The rise of a great power: starting with military industry

Chapter 991 Multi-purpose fighter jets are the future of development
Civilian airliners are not what Shi Lao is most interested in.

Shi Lao is most interested in military aircraft.

When you come to the military aircraft exhibition area, there are a lot of rules, such as you cannot get so close to take pictures, and some even don't allow you to take pictures.

The first fighter plane that Shi Lao saw was a murderous JH-7 fighter. Seeing this plane, Shi Lao couldn't help but excitedly said: "This JH-7 fighter is so beautiful!"

The JH-7 fighter is a medium-sized fighter-bomber successfully developed by my country in the 80s.

Fighter-bombers, also known as fighter-bombers or fighter-attack aircraft, are aircraft that are mainly used to attack ground and surface targets within the enemy's operational and tactical depth and have air combat capabilities.

Its main features are: 1. Its flight speed is faster than that of ordinary bombers, generally between Mach 1.5 and Mach 2.3, which gives it good high-speed penetration capability and a stronger chance of survival on the battlefield; 2. It has advanced fire control equipment, which improves its strike accuracy; 3. It has lower requirements for airports than bombers, and a runway of 1500 meters can be used; 4. Its maneuverability is much higher than that of bombers, similar to that of ordinary fighter jets, and it can fight head-on against interceptors.

Although fighter-bombers have so many advantages over bombers, their bomb load is lower and their combat effectiveness is lower, so they cannot completely replace bombers. However, because they have the functions of fighter jets, they are equipped in large quantities by the armies of various countries.

The history of fighter-bombers can be traced back to the P-1941D fighter produced by the United States in 40 during World War II. It was equipped with a bomb rack that could carry about 230 kilograms of bombs and was used to bomb ground targets. In the late 40s, the United States first used the name "fighter-bomber".

In the late 50s, the Soviet Air Force began to equip itself with fighter-bombers. The early Soviet aircraft of this type were also modified from fighter jets, such as the Su-7, and later developed into a new variable-sweep-wing Su-24.

The F-105, a fighter-bomber specially designed by the United States, made its first flight in 1955 and was subsequently equipped to the troops. In 1967, it was developed into the F-111. For a long time, the F-111 was the most advanced fighter-bomber.

The new fighter-bomber Tornado, jointly developed by Britain, West Germany and Italy, made its first flight in 1974.

Due to the development of fighter-bombers, light bombers have been gradually phased out.

The JH-7 fighter is China's latest medium-sized fighter-bomber. Its external name is FBC-1 and its Chinese name is "Flying Leopard". It has the capability of precise ground attack in all weather conditions and complex weather conditions.

The JH-7 fighter jet is at the world's top level.

"Yes, the JH-7 fighter is indeed a fighter-bomber with excellent performance, but these advanced fighter-bombers may be the last glory of the fighter-bomber era. In the future, multi-purpose fighters will definitely replace fighter-bombers." A middle-aged man said with emotion: "My name is Yang Qun, what's your name, friend?"

"Shi Lao! My name is Shi Lao!" Shi Lao said. He had recognized Yang Qun, a special commentator for CCTV Military Channel and Hong Kong Satellite TV Military Channel, a military theorist and military commentator, and also a professor at the Logistics and Military Science and Technology Equipment Teaching and Research Department of the National Defense University.

He is a well-known expert!
"Professor Yang, I'm Shi Lao, a freshman at Yunda University and a military enthusiast. May I ask why you say that multi-purpose fighter jets will definitely replace fighter-bombers in the future?" Shi Lao asked puzzled.

"Mr. Shi? I've read the article you wrote on the military forum. It's well written!" Yang Qun said with a smile.

When Shi Lao heard that Yang Qun had read his article, he was a little excited, but more of a guilty conscience. In front of ordinary people, he was naturally knowledgeable, but for an authoritative expert like Yang Qun, that was not enough. Yang Qun explained: "With the continuous improvement of airborne electronic equipment and the widespread use of modern combat missiles, the air combat capability of fighter-bombers has been greatly improved. However, it is also because of this that the difference between fighter-bombers and fighters and attack aircraft is narrowing. The United States and some Western European countries have gradually referred to modern fighters, attack aircraft and fighter-bombers as 'tactical fighters'!"

“看看现在世界上主要军事强国战机发展，美国的F14、F15、F16、F18，不管是路基三代机，还是舰载三代机，都是多用途战斗机；北极熊的苏27、苏33也是多用途战斗机；法国的幻影2000、阵风战斗机、幻影4000战斗机也都是多用途战斗机；欧洲正在研制的台风战斗机同样是多用途战斗机。”杨群说道：“就是我国的歼10战斗机、歼11战斗机也都是属于多用途战斗机！”

Although it cannot be said that multi-purpose fighters will completely replace fighter-bombers in the future, they are almost there.

Shi Lao was shocked, then he looked thoughtful. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense to him.

Now the fighter jets of the world's major military powers are indeed developing in the direction of multi-purpose fighter jets.

After China developed the JH-7 fighter jet, there has been no news of the development of a more advanced fighter-bomber!
There is no news that the United States or Europe is developing new fighter-bombers.

On the contrary, the news of the successful test flight of the US fourth-generation fighter F22 'Raptor' has caused a sensation since it was announced last year, causing a great sensation in military forums around the world.

There are many types of fighter jets, including interceptors, ground attack aircraft, fighter-bombers, and so on.

However, at present, the development of fighter jets is moving towards multi-purpose fighter jets.

It's the attack aircraft, and it seems that there has been no development for decades.

Attack aircraft is a type of combat aircraft, mainly used to attack targets within the enemy's tactical or shallow battle depth from low altitude or ultra-low altitude, directly supporting ground force warfare. It is also called close air support aircraft abroad.

Attack aircraft have good low-altitude maneuverability, stability and good ability to search for small ground targets. They can be equipped with a wide variety of attack weapons. Attack aircraft are also the type of aircraft most vulnerable to enemy attacks and losses on the battlefield. In order to improve their survivability, they generally have armor protection in their vital parts.

In the world today, attack aircraft have developed to the third generation, including the 'Jaguar' jointly developed by Britain and France, the 'Super Etendard' developed by France, and the Soviet Su-25 (nicknamed 'Frogfoot').

Among many countries, the United States has a large number of overseas military bases and faces complex terrain. Sending fighter jets cannot complete the mission, and sending bombers is too expensive. Therefore, low-altitude and low-speed attack aircraft are the best choice, so the United States has the most types of attack aircraft.

The more famous ones include A-10, A-6, A-7, A4, etc.

Other countries also have Yak-38 and others!
However, the one with the most advanced performance is the Su-25, which is ranked as the world's number one attack aircraft. However, it was only successfully developed in 1975, and 23 years have passed since then!

It seems that during these 23 years, no country in the world has successfully developed a new type of attack aircraft.

(End of this chapter)