Chapter 1224 Arms Race in the Field of Aviation Power
It is obvious that although both parties in this meeting appear to be sincere, no one is even remotely sincere towards each other.
They all chose to make fun of each other in order to find out each other's background.
The high-definition remake of the Western Front of World War II belongs to it.
It's just that MTU is obviously much more promising than Aberweir and other German intelligence agencies.
Due to various coincidences, this round was considered a small victory over the opponent.
Not only did he get the information he wanted, but he also got the Luo Luo delegation together.
Of course, it has no practical effect.
According to the plan, the outline of the cooperation between MTU and Pratt & Whitney will soon be announced to the world. There is nothing in this news that deserves to be kept secret.
What the former is worried about is that Luo Luo obtained the details through some channels.
But the facts proved to be completely unfounded.
In fact, the British are not completely unaware.
Until Bodie returned to his residence, he still felt that today's meeting was weird.
Not to mention between two companies, even between two departments of the same company, such smooth information communication rarely occurs.
For a veteran, Winkler's entire conversation seemed a bit too candid.
But the other party's conclusion coincided with Partridge's previous statement.
He really can’t help but not believe it...
In short, with such a nagging thought, Bodi ended his three-day trip to Germany, and then reported the talks and visits to Watson one by one.
The latter is relieved——
Two independent sources came to the same conclusion.
Could it be all wrong?
No way?
Although Purdy did not forget to voice his concerns to Watson, saying that Winkler's attitude seemed a bit too cooperative.
But the latter was not at the scene after all, and there was really no reason to doubt it.
The only answer is that Bodi worked in a technical position in the past, and this was his first time taking charge of a large-scale project, so he was a little worried about gains and losses.
So, this matter passed so peacefully...
temporary.
Bodi returned to his post and began to lead the NGME project team to conduct performance demonstrations.
If nothing else happens, this project, which is expected to be named Trent 300, should officially enter the research and development stage before the end of 2007, and then serve as one of the alternative power sources for the Airbus A320neo, helping Rolls-Royce in the final stage. The huge aviation market is further conquering the city...
Everything seemed to be quietly back on track.
Until one morning a month later.
Bodi, who went to work after breakfast as usual, walked into the office and opened his email as usual, preparing to plan today's schedule.
But just as the page loaded, he saw an email in his inbox that was forwarded by his secretary.
There is also a red word "Breaking" marked on the front.
Bodi subconsciously clicked in.
Then his right hand shook violently, almost throwing the mouse away——
There was a piece of news on the screen.
Fifteen minutes ago, MTU and Pratt & Whitney jointly announced that they will jointly develop a new PW1000 series of engines based on the PW1000G/1100G engine, including PW1200 with a thrust of 120-150kN, PW1500 with a thrust of 95-115kN, etc. Four sub-series...
Later there were some statements from both parties, as well as purely formal remarks such as development visions.
But Bodi only felt dizzy and couldn't see the words on the screen clearly...
At this moment, there is only one sentence echoing in my mind:
"Brother, I will give you a heart-to-heart, and if you play with your brains, I will be deceived by the stupid Germans!"
Although objectively speaking, it was Watson and Bodi who played the trick first, and MTU was just acting in legitimate defense.
But people, it is always inevitable to have double standards at times like this.
After a ringing in his ears for a while, Bodi barely recovered from the emotion that he couldn't tell whether it was anger or shame.
The brain that had almost lost the ability to think just now started to function again.
Right.
All right.
No wonder Winkler, the old man, seemed proactive at first, but in the end he refused the cooperation proposed by him without any hesitation.
No wonder the Germans, who have always been secretive about technical issues, not only decisively admitted that there are problems with the CLEAN plan this time, but even specifically explained what the problems were. No wonder...
It all seems so obvious in hindsight.
But there is no regret medicine in the world.
The only solution now is to think about how to make amends.
Bodi sorted out his thoughts for a while and felt that he should contact Watson first to determine the more specific details of the cooperation between PW and MTU.
However, before his fingers touched the receiver, the phone rang first.
Not surprisingly, it came from the Secretariat's Office.
Ask him to go to the aviation development department director's conference room for a meeting immediately.
……
When Bodi hurried into the conference room on the top floor with the printed news report, several executive-level personnel, including Watson, were already sitting inside.
"Tim."
As soon as Watson spoke, he saw the piece of paper in his hand.
Although the content above cannot be clearly seen, at this time, it is obviously impossible for it to be irrelevant news.
"Well, it looks like you already know that too..."
He pointed towards Bodie to an empty chair beside him and motioned for the latter to sit down first:
"Looking at the current situation, we are probably being joined together by Pratt & Whitney and MTU, two old rivals...and of course old partners, to create a showdown."
"In the research and development of the new generation of aviation power, we were still half a step behind our opponents..."
Watson's expression was somewhat complicated when he spoke.
As Blue Star's top troublemakers, they calculated before and after this time, but in the end they included themselves.
In fact, from the time when the Trent 900 received news about the new generation A320 during its first flight, to the time when the A380's test flight situation stabilized, Bodi and others were mobilized to form the NGME project team, Rolls-Royce's efficiency was not slow.
However, Pratt & Whitney, as the original advocate of jointly establishing the International Aero Engine Company, was obviously the first among the four brothers to decide to separate.
With the first-mover advantage and the PW1000G foundation there, the action is naturally much faster than that of Luoluo.
So, overnight. The original leisurely and carefree situation of the NGME project has disappeared.
The burden on the R&D team’s shoulders has also increased instantly.
"I saw the news from online news reports, there is nothing too detailed in it..."
As the person directly responsible for the new model, Bodi can't take care of the red tape:
"So first of all, is there any more accurate news, such as what are the specific goals of this cooperation between PW and MTU?"
Watson opened the folder in front of him, and inside there was a document about a dozen pages thick:
"In accordance with the principle of disclosure of information, they shared some information after the press conference."
"In fact, after the EU's CLEAN program began, MTU has been simultaneously promoting another highly secretive CLAIRE program, which started around 2003... The cooperation between them and PW also began at that time .”
"The entire plan has four research goals. One is the gear-driven fan engine. The goal is to reduce fuel consumption by 10% and pollutant emissions by 15% compared to the current technical level of the V2500 "SelectOne"... They have almost achieved this. ”
"The second is the contra-rotating turbofan engine, which will further reduce fuel consumption and emissions by 10% on the basis of the previous one."
"Three..."
When he said this, Watson's voice suddenly stopped.
His face also became a little ugly.
After a few seconds, he sighed and continued:
"The third is the turbofan engine with intercooled regenerator, which reduces fuel consumption by 20% and pollutant emissions by more than 35% compared to the current model."
“Finally, by combining all the above technologies, the goal is to halve the fuel consumption per unit thrust compared to the current level, and reduce the emission level calculated by nitrogen oxides to a quarter...”
"As for more specific cooperation details, such as the tasks undertaken by both parties, as well as the form of cooperation, estimated timetable, etc., we have no reliable information for the time being..."
"..."
After finishing speaking, Watson closed the folder helplessly.
"But..."
Bodi subconsciously wanted to say that Winkler had previously made it clear that intercooling and heat recovery technology, especially separate intercooling technology, was not suitable for the working environment of aerospace engines.
But as he spoke, he realized that the other party was obviously lying to him.
As for Partridge...
To say that he is a German spy, the probability is indeed relatively low.
There is a high probability that it is simply a mistake in judgment.
Finally, Watson broke the silence with a serious face:
"Everyone, I estimate that General Electric will respond soon."
"The arms race for a new generation of aviation power has begun..."
(End of chapter)