In 1978, I was admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology

Chapter 435: Missiles and Long-Range Rocket Artillery Share a Launching System?

"This matter must be kept secret. Also, discuss with the Chinese to find a safe transport route. Such a massive amount of gold would tempt even the Soviet Union and the United States..."

Shadama sighed.

If China has a large navy capable of escorting ships, there's nothing to worry about.

That's 280 tons of gold!
If it gets robbed during transport, you might have no one to turn to for help.

"You're in charge of the deal. This information must be kept strictly confidential. If it leaks, I'll hold you all accountable!"

Shadama spoke sternly to the group with a dark expression.

This represents the majority of Iraq's gold reserves.

The money can be used to exchange for advanced weapons and equipment, which will not only enhance Baghdad's air defense capabilities, but also allow the purchase of advanced weapons and equipment to arm the armed forces, making Iraq, a country that claims to be the third strongest military in the world, truly deserving of that title.

More importantly, Saddam Hussein could have the armed foundation to realize his ideals.

"Your Majesty, what about the Soviets?"

Tekrit hurriedly asked Shadak.

"Strict secrecy is maintained! The Soviets aren't good people either; they wouldn't supply us with weapons and equipment if it weren't for their own interests... The Pharaohs have completely sided with the West... Only the Chinese are truly in business!"

At this moment, the president's evaluation of the Chinese people has risen to a very high level.

"I'm going to China right now to urge them to speed up delivery and discuss payment matters, especially the solid fuel production formula and production line."

Tikrit spoke.

"Alas, what a pity about Feng Ke! If this young Chinese man were still alive, we could have designed medium-range ballistic missiles with longer range and greater power."

Shadama was somewhat disappointed.

After being modified by Feng Ke, the Abbas missile has a range of over 1300 kilometers while maintaining high accuracy.

Feng Ke once said that these foundations could be used to improve the production and manufacturing base of Iraq's missile industry and redesign and manufacture intercontinental ballistic missiles with a range of 3000 kilometers or even longer.

Now, everything is complete.

The most important experts are gone.

"Your Majesty, even without Feng Ke, our missile design team can do it... We have Soviet experts and Gallic experts..."

"Bullshit! Soviet experts? Gallic experts? How much gold and money have we given them over the years? And what was the result?"

Saddam rudely interrupted Tikrit.

It was precisely because of Feng Ke's existence that the "incompetence" of the Soviet and Gallic missile experts was highlighted.

"Is it because they are incompetent? The Soviet and Gallic experts are far superior to a Chinese missile major student who hasn't even graduated yet, both in terms of experience and fundamental knowledge. Why? Because they weren't genuinely there to help us!"

"I'm furious," said Shadama.

If there hadn't been so few people around, Saddam Hussein would have simply driven away those Soviet and Gallic experts.

"Your Majesty, I deserve to die..."

Tikrit finally realized that it wasn't that the president had forgotten the more important things he needed to talk to the Chinese about because he had acquired advanced weaponry, but rather that he had left them for last.

"China has refused cooperation on missile development, and has also refused to cooperate in training personnel for medium- and long-range missile design..."

Tikrit hurriedly explained that it wasn't their oversight, but rather that the Chinese were unwilling.

"Couldn't we find a few more women like Feng Ke?"

Saddam was furious; his men couldn't even handle something this simple.

"Your Majesty, Feng Ke ran away on his own... Even though we have made large-scale purchases, none of the technical personnel sent by the Chinese side have the same level of expertise as Feng Ke..."

Abdullah quickly stepped in to explain, "This is because Yitzhak had established relations with them, saying that we could provide the necessary foundations to realize his ideals..."

"Perhaps because of Feng Ke's 'disappearance,' they are no longer willing to let us contact their experts..."

Yitzhak also hurriedly offered an explanation.

Yitzhak offered 10 kilograms of gold as compensation to Feng Ke. Xie Wei made it very clear: Feng Ke was not only his classmate, but also a very talented missile designer. He had originally opposed Feng Ke going to Iraq, but Feng Ke insisted... As a result, the Iraqis failed to protect Feng Ke...

now.

Feng Ke is worried.

Even though he had talked until his throat was dry, Fang Pengju still disagreed with adding a simple guidance system to the YH-300 rockets.

"Feng Ke, your idea is correct, but we have to consider reality. Compared with missiles, the biggest advantage of rocket artillery is its lower cost and more ferocious saturation strike capability... With the addition of a simplified guidance system, its accuracy cannot compare with missiles, and its use for fire coverage and saturation strikes will increase costs significantly. Otherwise, why do you think the military proposed developing the M7 tactical missile? Was it just for export?"

Fang Pengju was driven to despair by Feng Ke's nagging.

It's a good thing that young people have ideas.

However, if the idea is unrealistic, it won't work.

If he had known better, he shouldn't have included Feng Ke in his team: Feng Ke is perfectly capable of leading projects independently now.

"Guide, the army may be poor now, but that doesn't mean it will be poor in the future; it may not need it now, but that doesn't mean it won't need it in the future... We should use a simplified guidance system to achieve precise strikes and reduce costs, and all these problems will be solved."

Feng Ke smiled ingratiatingly.

It's understandable that he interfered with his mentor's project as soon as he returned to the team—the YH-300, with a range of 300 kilometers, is not yet finalized, but it can be considered a successful development.

Fang Pengju's team then disagreed on the subsequent development plan: whether to improve the accuracy of the long-range rocket artillery or to continue to increase its range.

Fang Pengju's idea was to continue increasing the range, to 750 kilometers.

Feng Ke, on the other hand, hopes to improve accuracy.

"Solve it easily? Even with rockets that have a range of 300 kilometers, the troops cannot accept it."

Fang Pengju looked at Feng Ke helplessly, "Feng Ke, why don't you follow Director Xie's suggestion and build your own team?"

He clearly didn't want to argue with Feng Ke anymore.

Feng Ke's ideas have influenced many members of his team, especially the younger key members.

It has the low cost of rocket artillery and the accuracy of missiles...

Who wouldn't want that?

The atmosphere in the discussion room froze instantly.

"Wow! They're having such a heated discussion!"

Just then, Xie Wei, with a smile on his face, pushed open the door and entered.

"Xie Wei, you've come at the right time. Feng Ke isn't suitable for my team..."

Fang Pengju didn't beat around the bush either.

They made it clear from the outset that Feng Ke would not be allowed to stay in their long-range rocket artillery R&D team.

"This can't be that bad, can it?"

Xie Wei looked at Feng Ke in surprise.

That bastard! He just got back and he's already arguing with Fang Pengju because of their differing opinions. Isn't he afraid that Professor Fang won't take him on anymore?
“Squad leader, that’s not what I meant. I was just thinking that further increasing the range of rocket artillery wouldn’t be very meaningful in the short term. A range of 300 kilometers is sufficient for the needs of the unit’s development over the next twenty years… Improving accuracy would reduce operating costs…”

Feng Ke hurriedly explained.

He had no intention of competing with Fang Pengju for control of the project.

"If we follow his idea, and give rockets the accuracy of missiles, then what's the point of developing missiles at all?"

Fang Pengju said with a displeased expression, "A rocket launcher is a rocket launcher, and a missile is a missile."

The purpose of developing rocket artillery is to provide fire coverage and saturation strikes. Although it contains the word "rocket," "rocket" is just a modifier; the key is the artillery!

Ultimately, a rocket launcher is still just a cannon.

Missiles, on the other hand, are weapons used to precisely strike targets, the kind that kill with a single shot.

"That's easy. We can go in two directions. We can continue to increase the range of rockets; in addition, we can develop a special missile that can be modularly designed, using the same launch system, and selecting different munitions depending on the mission."

Xie Wei did not expect the disagreement between the two sides to be so simple.

"what?"

Everyone in the discussion room stared at Xie Wei in disbelief.

Using a rocket artillery launcher system to launch missiles?
What a fuss!

"Xie Wei, are you serious?"

Fang Pengju's lips twitched, and he looked at Xie Wei helplessly.

He thought Xie Wei's words were a joke; but Xie Wei's expression made him feel that Xie Wei was serious.

"Squad leader, missile launch systems are different from rocket artillery launch systems. Even if a rocket artillery system is equipped with a simplified guidance system, it doesn't need guidance radar or anything like that..."

Feng Ke reminded Xie Wei.

The class monitor should know this.

Once a single system is used, rocket artillery must also be equipped with all the equipment required for missile launch, which will significantly increase costs.

"Yes, if that really happens, the advantage of rocket artillery will be gone."

"Missiles and rocket launchers are inherently different. If we insist on doing it this way, then what's the point of distinguishing between rocket launchers and missiles?"

"There's no precedent internationally; even rocket artillery with a longer range doesn't exist..."

Everyone expressed their opinions—that is, to refute Xie Wei's irresponsible suggestion.

In their view, launching missiles with rocket artillery systems is a waste; launching rocket artillery with missile launch systems is equally wasteful.

Xie Wei didn't rush to refute everyone. He waited until everyone had finished expressing their opinions and no one was saying anything before standing up, placing his hands on the table, scanning the room, and then speaking:
"Gentlemen, I understand your concerns. From the beginning, we have said that weapons design and development should not be limited to the present, but should be considered in the future. Everyone's reasons are valid, and this will indeed increase costs considerably... But have you considered what if our troops undergo several more large-scale reductions after this round of troop reductions?"

"This is impossible! Our territory is so vast..."

Some people immediately objected.

China has approximately 960 million square kilometers of territory, plus more than 470 million square meters of territorial waters.

Continue with military reductions?

How can we safeguard the security of such a vast territory?
"Gentlemen, the Soviet Union's territory is far larger than ours, yet they only maintained less than 200 million army troops. Even with the navy, air force, strategic rocket forces, border guards, and internal security forces, the total is just over 430 million. Meanwhile, the United States' standing army is only a little over 200 million... Why is that?"

Xie Wei's expression turned serious.

"Xie Wei, we're discussing weapons and equipment technology, troop size and such, things that the military leadership needs to consider!"

Fang Pengju was speechless.

Xie Wei's thinking is too unpredictable, even though he knows that Xie Wei is saying all this in order to convince everyone of his words.

Just say it directly; you have to confuse everyone.

Why did we maintain such a large conventional force before?

Xie Wei ignored Fang Pengju's question and continued to ask his own.

"..."

Everyone stared at Xie Wei in silence.

why?
It's just that our military technology isn't advanced enough.

If you don't have enough equipment, make up for it with numbers.

At its peak, the PLA had a total of 75 million troops in 650.

从75年开始，到78年底，裁军120万；部队规模降低到530万；82年到84年再次裁军100万，部队总数下降至430万；而这一轮裁军后，部队规模将会压缩到320万左右。

This round of troop reductions is different from the previous ones; a quarter of the troops will be cut at once!
"Over the past decade, our military has been reduced by half! Yet our defense missions have remained largely unchanged. Is it because our defense technology has doubled?"

Xie Wei's words silenced everyone.

"Who can guarantee that our armed forces will not continue to be downsized in the future?"

Xie Wei's words struck everyone's hearts like a heavy hammer.

disarmament!

The military will continue to be downsized.

If we had the same advanced technology as the United States and the Soviet Union, we wouldn't even need to maintain an army of more than 200 million.

"Tactical support from long-range rocket artillery is essential for ground forces in both offense and defense; tactical missiles are also needed to precisely strike enemy frontline command posts, radar stations, and other military targets... To carry out a mission at a distance of 300 kilometers, are we really going to dispatch a long-range rocket artillery unit and a tactical missile unit? Gentlemen, is that even possible with the continuous reduction in troop strength?"

Xie Wei's voice grew louder and louder.

Immediately, a look of shame appeared on everyone's faces. They lowered their heads, too embarrassed to meet Xie Wei's gaze.

Xie Wei took in everyone's reactions out of the corner of his eye, and only breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that no one objected.

I'm afraid of having to constantly explain these things.

If the military doesn't need it, they can sell it.

Xie Wei picked up his teacup, took a sip, and gave everyone some time to digest the tea.

Seeing that it was almost over, he continued speaking, but his tone had changed significantly:

"Therefore, we cannot consider military technology development based on the current development tasks of the troops... It's not just about developing what will be equipped soon, or researching the next generation; we also need to explore the next generation... Exploration is not just about technology..."

"Xie Wei, do you mean the launch system integrates the functions of missiles and rocket artillery, with rockets, improvised guided rockets, and missiles all becoming ammunition for this system? Just like the military's requirement to develop gun-launched missiles and precision-guided projectiles for tanks?"

Fang Pengju began to understand Xie Wei's thoughts.

Xie Wei nodded.

"What about the cost? Missile and rocket artillery launch systems are very different..."

"Increased launch system costs are inevitable. Don't you all think the cost of our YH-300 munitions is disproportionate to the price of the launch system?"

Xie Wei was in an awkward position from the very beginning when he sold the YH-300 long-range rocket launcher to a major client.

A long-range artillery battalion, consisting of 18 launchers with two 2x2 launch boxes, as well as a series of supporting vehicles such as the Galaxy-1 supercomputer, active phased array radar, ammunition supply vehicles, and transport vehicles, was priced at $62 million. Xie Wei had already racked his brains for a solution.

It's not that he didn't want to apply for a higher score.

Rather, the price was too high, so they simply couldn't sell—the technology wasn't advanced enough to sound high-end just from the name.

"..."

What could anyone say?
"Also, the entire long-range artillery battalion is still too cumbersome. Ideally, we should integrate the rocket artillery launch systems onto the launch vehicles. This way, we wouldn't need at least a company to operate to utilize most of its capabilities..."

"..."

Everyone stared at Xie Wei in silence.

(End of this chapter)