Chapter 118 We need a better plane (two-in-one)
While communicating with Yang Huimei, Lu Yuying paid special attention to the members of the Pakistani delegation who got off the four minibuses.
Looking closely, I did find some differences.
Although most people are wearing military uniforms, compared with previous times, the proportion of air force officers in this delegation is significantly higher, and judging from their appearance and age, many of them look like active pilots .
When you come to buy an airplane, it is normal to bring a few pilots to experience flying. However, because most of the senior officers of the Air Force are pilots, it is rare to see so many young faces.
Seeing the members of the Pakistani delegation getting out of the car one after another, Yang Huimei couldn't help but leave them alone.
But before turning around, he still said to Lu Yuying:
"In short, this situation is indeed special, and the superiors also attach great importance to it. Before I came out today, Air Force Deputy Commander Shen Tianfeng The tone was specifically set, saying that China and Pakistan would deepen exchanges in military technology and training."
Looking at the other party's leaving figure, Lu Yuying knocked on his head in distress.
As an engineering technician, he did not like this ambiguous statement.
It would be nice if a precise range could be given, like aircraft design.
Unfortunately, this is almost impossible in the field of foreign exchange.
Since 1988, the two countries have confirmed their intention to cooperate based on the Super 7 project, a deeply improved version of the J-7.
However, due to differences between the two sides on the technical aspects of the fighter aircraft, and the Pakistani interest in the middle turning to the F16, the project stagnated for a long time.
It was not until the year before last, that is, in 1994, that Pakistan, which had no hope of purchasing F16 due to US sanctions, restarted formal negotiations.
However, at this time, their requirements for the aircraft have changed from a "low-end fighter to serve as a starting point for the F16" to "a main fighter that can replace the F16."
The initial plan of the Super 7 program, the J-7CP obviously cannot meet this requirement.
If a new aircraft were to be designed according to Pakistan's technical requirements, the amount of work and cost would be much greater.
Both China and Pakistan, the associated risks will also increase exponentially.
So a more in-depth cooperation model is needed.
However, when it comes to deepening cooperation between countries, the aviation industry sector has the final say.
In short, the progress of the negotiations has been stagnant until today.
As a result, at this time, he suddenly said that he wanted to deepen the communication——
How deep should it be deepened?
Project No. 10?
Don't even think about it, it is absolutely not allowed to be seen. No matter how good the relationship between Pakistan and China is behind the scenes, they are still a U.S. ally in black and white, and they cannot let everything go.
But what next?
Looking at the opponent's posture this time, it is definitely not as simple as buying another batch of J-7s.
And it also involves cooperation in the field of aviation technology, which is even more sensitive and troublesome.
Several projects currently being carried out by the 611 Institute involve various technologies and subsystems, which ones can be sold and which ones cannot...
Lu Yuying had no idea about these issues.
In fact, not only was Lu Yuying unsure, but because China was still immature in terms of equipment exports at this time, even the people in China Aviation Technology were unsure.
But no matter what, the matter has come to this, so we can only bite the bullet.
After all, the military is still tightening its belts and living a hard life. The entire military industry sector is seriously short of orders and even needs to convert military products into civilian products to maintain its livelihood.
Although it is much better than the most difficult period in the 1980s, funds in all aspects are still tight.
For example, the J-7F fighter jet, which is currently in charge of Lu Yuying himself and is progressing very well, has a total project allocation of only 50 million yuan.
If it weren’t for a very chance opportunity that allowed him to contact the reinforcements through a paper, which greatly reduced the development cost of the aircraft, I am afraid that this deeply improved model may not have reached the end.
So in this case, all the more thoughtful military industrial companies have turned their attention abroad.
If we can get orders from foreign customers and exchange them for foreign exchange, then even if all of these funds cannot belong to the unit, at least a considerable part can be retained to solve some urgent problems.
“We can only take one step and see one step at a time...”
Lu Yuying took a deep breath and walked in the direction of the delegation.
The leading officer also stepped forward.
"This is Chief Engineer Lu Yuying of the Aviation Industry Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute. He is responsible for the development of several improved models of J-7 aircraft."
Yang Huimei, standing beside the two men, first said He introduced Lu Yuying’s identity to the officer, and then turned slightly to face the latter:
“This is the deputy chief of staff of the Pakistan Air Force and the leader of the Pakistani delegation, Shahid Rathi. Major General Husband.”
The two shook hands.
Latif’s opening method was very unique:
“Before I was grounded because of my age, the last model I flew was the J-7MP fighter designed by you. At that time , It is definitely a pretty good airplane.”
“It’s a great honor to receive such praise from you, Mr. Major General.”
Just like all parents like to hear other people praise their family. Just like children, Lu Yuying, a designer of the 611 Institute, is naturally very benefited from this.
The official language of Pakistan is Urdu, but the vast majority of people actually use English, so communication between the two does not need to be through an interpreter.
Of course, Latif also understood what he meant. It was a pretty good airplane back then, but the implication is that it is somewhat behind the times now.
This is also an indisputable fact.
The J-7MP is essentially a J-7B that has been retrofitted with a large number of Western equipment and can use French-made R550 air-to-air missiles. It was still visible in 1984 when it was first delivered, but now In the mid-1990s, both flight performance and airborne equipment could no longer keep up with the times.
So Lu Yuying followed the original plan and walked towards the final assembly workshop of Factory 132 with Latif and a huge delegation of almost forty people behind him.
Parked there was a J-7MG that had rolled off the assembly line but had not yet had time to transfer to Yanliang for test flights.
Since you are not sure what the fundamental purpose of the other party's visit this time is, it will never go wrong to start with some more conservative projects.
Of course, Lu Yuying did not forget his identity as a "salesman" and kept introducing the current main model of the 611 Institute to the other party on the road:
"Mr. Major General, because of the annihilation The 7MP uses a lot of Western equipment, and its overall performance is now slightly lagging behind, so we have discontinued this model and are preparing to export a new improved model, the J-7MG.”
“New aircraft. The wing was changed from the large swept delta wing to a double delta wing, with an inner wing sweep angle of 57° and an outer wing sweep angle of 42°. The front and rear edge maneuverable flaps were added, and a turbojet 13F engine was installed. Compared with the previous old model, the maneuverability has been improved by at least one-third..."
While talking, the group of people had arrived outside the assembly workshop and saw the J-7MG parked inside through the open door.
Yang Huimei is a foreign trade expert. She doesn’t know much about airplanes.
In fact, if she hadn't gained some knowledge in the past 24 hours, she wouldn't even be able to tell the difference between the J-6 and J-7 equipped by the Pakistan Air Force.
Only Q5 is easier to recognize because the nose is pointed.
But she understands people's hearts.
When Lu Yuying first introduced the technical features of the new aircraft, Latif was still quite interested.
But when he saw the real J-7MG machine parked in the workshop, although there was no obvious performance, the slightly slumped facial muscles still revealed a feeling of disappointment.
After hinting Lu Yuying several times to end his long story quickly, Yang Huimei had no choice but to interrupt him directly:
"General Master Lu, let me see if there is anyone in the delegation this time. The pilots of the Shaoba Air Force, I wonder if we can let them sit in the cabin and experience it for themselves?"
After hearing this, Lu Yuying was stunned, and then nodded.
That's certainly possible. For aircraft prepared for export, cockpit experience is a very important and common process.
Besides, the J-7MG has no secrets at all and is always going to be sold.
Based on the past arms sales relationship between China and Pakistan, it would be no problem even for the latter’s pilots to experience flying aircraft into the air.
……
The accompanying translator quickly translated Yang Huimei's words to the members of the delegation.
After seeing Lu Yuying nodding in agreement, after a brief exchange, a middle-aged pilot who looked to be in his 40s and had a big beard walked out of the crowd.
But people in South Asia tend to look older, so he should actually be younger.
Latif glanced at him, and then introduced in a very proud, even a bit showy tone:
“This is Lieutenant Colonel Muhammad Sami, the most senior officer of our Pakistan Air Force. A good ace pilot, he has flown all types of aircraft from J-6 to F16, and has achieved a total of 7 air combat results.”
"It's really good."
Lu Yuying didn't react on the surface. He just motioned to the staff next to him to move a boarding ladder from the staff of the 132 factory nearby, but he couldn't help but comment in his heart. arrive.
Due to the special geographical location and practical conditions, the Pakistan Air Force has extremely rich combat experience, especially air combat experience. Most of the time, it is against a weak enemy and a strong one, and it is by no means a result of abuse.
After Latif’s introduction, Sami gave Lu Yuying a curt salute, and then got into the cabin with the assistance of several ground staff.
Another person who had been following Sami also climbed up the boarding ladder and observed the situation inside the cockpit.
It's just that this man is wearing an army's khaki military uniform, which is quite conspicuous among the navy blue.
Just when Lu Yuying was about to step forward to introduce the specific upgrades of the cockpit of this aircraft compared to the old J-7M, Major General Latif appeared next to him and patted him on the shoulder.
"Mr. Latif?"
Latif glanced at the person standing on the boarding ladder, as if to confirm that the other person's attention was not here, and then Then he whispered:
"Mr. Lu, our pilots have actually experienced your army's J-7E fighter jet many times. Frankly speaking, it does not meet the current requirements of our army."
Obviously, this means that he is ready to speak openly.
Although Lu Yuying couldn't figure out why the other party's attitude suddenly became clear, it was always a good thing.
“So what do you want specifically?” He asked in a voice that only two people could hear:
“Not only this time, your country was negotiating the Super 7 project before. At that time, the request was also very ambiguous.”
“The reasons are very complicated, but today I can clearly disclose to you that our request is divided into two parts.”
Latif speaks English very fast. Fortunately, he does not have the heavy accent common in South Asia. Lu Yuying can understand everything:
“First, in the short term, preferably before the end of next year. Obtaining a model with better performance than the J-7P and Mirage 3 only requires pure procurement and does not involve technology transfer.”
“The second is to obtain a comprehensive model within a maximum period of 5-8 years. A fighter jet whose performance and development potential are no less than that of the Mirage 2000C, and preferably close to the level of the F16C, requires our Kamra Aviation Complex to participate in the research and development process, and at least be responsible for the aircraft's final assembly and intermediate maintenance capabilities."
"Before the end of next year?"
Lu Yuying was stunned when he heard this time point, and then thought about it in his mind.
If another amount of funds can be injected to improve some work efficiency, the J-7F project he has on hand seems to be able to meet this requirement.
“If you think the performance of the J-7MG is still insufficient, we currently have a deeply improved model of the J-7 that is about to complete the design. By changing the nose air intake to the chin air intake, we have freed up space to install a The capability of the radar with a diameter of 600mm. "
"The design is about to be completed...so can the progress be kept up?"
Latif is obviously also interested.
“We adopted a, uh... special design method, so there are not many changes compared to the original model. If nothing else, there will be no problem in completing the first flight early next year, because they are all mature subsystems. , the test flight progress will also be very fast.”
"What about the airborne weapon system? Can it be replaced with a radar made in Italy or France?"
"Hmm..."
Lu Yuying hesitated:
"If it is a pure purchase and does not involve joint research and development, since the initial investment is borne by us, the time and capital cost of rashly replacing new airborne equipment will be relatively large."
"And Mr. Major General, you can rest assured that the avionics equipment produced by us in China is also compatible with the Aspaid air-to-air missiles produced in Italy.”
This explanation is half true and half false.
In terms of the J-7 improved version, the localization rate is so tight, and the economic account is indeed one aspect.
As a light fighter, the price of the J-7 cannot be set very high, and the prices of subsystems from Italy or France often break through the sky.
For example, the J-7MP that was previously exported to Pakistan used a lot of foreign technology. If the cost was calculated according to the official exchange rate, it would even lose money...
Due to the urgent shortage of foreign exchange, the addition of the J-7MP 7M is also responsible for opening up overseas markets and building a reputation, so it can exchange Chinese currency for U.S. dollars even if it loses money.
But it would be unwise to do such a thing now.
But there is another layer of consideration that Lu Yuying did not mention.
That is, after entering the 1990s, as the relationship between China and the West turned cold, such foreign trade projects involving third country technology encountered too many non-technical obstacles, whether it was Chinese aviation technology or aviation Industry often spends a lot of energy on this.
And it will also bring huge default risks.
Hearing this explanation, Latif showed a somewhat tangled expression.
The problem of matching the 208 radar and the Aspad medium-range bomb was not solved until the end of 1995, less than a year ago.
Let’s not talk about whether the reliability problem has been completely solved.
Let’s talk about this 208 radar.
It is an early monopulse radar, and its performance is not accurate.
Because the pulse Doppler system is not used, although the detection distance on paper is more than 30 kilometers, the interception distance, detection accuracy, and anti-interference...
It can only be said that the problem of presence or absence has been solved. Compared with the earlier 204 radar, it can finally achieve the ability to lock on targets and guide attacks.
In short, there is a lot of room for growth.
“Actually, our J-7F does not have to be produced from scratch.”
Seeing the other party’s delay in giving an answer, Lu Yuying also knew that he had to come up with something that had enough The weight of the chips was gone.
“It can also be obtained by upgrading the J-7P/MP series fighters already equipped by your army. The difference is that the diameter limit of the radar is reduced from 600mm to 520mm, and the flight performance will even be improved.”< br>
"Oh?"
Latif's eyes lit up as expected.
Today is a little busy, I wonder if I can add another chapter
(End of this chapter)