Warship of Great Power

Chapter 928: Ground effect aircraft engine

As Qin Tao's secretary, Zhao Ling has been silently helping Qin Tao deal with many things. This time, Lao Maozi's warship electronic system needs to be replaced with new equipment. Zhao Ling happens to be the developer of these equipment, so naturally more It is a duty that cannot be shied away from.

The cruiser Admiral Razaev docked at the outfitting dock. Zhao Ling led a group of technicians onto the huge warship and dismantled the dilapidated roof radar. It was replaced with a domestically produced 382 radar, and the entire modification work only took one day.

"This radar is completely designed according to the top-plate radar scheme. It can be connected to the previous fire control system without any data interface processing." Zhao Ling said: "We are currently inspecting the circuit equipment of the entire ship. We will wait until inspection and replacement. After that, you can take this warship out to test the radar."

“We really want to start the radar test now.” Stanislav could no longer bear it.

“This has to wait. We have radio control here, and we cannot start the test casually, otherwise it will interfere with the normal operation here.”

Stanislav could only hold back and looked up at the roof antenna again. He was very impressed. The appearance of this radar was almost the same as the one they used before, but the search distance could be doubled. The technology of the Orientals was really amazing. Got it!

“It’s a pity that you don’t have Shikili anti-aircraft missiles in your ship-based weapons, otherwise you can perfectly guide this missile. In fact, you can completely upgrade your ship-based weapons and add this kind of medium-range air defense weapon.”

Kirov-class cruisers also have different configurations. The short-range weapon of the first ship Kirov is the old SA-N-4 short-range air defense missile. This kind of anti-aircraft missile that was born in the 1960s has long been outdated, although it is said that It can also intercept Sunburn anti-ship missiles, but it is probably just to give yourself a face. When the second ship, the Admiral Zalayev, is replaced, it will be replaced by the SA-N-9 "Blade" short-range ship. The air-to-air missile is an improvement from the land-based Tor surface-to-air missile. Its performance is pretty good, but it is a small missile after all. Its range is too short and its power is too small. There is a large firepower gap between it and the S-300.

Between long-range and short-range missiles, there should be medium-range missiles. In Lao Maozi's hands, the Shikili ship-to-air missile is the most suitable medium-range missile, and it can be provided by the top-plate radar. To control the data, just install a few target illumination radars.

I don’t know what Lao Maozi thinks. Big guys like the Kirov class just can’t bear to carry Shikili ship-to-air missiles, and the same goes for the Glorious class cruisers. Even the short-range missiles still use the old SA-N-4. Moscow The reason why the USS was sunk must have been because the anti-aircraft missiles were ineffective.

Now, seeing that this huge warship did not have suitable mid-range air defense weapons, Zhao Ling couldn't help but make some suggestions.

“Yes, the flexibility of our ship-based weapons is very poor. After our domestic universal vertical launcher is developed, we can better change the equipment.” Stanislav said.

They have no choice but to wait for domestic technological development. At this time, Stanislav said, looking at the 052D being outfitted nearby. Looking at the universal vertical launcher on it, he could only envy it. Gotta drool.

 Over the years, technology in the East has developed too fast!

"Secretary Zhao." At this moment, a man walked up to her: "Mr. Qin sent a message to see how the matter here is being handled. If it is handled well, go to Huating and meet Mr. Qin."

Huating has the fourth design office of Mingzhou Group, and there is also the second shipyard of Mingzhou Group here in Huating. The Peace Dove 3, which has completed sea trials, is based at the shipyard here.

Time has entered December, and Qin Tao came to Chongming Island.

 Once, this was just a desert island with only a few villages, but now, Chongming Island has also developed.

Surrounded by water, it used to be only accessible by ships, but now, there is a bridge connecting the land on both sides, making it very convenient to enter and exit.

 Around the island, in addition to shipyards and ship repair yards, there are residences. Especially on the east side of the island, there are almost a row of sea-view houses, and the prices are very expensive.

 The Mingzhou Group Shipyard was built in advance, otherwise it would have cost a lot of money just to get a piece of land here. Near their shipyard are other shipyards, some of which are still building 054 frigates based on Mingzhou Group's drawings, a busy scene.

Qin Tao picked up his wife from the airport and went to Chongming Island together. Looking at the tall bridge, he was very proud. This bridge was also built by our Mingzhou Construction Group. Only we can complete such a large project.

The Mingzhou Group's shipyard here mainly builds natural gas ships. Such ships are still one of the main sources of profit for the Mingzhou Group. Cong Ju is usually responsible here and will only return to Mingzhou when needed. .

This time Qin Tao came to inspect, Cong Ju was very happy, but she did not introduce these to Qin Tao. She knew that Qin Tao came here to see another big guy.

"Our shipyard has specially set aside a water and land channel. You can slide from the water to the land along this channel. There is a large turntable at the end of the channel, which can complete the U-turn operation." Cong Ju said while pointing into the distance. runway.

The situation of ground effect aircraft is special. It can be called a boat or an airplane. It can float on the sea and return to land. The bottom is in the shape of a ship bottom, but it also has special landing gear for use on land. Not only does it slide from the sea to the land like this, this thing can land directly on the land runway when needed.

Following the direction of Cong Ju's finger, Qin Tao saw the large ground-effect aircraft docked on the large turntable. It seemed to be undergoing maintenance there. The appearance was so similar to the Caspian Sea monster. For a moment, he seemed to be there again. Back in time, back to the day when I first met Alexeyeva.

At this time, as if she had a premonition that Qin Tao was coming, Alexeyeva, who was busy, suddenly raised her head and looked here. When she saw Qin Tao and others, she put down the wrench in her hand, After wiping his face with his sleeves, he strode over.

She didn’t know that her cuffs were even dirtier, and wiping them on like this turned her face into a big painted face.

 “Mr. Qin!”

Alexeyeva has short hair, as short as a man's, probably to facilitate work and reduce the time wasted on washing hair. She wears the same roomy work clothes as a man, and smells like machine oil, which is invisible. Regardless of the characteristics of a woman, when she stretched out her hand, she discovered that her hand was also covered with dirt, and there was a large blood scab on the back of her hand that had not condensed well, forming a bulge there, which looked a bit scary.

She wanted to retract her hand and wipe it on her clothes, but Qin Tao had already held her hand: "Alexeyeva, thank you for your hard work."

 Qin Tao almost added "people thank you" at the end.

Alexeyeva smiled: "Yes, Mr. Qin, I am very happy working here. Our Peace Dove 3 is already as big as the former Caspian Sea monster, and its take-off weight is also 500 tons. However, It is definitely not a replica of the Caspian Sea Monster. This ground-effect aircraft is more mature! Come on, let me introduce it to you. Its biggest feature is that it uses new materials and design solutions to solve the problem of losing control when exposed to wind and waves. It has It has high sea resistance and can work stably in level 4 sea conditions and level 8 wind conditions. As long as the weather information is received in advance and does not enter the storm area, it can operate unimpeded on the sea."

 The Caspian Sea Monster is not liked by the senior officials of the Red Empire. The biggest reason is that it will be affected by the waves and lose control. In a calm inland sea like the Caspian Sea, crashes will occur, let alone flying on the four oceans.

 If this problem is not solved, the ground effect aircraft will never mature.

Alexeyeva has been studying the problem of dealing with wind and waves since Peace Dove 1. With Peace Dove 2, there have been great changes, and Peace Dove 3 is already a mature product.

“How did you solve it specifically?” Qin Tao asked.

"To put it simply, it is a combination of a high-rise wing with a lift function and a hull type that can slide in layers, coupled with a modern digital control system for precise adjustment, thereby achieving high seakeeping. Breaking through the limitations of being affected by wind and waves." Alexeyeva said: "Over the years, we have collected a large amount of data on Peace Dove 1, which has been of great help in improving our flight control."

Qin Tao nodded: "Congratulations, you have finally developed an aircraft. However, has the problem of the engine being affected by sea salt spray been solved?"

As he spoke, the guys came to the front of the huge ground-effect aircraft. It was a behemoth with a length of more than 100 meters. There were a series of engines inserted side by side on the short wings in front of the nose, giving it the rough industrial style of Lao Maozi.

 Now, the engines are being removed and apparently being repaired.

"We are currently using the turbofan 18 produced by relevant domestic units. The performance of this engine is much higher than that of Damao's D-30K, and it also adds special salt-proof and moisture-proof treatment for our offshore work. However, It still doesn’t work in actual use. Every time we go out for a trial voyage, if it travels more than a thousand kilometers, it must be disassembled and cleaned after coming back, otherwise it will greatly increase the uncertainty of our next flight.”

Carrier-based fighter jets also need to be protected from salt and moisture. However, this kind of aircraft is only affected by sea moisture during the take-off and landing stages. When it is usually placed on the deck or hangar, the engine can be sealed to reduce the impact of the sea. After taking off, it can leave When the sea reaches the sky, there is no need to be afraid.

But ground effect aircraft cannot do this. This kind of aircraft must fly over the sea for a long time. Therefore, the engine has to be affected by the salt on the sea. This cannot be solved. Even if some processing methods are added to the engine, it cannot be solved. Avoid this problem.

Turbofan 18 is a new generation of high-thrust engine developed in China. This engine is designed to power Y-20 aircraft. Alexeyeva took a fancy to this engine and coordinated a batch of them.

“If this technical problem is not solved, then we will not be able to make this aircraft practical.” Qin Tao frowned.

Ground effect aircraft have been around for a long time, but they have never been put into practical use. They face quite a few problems, and the one we are encountering now is one of them.

Every time we go to sea, we have to dismantle the engine for maintenance, which is a big project.

“Is there an electric motor driving a ducted propeller that can replace a jet engine like ours?” Qin Tao suddenly thought of something.

"Electric motor?" Alexeyeva thought for a moment, then shook her head: "It's probably too much. We used eight engines in the front, each of which needs to output 13 tons of thrust. What electric motor has such a large power? No need for now. To say whether the speed can be achieved, it must be at least a megawatt motor."

"Needless to say megawatts, we can achieve ten megawatts or twenty megawatts." Qin Tao said: "Moreover, we have done a lot of research on the sealing of electric motors. This kind of electric motor will not be damaged even if it is immersed in water." No problem, not to mention the impact of sea water vapor, which is completely negligible.”

Jet engines will be affected by salt spray at sea, but electric motors are not afraid. This kind of electric motor can be made completely sealed. Nowadays, submarine pump-jet propellers have to transition to shaftless pump-propulsion, and the electric motor is installed outside.

As for the power, it is up to standard. Qin Tao just doesn’t know whether the electric motor can provide such a large thrust.

“If the power of the electric motor can meet the standard, the ducted propeller should be able to provide sufficient thrust, but where is the source of the power? I’m afraid we don’t have such a large energy source.”

"This is easy." Qin Tao said: "We can put the engine into the cabin. One gas turbine, or two, is enough. The gas turbine drives the generator and provides power. This kind of engine has no problem flying at sea for a long time. Although The conversion efficiency will be lower, but fortunately it can solve the problem of engine life."

 Several gas turbines are already being installed on ships in China. Of course, they are not afraid of the salt spray at sea. It just sounds weird to equip aircraft with warship engines.

If the engine directly drives the ground-effect aircraft forward, the efficiency will definitely be higher. If you generate electricity first and then use the electric motor to drive the propeller, you will definitely lose a certain amount of power. In this case, you may need to consume more fuel, but the gas turbine does not need to burn aviation. You can just burn kerosene or diesel directly. This should reduce the flight cost. In addition, it is mature and reliable. In this way, the engine problem will be solved.

“Gas turbine? Generate electricity first and then provide power?” Alexeyeva frowned.

 In Eastern terms, this is like farting and taking off your pants. Is it worth it? The key is that she is not familiar with this technology.

“Mr. Qin, I don’t understand this.”

"You don't need to understand these, you just need to provide us with the technical parameters, and our Golden Sun Motor Company will solve the remaining problems." Qin Tao said: "We will help solve this problem as soon as possible and let our Peace Dove 3 More mature.”

 You can fly, but why can’t you continue to use it because the engine is weak? Qin Tao has this obligation and the ability to help.

Alexeyeva nodded: "Thank you, Mr. Qin."

“Okay, let’s go up and take a look.” Qin Tao said, “Where does this kind of aircraft enter?”

When they first discovered the Caspian Sea Monster, Qin Tao and Xu Zhengyang thought about it for a long time before opening the hatch and entering. Now he was polite, but he couldn't come in without asking.

 “It’s better to enter from the side, there is a gangway on the side.”

 Getting in and out on land is similar to that of an airplane, requiring a ramp. Qin Tao walked under the fuselage and saw the many tires there. To support a 500-ton behemoth on land, a lot of tires must be needed.

"We are considering that if the engine problem is solved and there is no need for frequent maintenance on land, then we can completely abandon these tires and only take off and land on the water." Alexeyeva saw Qin Tao looking at the tires In a daze, he immediately explained.

Now, this kind of ground-effect aircraft needs to land on the water and then go ashore to perform various maintenance work. The main reason is that the engine is not powerful. It may not be needed in the future, which will greatly reduce the weight. Moreover, structures such as watertight doors on the belly of the aircraft will also be cancelled.

“However, this also means that our ground-effect aircraft cannot land at land airports and can only take off and land on water, which is not very flexible.”

Qin Tao nodded: "We can produce two styles, and users can choose according to their needs. These are all work to be done in the future. Now we still need to ensure the reliability of flight."

While speaking, he stepped on the gangway and entered the ground effect aircraft.

“We haven’t determined what the load is yet, so the interior is empty. Just to meet the needs of going to sea, we have added some living facilities. The cockpit is complete.”

Qin Tao came to the cockpit, and his eyes suddenly lit up.

This is a modern glass cockpit with a two-person driving system. In front of each driver, there are three large LCD monitors. There are some operating knobs and the like between the two people. Once these LCD monitors are on, they immediately look taller. Get up.

Although this kind of ground-effect aircraft was developed from the technology of Lao Maozi's era, it has kept pace with the times and already has modern control methods.

"Our test flight mainly focuses on flight control. Since it is a digital fly-by-wire flight control, the cockpit display system is of course also modern." Alexeyeva said: "This is also a trend. With this system, the operation will be simpler. . In addition to the need for human intervention for takeoff and landing, normal flight can already be driven automatically, which greatly reduces the complexity. For safety during the trial, we also added a navigation radar in front of the nose. After all, our speed is too fast. Spot distant ships in advance.”

“Well, it can be sold at a good price.” Qin Tao nodded: “Is there only navigation radar at the moment?”

“There is also a global positioning system, and other components can be added. We have made provisions. Even if we need to install close-in defense guns or even anti-aircraft missiles, we have enough space.”

 These things can be installed, which further illustrates the nature of the ground-effect aircraft: when choosing between a ship and an airplane, it should be more like a ship.

After inspecting it, Qin Tao was also eye-opening. It was already noon. Cong Ju followed behind and said, "Mr. Qin, do you want to go to the cafeteria to eat first?"

“Well, I rarely come to our shipyard here. Now that I’m here, I have to experience the life of our shipyard. We don’t need big fish and meat. We will eat whatever ordinary people eat.”

"good."

Cong Ju also knew Qin Tao's character, so of course he would not arrange a small stove. When he led Qin Tao and his party to the canteen, there were already many workers eating there. Qin Tao picked up the stainless steel dinner plate from the door and began to Walk inside.

 In the window of the cafeteria, you can see a variety of dishes, including Sichuan, Shandong, and Guangdong cuisines, including pork, beef, mutton, chicken, fish, shrimp, crab, and a variety of meats.

“This fish-flavored shredded pork is pretty good, give me some.” Qin Tao pointed to the dish inside and said.

Chefs in some places, when frying fish-flavored shredded pork, put everything in, including garlic sprouts and the like. The good fish-flavored shredded pork is fried into a chowder. The fish-flavored shredded pork here is just shredded pork. Shredded carrots and green peppers, plus a few fungus, this is the authentic one.

 The cook inside did not serve the food directly, but clicked a few times on a box on the window: "Two yuan, punch in!"

 The number 2 appears on the screen on the front of the box.

Cong Ju took out a card and swiped it on it. After a beep, the chef inside whipped up a spoonful of fish-flavored shredded pork and placed it on the dinner plate held by Qin Tao.

Qin Tao paused for a few seconds before he realized: "Isn't it free to eat here?"

"Yes, our cafeteria uses credit cards. Every month, our factory recharges three hundred yuan on the meal card of each employee. The standard is ten yuan per day. If it is not enough, then you can spend your own money to recharge. If If you have more money, you can accumulate it until next month, and you can withdraw the money in one lump sum at the end of the year," Cong Ju said.

The Mingzhou Group still implements a free system. When workers enter the canteen, they open their stomachs and eat as much as they want. However, this will also cause some waste. After all, not everyone has a noble style, and some people will even fight. The meals for a few people are taken home and eaten by the whole family.

Mingzhou Group has a big business and doesn't care about this waste. It regards it as a welfare for employees. However, Congju's factory cannot do that. This branch factory is independently operated and has separate accounts. It needs to be repaid every year. The group reconciles accounts, so they must reduce expenses as much as possible and refuse to waste.

The food standard of ten yuan a day is not low. After all, the prices in the canteen are cheap. This fish-flavored shredded pork costs five yuan outside, but it only costs two yuan here. With a serving of rice, it costs two yuan. RMB 50 cents is enough to fill you up. If that's not enough, you can order vegetarian dishes such as tomatoes and eggs for RMB 1, or braised pork for RMB 2.

This avoids waste, and also saves someone from bringing back food to eat with the whole family, or even taking the food from the canteen to be sold outside.

Don't overestimate human nature and sell free food from the canteen. People who take advantage of it are everywhere, and they will exist even in later generations, and they still have plausibility.