four consecutive explosions, the N1 rocket of the Red Empire has no way to calculate how much it spent. However, the Apollo program is public, and it has invested 19.408 billion US dollars in more than ten years. This is still the currency value of the 1970s. Converted to future generations, it is close to 200 billion!

To make another comparison, if the money is converted into 13 Saturn Vs, each costing close to 14 billion U.S. dollars, it means that one launch destroys a Ford-class aircraft carrier and also catches a Squadron's F-35s!

   What is the harvest? It's that bit of lunar soil.

  The huge investment and harvest are completely out of proportion.

  In addition to the state, private individuals will definitely lose money doing this kind of thing.

   "If there are enough R&D personnel, I think at least 500 million are needed." Wan Zhenfu calculated carefully.

  For a rocket, the most expensive thing is actually the engine. After all, what else can a rocket have? In addition to the engine, there are fuel tanks and electronic equipment, and the technology of fuel tanks and electronic equipment is available in China!

  Of course, it’s not right to say that. Different engines are installed on the rocket, and a lot of calculation work has to be done. Flutter and the like are big problems.

  Qin Tao is now interested. If only spending 500 million can open up the situation, then he can try it.

   At this moment, Xu Zhengyang spoke behind Qin Tao: "Mr. Qin, I just received the news that the people from American Aviation Jet Engine Company are about to arrive."

  The reason why Qin Tao came here was, of course, because the Americans had also embarked on a journey, and the business was good. Since Qin Tao had time, of course he would come to receive him.

   Soon, the convoy drove over, and Santos was the first to get out of the car. He took a deep breath of fresh air: "The air here is so sweet!"

In Qiongzhou in the 1990s, the air quality was absolutely top-notch. As for the air in the United States, just look at the impactful electric cars made by General Motors. The pollution in California was so serious that California introduced a bill. A few years later The car is not allowed to smoke! Of course, the oil giants would never tolerate this kind of bill, so the bill was scrapped later, and even the impact cars were all destroyed.

   "That's right, the environment here is very good." A young man got out of the car and said with emotion.

  When he saw this person, Qin Tao was taken aback for a moment. Although he was still very young at this time, his appearance was very similar to someone!

"Who is this?"

   "President Qin, my name is Ailong Max." The other party began to introduce himself: "I heard that Mingzhou Group is very powerful, so I came here with everyone to have a look."

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  (end of this chapter)