In 1978, I was admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology

Chapter 298: Air-to-air missile technology is ahead, putting pressure on fighter jets.
"Principal Li is right. Even starting with just one or two hundred aircraft wouldn't be possible. Next year, the budget cuts will be even greater. The Air Force already has a significant shortage of fighter jets, and they'll have to phase out the outdated ones… For most projects, unless the results are immediately noticeable, they'll basically only receive partial funding to ensure continued research…"

Seeing that Xie Wei remained silent, the leader spoke softly.

"What I just mentioned isn't something the Air Force can pay for, but rather a portion of the funding for importing advanced foreign missiles and technologies..."

"!!!"

These words moved Xie Wei deeply.

"Who is the commander?"

"General Staff, Long Yaohua."

Upon hearing this name, Xie Wei's eyes widened. This was a big shot; how could he have been alarmed?
The man before us is one of the driving forces behind the PLA's modernization reforms. He has strongly supported many major military research projects despite opposition, which is why some projects that were opposed by countless people were able to be approved.

However, the level of the big shot in front of us is not that high yet.

However, with his support, many of the school's military projects became much easier to implement.

"Sir, compared to exports, this amount of funding is really not much!"

Xie Wei was well aware that Long Yaohua's promise to provide funding had effectively vetoed the export of the PL-4. However, he still hoped to try.

"Everyone knows that. But we can't sell off the most advanced weapons in the country before our own troops have even had a chance to use them."

Long Yaohua nodded in agreement with Xie Wei's statement.

He then said very seriously, "The performance of this air-to-air missile is already among the advanced levels of its type. In particular, the high-purity cooled indium antimonide you developed, according to your description, has a detection range of 50 to 70 kilometers, or even higher... If it falls into foreign hands, they could use the samples for reverse engineering..."

"We've set up a self-destruct mechanism. Whether it reaches range or makes contact with the ground..."

Xie Wei hurriedly explained.

The reason for adding a self-destruct system to missiles designed to reduce weight by grams is to prevent premature disclosure of high-purity cooled indium antimonide guidance technology.

"There are always unexpected events, aren't there?"

Long Yaohua smiled and reminded Xie Wei, "Even if you consider all the possibilities, can you actually achieve the functionality?"

"..."

Xie Wei was speechless.

The leader in front of me is technically savvy.

"Actually, restricting exports isn't just about preventing technology leaks. Even if the air force has such advanced air-to-air missiles, the detection range of fighter jets is too short..."

At this point, Long Yaohua sighed again.

The detection radar of domestic fighter jets is a major weakness.

“I hadn’t originally planned to come. Comrade Li Rui told me that you were planning to use the PL-4 as a base, increase the diameter to 210mm-230mm, and add a booster stage to the missile, thereby further improving its range and speed…”

correct.

This is a medium-range missile project that Xie Wei proposed to Professor Lai Guichang's team.

Using composite guidance to guide the missile's trajectory during the initial stage when its infrared signature is not obvious is currently not a solution; only preliminary ideas exist.

Xie Wei didn't expect Li Rui to tell Long Yaohua this as well.

"In fact, the main reason for restricting exports is to let the international community know that our technology is lagging behind... A breakthrough in one aspect of technology cannot improve our national defense capabilities. However, it can lead the international community to misjudge our technological level and use this as a pretext to restrict the supply of other technologies to us..."

"..."

These words struck Xie Wei's mind like a heavy hammer blow.

My mind is buzzing!
"We have a weak industrial base, outdated technology, and insufficient experience. It would take too long to develop everything on our own... But by introducing technology, digesting and absorbing it, and then developing our own technology on the shoulders of imported technology, we can catch up with international advanced levels more quickly and narrow the gap between us and international advanced levels."

Seeing that Xie Wei had taken his words to heart, Long Yaohua continued to explain.

"Furthermore, foreign technology is more advanced and has more complete supporting facilities. The high-purity cooled indium antimonide used in the current PL-4 is only a preliminary application. There is still a long way to go to achieve a detection range of 50 to 70 kilometers, especially in terms of supporting facilities... Once foreign countries acquire it, they can quickly understand the technology based on their existing foundation and then use it as a foundation..."

It was only then that Xie Wei realized the real gap between himself and the big shots.

He only saw the potential to use advanced weapons to sell on the international market and build a reputation, paving the way for future development, but he failed to consider the gap between domestic and foreign scientific research levels in the current supporting environment and foundation.

He did indeed install a self-destruct system inside the missile.

However, if they were sold, given the current situation in Iraq, the United States and the Soviet Union would easily obtain sample missiles.

They didn't give the missiles a chance to self-destruct after launch.

As for designing a self-destruct mechanism for disassembly?

The PL-4 missiles sold must have their range and the detection range of their seekers limited, which is difficult to achieve given the current domestic capabilities.

"Sir, I understand."

Xie Wei finally understood: "We never intended to monopolize the technology; we just planned to use the school's operating rights to cooperate with relevant units."

"A paid collaboration, right?"

Long Yaohua smiled, recalling that Harbin Institute of Technology had to pay Factory 617 to buy the technology for its armor-piercing projectiles.

"Of course, if you can limit it a bit, making the range less high, the detection distance less far, or even suppress the technology, then trying to export it is not a problem."

Xie Wei's eyes lit up immediately.

It's entirely possible to replace the indium antimonide cooling system with nitrogen-cooled steel antimonide, or even lead sulfide cooling system, for guidance, and then export it.

However, he rejected the idea as soon as it came to mind.

"how?"

Long Yaohua also noticed Xie Wei's change in expression. "Improving the technology is very difficult, but does that mean reducing the technology is also difficult?"

"It's even more important than improving the technology itself. It's precisely because the supporting technologies were inadequate—semi-active radar guidance and lead sulfide guidance technologies were no good—that we directly researched new ones..."

Xie Wei said with a bitter face.

After saying that, seeing Long Yaohua nodding with an approving look, he realized he had been tricked.

Got~
Don't even think about selling it.

Fortunately, we had already informed Yitzhak that the device was malfunctioning and couldn't be provided for trial use. It just so happens that Yitzhak only understands armored warfare and isn't familiar with air force equipment; otherwise, the situation would have been much more complicated.

After dark, the second round of target practice continued.

Nighttime target practice had been tested before, but this time it's different. We're using the PL-4, which has increased range and detection capabilities, and a group of experts want to more comprehensively evaluate the performance of the improved PL-4.

The test that evening involved firing two missiles simultaneously.

Even Lei Qiang had never tested this launch method.

"Remember, the aircraft will deflect to some extent after launch. Even with two missiles fired simultaneously, it cannot be a true salvo. There will be a delay of three to five seconds. So you must pay attention to the aircraft's attitude during this process. If necessary, eject!"

Before setting off, Xie Wei emphasized this point to Lei Qiang once again.

Lei Qiang looked at Xie Wei speechlessly.

He was truly speechless.

Does this young R&D engineer from Harbin Institute of Technology really want to eject from a fighter jet and crash it?
Seeing the look in Lei Qiang's eyes, Xie Wei was speechless. He couldn't very well say that the current quality of the J-7 was worrying, and that the J-7 might malfunction due to its own technical problems when both engines were launched simultaneously.

He was also counting on Lei Qiang to make the maiden flight of the J-10 and other aircraft.

"Remember this: always prioritize your own safety. During test firing, the fighter jet's radar cannot detect the target, let alone lock onto it."

"Comrade Xie Wei, please rest assured!"

Lei Qiang didn't tell Xie Wei whether he would prioritize his life or the fighter jet. Of course, he'd prioritize the fighter jet!
China has a large population, but not many fighter jets!

Xie Wei couldn't say anything more, he could only try his best to persuade her.

He was also aware of the current state of the Air Force, with its limited number of J-7s and J-8s (less than three digits), and the mindset of pilots and even higher-ranking commanders towards the fighter jets.

At night, the J-7II, which was undergoing test flights, quickly leaped into the night sky and soon disappeared into the darkness. The status of the fighter jet in the air could only be seen through the radar display screen of the test range.

The target drone also took off immediately.

"emission!"

At the extreme detection range of 20 kilometers, almost as soon as the J-7 detected the target, two PL-4 missiles detached from the pylons under the wings of the J-7II and rushed toward the target.

Just as the J-7II fighter jet veered to one side, a missile was launched from the other side, causing it to veer to the other side as well.

The deflections on both sides did not cancel each other out; instead, they made the fighter jet more difficult to control.

Fortunately, the fighter jet stabilized its attitude without much effort.

As for the missile's hit status, Lei Qiang was unable to observe the situation more than 20 kilometers away using the detection radar on the J-7II.

"Boom~"

A dazzling firework burst open 800 meters in the sky.

This is a picture of a PL-4 hitting a target drone.

"Boom~"

Immediately following, a smaller firework burst open about four seconds after the target drone was hit.

"Both shots hit! The first shot hit the target, and the second shot detonated directly at the center of the explosion..."

The radar operator reported the situation.

The result was exactly as expected.

Even though everyone was prepared, they were still shocked by the result.

"Has our air-to-air missile technology really reached such an advanced level?"

Almost all the air force leaders had this strange thought in their minds.

"It's a pity that the radar used by our fighter jets has too short a detection range, so we can't bring out the true performance of this high-performance air-to-air missile... Only by constantly tracking the target with the radar on the fighter jet and launching it at the most appropriate distance and time can we achieve the best results... The missile's own trajectory changes consume too much speed and computing power!"

Long Yaohua sighed as he listened to the report.

The other bigwigs remained silent.

The people in room 601 were starting to feel unwell.

The pressure was put on them.

The fact that the air-to-air missiles used by fighter jets have a detection range that is farther than the fighter jets' own radar is a slap in the face!
"Sir, we will do our best to increase the detection range of the fighter jet's radar!"

Liu Zhimin had no choice but to step forward.

Although the radar was mainly developed by units such as Institute 607 and Institute 14, as fighter jet design units, does that mean they really have no connection whatsoever?

After the target practice ended, many of the bigwigs did not leave immediately.

Instead, the summary and discussion took place directly in the technical conference room at the test range.

Xie Wei didn't get involved; instead, he went to find Lei Qiang to ask about the situation during the salvo.

For any air-to-air missile, the finalization test will definitely involve firing two or even more missiles in succession.

Xie Wei breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that the launch results were consistent with the previous theoretical analysis.

PL-4, all set!
"Where did you run off to, you little rascal?"

After the meeting, Xie Wei and everyone else returned before he slipped into the jeep where Li Rui was.

As soon as Li Rui saw him, he questioned him with a dark face.

After I finished speaking, I realized that it was nighttime, and even with the lights outside, my face wouldn't be easily visible.

"Going to check on the launch. What's the point of attending this meeting? The Air Force isn't going to give us any more orders anyway..."

Xie Wei said indifferently.

"Today's test was a great success, and the Air Force is very satisfied with the missile's performance. The next step is to ask the fighter jet development team to improve the radar detection range. Units 601 and 611 are under pressure..."

Li Rui sighed.

"Isn't this to be expected? Over the years, foreign fighter jet radars have a detection range of over 100 kilometers, while ours is only 20 kilometers. If a real war breaks out, our fighter jets will become targets as soon as they take off."

Xie Wei didn't look down on domestic radar research; rather, he felt that the higher authorities hadn't paid enough attention to radar technology and had invested too little in it.

If we had invested in radar development from the very beginning, over the years, even if the performance was somewhat inferior, we would have at least produced a usable radar.

Unfortunately, China has not yet developed even the JL-7 radar with a detection range of 30 kilometers.

"Stop making sarcastic remarks. What's the current status of the school's radar project?"

Li Rui almost slapped Xie Wei.

That kid can't say anything nice.

They don't take their position as principal seriously at all.

"do not know."

Xie Wei answered without even thinking.

The temperature inside the jeep suddenly dropped.

"I really didn't know. Ever since you left, I haven't dared to even go to the fighter jet-related technology projects. Every time I go, they ask for money. I'm not a money-printing machine!"

"..."

Li Rui felt that Xie Wei was insulting him.

It was the kind of cursing that was really vulgar.

But he couldn't say a word more about it: Xie Wei proposed the fighter jet project to lure people into settling it at the school first, just to get the framework up and running.

That's exactly what was done at the beginning.

But later, Li Rui started a batch of cutting-edge projects that were facing cancellation at the school, and then he ran away.

Not to mention the research funding for the project, even the food and drink for the R&D personnel cost a lot of money, which almost bankrupted the school.

Fortunately, Xie Wei sold the 150mm long-range rocket for a high price.

"Chief Long is visiting the school tomorrow and specifically asked you to give the presentation..."

"What the hell?"

Xie Weiteng stood up abruptly, but before he could stand up straight, he was pushed back down by the tarpaulin roof of vehicle 212.

He looked at Li Rui incredulously, "I don't even know much about many of the school's projects, how can I introduce them? Secretary Liu is the most suitable person to do so."

"It was Comrade Debao who recommended you."

Xie Wei immediately began to mentally curse Liu Debao's female relatives.

That old guy is inhuman!
(End of this chapter)