In 1978, I was admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology

Chapter 303 Will the Tenth Prince's Fate Be Changed? The Debate Over the J-10's Role
At least 6000 million!
This is just a preliminary estimate!

"If there is sufficient funding, how long will it take to produce a prototype?"

Long Yaohua remained silent for a long time before gritting his teeth and asking.

"Chief, this..."

Li Rui became anxious.

What's the current situation with the Air Force?

If the Air Force were to spend such a high cost to manufacture this kind of fighter jet detection radar, it might cause a mutiny.

Long Yaohua glared at Li Rui, his gaze still fixed on Xie Wei. "How long?"

"Three years."

Xie Wei gritted his teeth and spat out the timeframe, "This was under the supervision of the military, with all relevant units providing full support."

"You're still thinking about the nationwide research project, aren't you!"

Li Rui sighed.

If Xie Wei had said this when he was the principal of the school, and it would have given the Air Force fighter jets, which currently have a detection range of only 20 kilometers, a detection range of more than 90 kilometers, he would have let it be implemented without hesitation.

It's just money.

Once the project is underway, we can always find a solution by moving things around.

Currently, China can't even handle a single-pulse radar with a detection range of 30 kilometers!
However, after leaving school, he mainly came into contact with the defense and military industry, which gave him a more detailed understanding of the entire industrial base and made him aware of the current shortage of funds.

The government will further reduce military spending after the new year, investing the limited funds in economic infrastructure development.

Therefore, Principal Li is now much more cautious about these high-cost projects.

Xie Wei glanced at Li Rui, then looked back at Long Yaohua's face. Seeing the conflicted look on his face, he knew what was troubling Long Yaohua.

To develop an active phased array radar for fighter jets, a nationwide research effort is needed. Given that the top leadership has already determined that a large-scale war is unlikely to break out internationally, and relations with the West are constantly warming up, with more and more technology import projects being introduced and expanding in scope, how much pressure will there be?

He sighed silently and said, "Sir, the technology needs to be researched further, but it's not appropriate to produce a finished product right now. If the supporting infrastructure can't keep up, it will be difficult to reduce costs. Especially in optoelectronic and semiconductor technologies... there's another major problem we can't avoid."

"what is the problem?"

Long Yaohua's already furrowed brows furrowed even more deeply.

"Power! Once an active phased array radar is running at full power, not only must the T/R components be fully operational, but the supporting computer group must also be running at full power... Moreover, neither the J-7 nor the J-8 can currently accommodate such a radar."

Xie Wei said calmly.

Active phased array radars are not only expensive, but also have higher requirements for supporting systems.

It's definitely not the right time now.

"Synthetic aperture radar is unsuitable, active phased array radar is unsuitable, and pulse-Doppler radar has yet to achieve a breakthrough! Even if you develop a medium-range air-to-air missile with a range of 50-70 kilometers, it will be useless without a matching fighter jet!"

Long Yaohua's expression became even more serious.

After saying that, he lowered his head and rubbed his throbbing temples with his hands.

Before they arrived, no one expected that Harbin Institute of Technology's breakthrough in infrared detection technology for air-to-air missiles would pose such a huge challenge to the Air Force.

Not only the Air Force, but also the Naval Aviation Force faces the same problem – the J-7 and J-8 are not that far apart in terms of technology.

"It's not that there's no way..."

Xie Wei said softly.

"Developing a new fighter jet model?"

Long Yaohua suddenly looked up, his gaze snapping towards Xie Wei.

From the beginning, Xie Wei kept talking about the various difficulties, meaning there was no way to overcome them. But now he says there is a way. Isn't this just developing a new fighter jet model?
"We have to do it! The J-7 and J-8 have too little potential for modification. Unless we drastically change the external aerodynamic layout, the internal structure will also need to be redesigned in order to improve the performance to the level that the Air Force really needs. If we really want to make a major modification, not only will it require a lot of investment, but it may even limit the potential of the improved fighter jet due to the original design."

Xie Wei's words reminded Li Rui of the time when he had just tricked the technical backbones of units like 611 into coming to the school.

Initially, they just wanted to lure people to the school and reinstate the aviation-related majors ahead of schedule.

Who knew it would turn out like this today?

"This matter was discussed before by experts from units such as 601 and 611..."

Long Yaohua's gaze suddenly turned to Li Rui, "Why didn't you say this before?"

"The project hasn't even started yet!"

Li Rui smiled awkwardly.

He hadn't thought about this before; he had been avoiding the aviation team until he left school.

"Xie Wei, tell me the truth, what stage is the school's fighter jet project at now? Can it be directly transferred to formal development? What difficulties will there be after it is transferred to formal development?"

Long Yaohua glared at Li Rui again and said to Xie Wei in a very serious tone.

"Sir, Director Qu Hongtao knows the specifics better."

Xie Wei directly ousted Qu Hongtao.

Logically, Qu Hongtao, the school's logistics director, should have been in charge of introducing the fighter jet technology-related projects during Long Yaohua's visit, but Long Yaohua specified that Xie Wei should be the one to do so.

Although Xie Wei had some understanding of the situation, he was not as clear about it as Qu Hongtao, who was in charge of all project logistics.

Qu Hongtao naturally needed opportunities to gain exposure in front of his superiors.

"Let him go to the conference room and introduce himself to everyone."

Liu Debao called Qu Hongtao directly and asked him to come to the conference room.

"Director Qu, the military is planning to develop a new generation of fighter jets and would like to ask you to provide details."

Xie Wei waited for Qu Hongtao in front of the school building and told him the purpose of his visit.

"Are you planning a new generation of projects? And our school is doing it?"

Qu Hongtao looked surprised, "This is different from a subsystem project..."

"That's for later discussion, but this time don't hold back. All the advanced research we're currently working on, regardless of whether there are any theoretical results, should be released all at once..."

"Isn't this...not good?"

Qu Hongtao looked at Xie Wei in surprise, "Even when we had successful research projects before, didn't you forbid us from reporting them?"

"Times have changed. The Americans are now pushing a downgraded version of the F-16 with a turbojet engine to the Air Force. With the PL-4 missile's detection range exceeding that of current domestic fighter jet radars, the 204 radar's performance being unstable, and the 208 radar being outdated even if successfully developed, the Air Force is under immense pressure..."

Xie Wei said as he walked forward, "It would be most appropriate for General Song to introduce this matter. He has a complete third-generation fighter jet plan, and we can just provide the plan to the military for review."

"You should first introduce the results of the school's cooperation with them."

We've already arrived at the conference room.

Xie Wei did not follow Qu Hongtao into the conference room. Instead, he took the opportunity to turn around and find General Manager Song.

“601跟132厂目前正在着手改进歼-7，601跟112已经正式展开了歼-8II的设计，运-8需要继续改进，172厂那边的歼轰-7项目目前压力也非常大……在这样的情况下，部队还能有钱投入到全新的三代机研制上？”

Chief Engineer Song Wencong did not show any joy on his face.

The backwardness of China's aviation industry has resulted in a significant gap between domestically produced and internationally available military aircraft, making the need for funding even more urgent.

"It's not just aircraft that consume Air Force funds, but also air defense weapons and air-to-air weapons. The timing for launching this project is not right now."

With the J-9's technical specifications constantly improving while funding was continuously being cut, General Manager Song and the entire R&D team at Institute 611 were well aware of the J-9's fate.

At that time, we were considering how to solve some of the difficulties encountered in the development of the J-9, and how to maximize the single-aircraft combat performance of the new fighter jet, given the support of the national industrial and technological foundation.

The aerodynamic layout of the model Xie Wei presented has already been demonstrated. As long as formal development begins, and the fire control radar, engine, and avionics can keep up, an advanced third-generation fighter jet that is no worse than the current mainstream fighter jets in the world can be produced very quickly.

The problem is that, apart from the aerodynamic design, the development progress in other aspects is not ideal.

Harbin Institute of Technology hasn't even developed a usable microcomputer yet, so developing an airborne computer with massive data analysis and processing capabilities is no easy task.

"Let's get the projects started first, and then leverage the university's strengths in other areas of research to make breakthroughs. If we don't start the projects, and things continue at this slow pace, the project teams won't feel much pressure, and the progress will be much slower than expected... You don't want a repeat of the J-9 incident, do you?"

Xie Wei was mentally prepared for President Song's opposition.

The father of the man in front of us proposed the J-10 fighter jet in early 82, but the project was not approved by the state until 86.

President Song fell into deep thought.

“The situation at the university is different from that at Institute 611. Previously, Institute 611 was responsible for the design of the J-9. Although the Third Ministry of Machinery Industry and the military were coordinating the organization and coordination, the various units were not under the same Ministry of Machinery Industry, not to mention the funding…”

Xie Wei was afraid that President Song would object.

Because of the model Xie Rou presented, and Xie Wei's intentional or unintentional guidance, Song Zong's J-10 plan is now much stronger than the one he originally submitted to the country in 82. Leaving aside the power aspect, if it is really equipped with an active phased array radar, its combat performance will greatly exceed that of the original J-10, at least comparable to the F-16 Block 20 batch that the other island acquired after 98.

Furthermore, with the addition of a telecontrol system, its performance is far superior to that of its competitors.

"Xie Wei, my concerns go beyond just this issue. I think you overestimated the potential of this fighter jet from the very beginning."

After taking a deep breath, President Song looked at Xie Wei seriously and said what he had been wanting to say all along.

Xie Wei's assessment of the J-10 is flawed!

Faced with this topic, Xie Wei did not refute it, but instead said, "Chief Long and many other leaders from the Air Force are in the conference room. Right now, Director Qu is introducing the school's research results to them... the kind of introduction that doesn't hide anything."

Finally, Xie Wei added a sentence.

"..."

President Song was both amused and exasperated.

However, Xie Wei's words also made his stance clear: as long as the military approves the project, Xie Wei will give his full support.

The current attitudes of Zhang Mingqiu and Liu Debao towards Xie Wei also indicate that the school is fully supporting him.

When Xie Wei and his companion arrived, Qu Hongtao had just given a comprehensive introduction to the school's relevant research projects and achievements. Upon seeing Xie Wei enter, all the military leaders looked at him with hostility.

"Uh, esteemed leaders, I called General Song here because we have some disagreements on the fighter jet project... mainly regarding the positioning of the next-generation fighter jet."

Xie Wei knew where the leaders' resentment came from.

After Song Wencong's team from Unit 611 was tricked into coming by Principal Li, the school had already begun various preparatory work. The materials laboratory not only researched carbon fiber, but also high-temperature alloys, as well as other related supporting technologies; not to mention computer and electronic engineering.

Even chip design is training talent for very large-scale integrated circuit design.

The key issue is that no one reported any of this.

When there are no projects, all the topics and results are scattered and seem unrelated, and no one knows that they are prepared for the fighter jet project.

"What positioning issue?"

Long Yaohua glared at Xie Wei several times before asking with a stern face.

"I think the Air Force needs air superiority fighters to seize air supremacy, mainly responsible for routine patrols, surveillance, interception, and warning missions; while Xie Wei believes that a well-rounded fighter jet should not only have excellent air combat capabilities, but also the ability to carry heavy missiles for ground attack and anti-ship missions..."

President Song explained to everyone the current positioning of the new generation of fighter jets.

Historically, the J-10 has always been positioned as an air superiority fighter for gaining air supremacy on the battlefield. However, this positioning is actually quite awkward, especially as the needs of the Air Force have continued to change. Later, when the J-11B underwent a mid-term upgrade and was equipped with an active phased array radar and new avionics systems, the J-10's positioning became even more awkward.

Because the J-10A had only been in service for a few years, and as the main fighter jet for the Air Force to compete for air superiority, the troops had only equipped more than 300 of them, and they were all brand new. As a result, the J-20 and J-30 quickly broke through, becoming the real force in the struggle for air superiority on the battlefield.

Its air combat capabilities are inferior to those of stealth fighters, and its overall combat capabilities cannot be compared with the J-11B.

Under such circumstances, the J-10 didn't even last long before becoming a "sweetheart" and was quickly forgotten. At the airshow, there wasn't even a proper booth, let alone a proper tent. They just put it in a corner and covered the cockpit with a disposable plastic sheet, and that was it!
Even though the J-10 later became invincible on the international battlefield, it couldn't even get a meal at the table domestically.

Xie Wei does not want the future J-10 to suffer the same fate as before.

Regardless, this was China's first third-generation fighter jet, completely designed and manufactured independently. In fact, it was thanks to the technical validation of this aircraft that the Lockheed Martin J-20, J-35, and other fighter jets were later developed...

As soon as General Manager Song finished speaking, the previously quiet technical conference room erupted in chaos:

"We can't even guarantee air superiority right now, how can we consider anything else?"

"We don't have enough technological reserves to develop fighter jets with strong comprehensive combat capabilities! The supporting infrastructure is also lagging behind..."

"Although your school has done a lot of supporting technologies and projects, fighter jets are a huge system engineering project, and what your school has now cannot support it."

"..."

President Song looked at Xie Wei with a smile on his face, as if to say, "Let's see how you convince them, kid."

"Ah~"

Xie Wei sighed silently.

All the big shots are telling the truth, and he knows it even better than they do.

From the very beginning of its development, the J-10 faced numerous challenges, including technical difficulties and financial difficulties. If it weren't for the collapse of the Soviet Union and Russia's ability to sell its father's legacy to make it possible to purchase AL-31 engines, the J-10 would never have been able to complete its maiden flight in 98.

The J-10, which completed its maiden flight in 98, was not deployed by the Air Force until 04.

After it was put into service, improvements continued, and the J-10A with truly perfect performance did not appear until almost the end of the first decade of the 21st century.

At that time, the J-20 had already made its maiden flight.

(End of this chapter)