Chapter 268 The God of Wealth of the Air Force
The Chinese Air Force currently has 14 second-hand IL-76T/TD transport aircraft purchased from different channels.
Four of them are set aside to be modified into early warning aircraft.
Although the number is very small, they are not new machines and the related tactics and tactics are not very proficient.
But after all, the military has been able to experience the performance of large transport aircraft.
It is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but it is difficult to go from luxury to frugality.
I can’t go back.
With three times the load of the Y8, it can fly three times the range of the Y8!
The long-range transport aviation force submits its annual year-end summary, which can be summed up in one sentence.
The big plane is really fragrant, hurry up and get more!
However, the voices of the troops are loud and clear. Considering China's stretched military expenditure in the past few years, it really cannot afford to introduce more IL-76 or other large transport aircraft.
In addition, large transport aircraft are still less urgent than several advanced fighter models also equipped by the Air Force, so this matter has been shelved.
But in 1997, the situation changed somewhat.
The secondary reason is that due to a series of events in 1996, total military expenditures soared by nearly 10 billion yuan as planned.
At the same time, because the development leadership of several civil aviation models was taken back to the Science and Technology Commission system, there were billions more on the books.
The main reason is that when the 1997 annual budget was compiled, everyone was surprised to find that because many expensive projects such as the J-8C, Kunlun engine and Thunderbolt 11 were completed ahead of schedule in the second half of 1996, there was a large number of The project R&D and equipment procurement costs that were originally planned were saved.
The total amount of this money is not more than the previous two, that is, it is at the level of several billions.
But there is a considerable foreign exchange quota in it.
In the 1990s, this was very popular.
Mainly due to the huge amount of money saved during the introduction of No. 11 Project technology——
According to the original psychological expectations of China, including technology transfer, equipment, materials, labor and other costs, the minimum contract total that needs to be paid to the Russian side during the entire project period is between US$7 billion and US$8 billion.
The one-time payment in 1996-97 is nearly US$1.5 billion.
However, Sukhoi made huge concessions during the negotiation process last year, lowering the purchase unit price and at the same time reducing the number of aircraft that China was required to purchase directly from Russia. As a result, this expenditure was actually lower than the original price. Plans were reduced by about a third.
This means that in 1997 alone, there was almost an extra US$500 million that could be used to introduce other technologies or equipment from abroad.
This can be regarded as a windfall.
Just in time, the Ilyushin Group and the Chkalov Factory jointly invited the Chinese delegation to visit.
The thoughts of the Air Force naturally became more vivid.
This is how the trip led by Huai Guomo came about.
Before departure, Ding Gaoheng listed and summarized these things at a small internal meeting held by the Science and Industry Committee.
The original intention is to improve everyone's self-confidence.
But as soon as the table was displayed on the big screen, someone noticed the bright spot.
It seems that the same name vaguely floats behind these things...
Whether directly or indirectly, Chang Haonan played a very important role in them.
In this regard, Ding Gaoheng commented humorously:
“It seems that our little comrade can still be regarded as the God of Wealth of the Air Force...”
At the beginning, when Huai Guomo came to Tashkent this time, he even wanted to bring this "God of Wealth" with him.
The latter’s whimsical thinking and overall perspective in the previous negotiations with the European Union made him quite unforgettable.
Unfortunately, after asking, I found out that the other party was helping the Electronic Technology Group deal with a difficult issue and could not escape for the time being.
After weighing it again and again, he still believed that it was more important to let Chang Haonan solve technical problems.
After all, in the several times mentioned earlier, the latter was also broken through technical means.
...
After a brief fugue, Huai Guomo's attention returned to the two rows of large aircraft parked in the factory.
Kucherov, who had not spoken much just now, finally came to the front:
“We now have a total of 2 aircraft in the factory that have been basically completed, and only some preparation work is left. The two Il-78 tankers we made are the two farthest from us.”
Following the direction of the factory director, Huai Guomo saw the one at the end of the queue with the words CCCP spray-painted on its fuselage. Two planes.
Next to him, Lozko opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he remained silent.
Although the Chkalov Factory does not have the ability to manufacture aircraft from scratch, it has no problem completing these semi-finished airframes.
From a legal perspective, it is of course possible to discuss what proportion of the aircraft left in the Chkalov factory belongs to the Ilyushin Group.
But that makes no sense. The disintegration of the alliance was originally a mess, and how many things could be snatched from the chaos depended on each individual's ability. Now even if he came up with tricks, Kucherov would not be able to hand over these things parked in the assembly workshop.
We are now at a critical moment when the Ilyushin Group and the local forces in Tashkent are competing for the legacy of the Chkalov Factory. There is no need to offend the key figures among them with these bits and pieces.
Under the leadership of Kucherov, we walked near the IL-76 final assembly line.
“The first four aircraft are also IL-78s, and the completion rate is about 70%. With sufficient financial support, they can all be completed within half a year.”
“First, That is to say, the four Ilyushin 76TDs we are passing now are military transport types. They are about half complete. The main reason is that the power system is not yet in place. If the Perm Engine Factory can provide enough D30KP2 engines, it will be soon, at most. ...One and a half to two years.”
“Why does it take so long for these four planes?”
Liang Zhuoping, who was following Huai Guomo, asked curiously.
After all, the IL-78 is actually more complex than the IL-76.
“Because we can’t produce so many aircraft at the same time as before, so we have to queue up, and those at the back will naturally be slower.”
Kucherov is not here either. This kind of thing is concealed - although he has made a lot of superficial efforts to welcome the arrival of the Chinese purchasing delegation during this period, the current situation of the factory is still obvious to those who know the inside story at a glance.
Even if he didn’t say it, Chinese people would be able to understand everything just by spending a few days wandering around the city of Tashkent.
"This No. 1 workshop used to be able to assemble 12 200-ton large aircraft at the same time. Now... it can only guarantee 3-4 aircraft."
The voice of the old factory director was a little lonely. .
However, he then assured Liang Zhuoping and Huai Guomo:
"Even so, our cost performance and efficiency are already very high. There is no other in the world." The local government can guarantee to provide you with 10 brand-new strategic transport aircraft within two years, and the price can be discussed later."
This is not a lie.
In fact, there are only three suppliers in the world that can provide strategic transport aircraft.
Among them, McDonnell Douglas or Boeing's C17 will definitely not be sold to China.
And Antonov no longer has the ability to produce the An-124. Moreover, due to the restrictions on take-off and landing conditions, there is no competitive relationship between the An-124 and the IL-76.
The only competitor of the Chkalov Factory is actually the 800 Il-76s it built in the past.
If the price is too high, it is entirely possible for Chinese people to turn around and buy used goods.
You must remember that this was only the beginning of 1997, and the second-hand aircraft in the hands of the CIS countries were in good condition.
Not to mention the Uzbek Air Force itself, there are more than a dozen unused Il-76s waiting to be sold.
As for the business of overhauling the Il-76, it can be completed by places such as the Belarusian 571 aviation repair shop, and the competition is fierce.
“Why wait until later, I think we can start talking today.”
……
With the efforts of the profitable Mirziyoyev, the negotiations between China and the Chkalov factory on the current 10 aircraft went very smoothly. They did not even need to sit at the negotiating table. They were directly on an Ilyushin 76. A verbal agreement was reached in the cabin.
Because the factory is in a hurry for money, and these aircraft are originally free for Uzbekistan and do not involve research and development costs at all, the price is only charged for 10 aircraft when Tian is not worried about it. $108 million.
Of course, for China in this era, this is already a huge deal.
But if someone saw this price in Chang Haonan in Yanliang, they would definitely call it outrageous.
Seventeen years later, in 2014, China purchased three second-hand IL-78s from Ermao, with a unit price of US$45 million.
Even if the inflation rate over the years is calculated, the new machine with a unit price of 9.6 million can indeed be called a clearance sale.
Of course, the two parties still held a brief ceremony the next day and finalized the formal contract.
After all, they are worried that the other party will regret it.
However, subsequent negotiations with the Ilyushin Group and the Chkalov Factory on the purchase of the new Ilyushin 76MF transport aircraft progressed slowly from the beginning.
To put it bluntly, second-hand aircraft were assets of the past alliance, and they were sold at low prices. But new aircraft, especially those that have just completed their first flight and have not yet been fully finalized, are another time. It's over.
Lozko has set the unit price of the aircraft at US$33 million each, and must purchase at least 36 aircraft in the next 10 years.
Huaiguo Mo has no objection to this quantity, but the unit price of US$33 million is still too high for China.
Project No. 11 has saved a total of almost 2 billion US dollars. You can't just hand over half of it to Ilyushin by changing hands, right?
This is external procurement in a pure sense and does not involve technology transfer.
After several days of confrontation, neither side was willing to give in.
So the negotiations reached a deadlock.
“How about we contact that comrade, the God of Wealth, and ask him if he has any opinions?”
After countless rounds of negotiations, Liang Zhuoping proposed while laughing. own suggestions.
(End of this chapter)