Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 584 Rocket Engineer Cohen, Basic Guidance Technology

The Taishan Airlines branch is located 800 meters from Paris Airport. With the expansion of its business, it has been upgraded from the Paris branch to the European branch. It not only manages the European segment of the Asia-Europe route, but also takes charge of tobacco distribution and the operation of three specialty stores in the UK, France and Germany.

As a result, the branch office has more and more employees, and the premises have been expanded, creating a bustling scene.

The Cohens crossed the street and arrived at the branch office, but were stopped by the security guard at the gate.

They could only go to the aviation business services department.

It was an open department, located in a row of storefronts outside the company. On the glass wall was an advertisement that read, "Taishan Eurasia Route, direct to many places in Asia, the best choice for traveling in Asia." Behind the wooden counter inside were two women dressed in Taishan flight attendant uniforms.

The Cohens stood somewhat reserved in front of the aviation services counter.

Erich Cohen's suit jacket was frayed at the elbows, and his trousers and hem were stained with mud. His wife, Sarah, held their daughter, Lena, whose dress was worn and the stitches from the patchwork at the collar were clearly visible. Stein's mother, Cohen's sister Hannah, clutched a cloth bag containing the few remaining changes of clothes for the two families. The only thing that seemed to have any value was the suitcase Stein was carrying—it contained their last hope: a stack of fuel technology data for the A-4 rocket.

Cohen pressed the bell.

The brass bell on the counter jingled, and the two service staff members registering tickets looked up. The girl on the left was Chen Yue, with a neat ponytail and a silk scarf folded neatly at the collar of her uniform; the one on the right was Marie, a Frenchwoman with wavy hair. Both of them had transferred from flight attendant positions to service positions, an internal job conversion mechanism that allows flight attendants to have other job duties even if they are not flying.

Upon seeing the group of people outside the counter, the two stopped what they were doing. Unaffected by the people's shabby clothes, they spoke with gentle smiles.

"Hello, how can I help you?" Chen Yue asked softly in French.

"I'm sorry, my French isn't very good. Can you understand English or German?"

"Yes. Please go ahead."

“I would like to buy four tickets for the Skylark that departs today, but there are only four VIP tickets left. We don’t have enough money, so I would like to talk to your manager.”

"I'm sorry, the manager won't see you about this. If you really have difficulties, you can apply for discounted tickets for tomorrow. This is a service our company provides specifically for passengers in need, but you'll need to fill out an application form."

After some discussion, Cohen hesitated.

Filling out the application form can get you a cheaper ticket, but you can't leave until tomorrow.

But this is France, which borders Germany. If my whereabouts are exposed, will the Gestapo take action in Paris?

A sense of desperate fear arose within him, and he dared not even face any of the German officers.

In his haste, he blurted out, "I have something very important that I need to talk to your manager about."

After a pause, Cohen glanced at another staff member, Mary, but didn't say anything. Instead, he wrote a line on a piece of paper on the counter, tore it off, and handed it to Chen Yue.

"Please make sure to give this paper to your manager."

Somewhat surprised, Chen Yue took the note and glanced at the words on it.

I possess crucial information on rocket technology.

Although Chen Yue was a flight attendant, her family worked at the company in Yangon and she had heard about the company's affairs. She immediately realized the significance of the matter and asked Mary to continue serving these people. She then left the counter and exited through the back door to go to the office building to find the branch manager, Lin Baoluo.

Not long after, Paul Lin followed Chen Yue over and met Cohen in a private room in the service department.

“My name is Erich Cohen, an engineer who escaped from Germany,” Cohen said, revealing his identity. “I need four tickets to Yangon today, but the ticket office only has VIP tickets left, and I… I can’t afford that price. However, I have something that might be valuable to Taishan Aviation’s military research and development.”

Paul Lin did not respond immediately. He had been managing the Paris branch, and since last year, due to the unstable situation in Europe, he had seen too many refugees seeking help to escape the chaos in Europe. Some had mortgaged their jewelry, and some had relied on guarantees from relatives and friends, but this was the first time someone had come to him saying that "there are things with military value".

What do you have?

Cohen took a folded drawing out of his inner pocket and carefully unfolded it on the counter—it was the core structural diagram of the A-4 rocket fuel pump, which he had taken out of the box beforehand and kept on his person.

“This is the latest technical data from the Peenemünde test range in Germany.” His voice carried a hint of urgency. “In addition, I have also obtained the latest German rocket propulsion fuel formula. You will definitely need these when developing rockets and artillery. I don’t want anything else, just four plane tickets for today so that I and my family can leave Europe.”

Paul Lin bent over, staring at the blueprints, his brows gradually furrowing.

He was not a rocket expert and knew nothing about the blueprints; there were no relevant personnel in the branch office who could understand them.

But this kind of thing definitely couldn't be assessed by outsiders, so Paul Lin decided to report it to headquarters. It just so happened that today was also the day to send a telegram to headquarters reporting on the business situation.

He then let the two families rest at the branch office guesthouse and assigned company security to look after them, while he went to the telegraph office to send a telegram.

At the Yangon Industrial Park, Fang Wen is inspecting the trial operation of a military bicycle assembly plant.

The spare parts produced at the northern Myanmar base, as well as those shipped from Europe, are assembled by workers through various assembly stages on the assembly line.

The frame, wheels, and bridles are all progressing smoothly.

Once the vehicle is assembled, quality inspectors will conduct test drives. The inspectors will ride bicycles back and forth across various terrains at the test site, carrying heavy objects for testing. Only after passing all the tests can the vehicle be considered a qualified product.

Some problems were quickly discovered by the quality inspectors, who immediately rectified them and recorded these issues.

These issues will be studied at the subsequent technical discussion meeting. The factory's technicians will identify the problems in the assembly process based on the problems and solve them accordingly, thereby forming a better process flow.

This is the industrial self-improvement method that Fang Wen wants, and it should become an industrial practice in the entire military industrial system of Taishan and be used in various factories, so that Taishan's military industrial system can have the ability to evolve on its own.

As Fang Wenzheng watched the technical discussion at the bicycle assembly plant, his assistant Zhao Junping rushed in, panting.

"General Manager, a call from Europe. The message contains important information that requires your decision."

"Oh. About the specialty store?" Fang Wen took the telegram and read it, his expression changing.

The telegram stated that a German rocket technology military engineer had defected and made contact with the Taishan branch in Paris.

This is no small matter.

According to Fang Wen, Germany is currently secretly undertaking military projects including the V-2 rocket, the "Uranium Association" program, and jet aircraft from the Ernst Heinkel company.

The "Uranium Association" project has not yet started, and Ernst Heinkel's jet aircraft are of little value to the military. However, the V-2 rocket is the German military's most urgent military project to develop.

How could there be any military engineers defecting?

Fang Wen and Zhao Junping immediately left and drove to headquarters, where they communicated with Europe via the telegraph department.

Through telegram communication, he learned more about the situation.

This person concealed his Jewish identity and evaded the first few rounds of searches.

Ultimately, it could not escape the Gestapo's meticulous purge of the military-industrial complex, and was eventually discovered.

Realizing he was being suspected, the man immediately transferred the military documents he had stolen and then fled Germany with his family.

I see. Should we accept this person and obtain the rocket technology data?

Fang Wen is considering it.

Germany's attitude towards China has drastically changed due to the Axis Powers agreements it signed with Japan and Italy. Since May of last year, it has completely halted arms exports to China and forcibly recalled all its military advisors.

Even if German-equipped equipment were procured through secret channels, it would still be very difficult to obtain.

That's why Fang Wen resold the Burma Governor's "arms" to the Nationalist government last time, and the German-made parts were in high demand.

On the other hand, Germany also provided military technology support to the Japanese army.

Take the Nomonhan Incident that happened not long ago as an example. According to the intelligence obtained by Fang Wen, during this period, Germany provided Japan with an analysis of the weaknesses of the Soviet T-26 tank. At the same time, the Japanese army suddenly obtained the key manufacturing technology of the 88mm anti-aircraft gun.

Although the official explanation was that it was a reverse-engineered copy of the German-made SKC/30 88mm naval dual-purpose anti-aircraft gun captured from the National Army, Fang Wen knew very well that without German technical support, it would have been impossible to make it so quickly.

In terms of trade, China's exports of tin ore, tung ore, tung oil, and other goods to Germany have been completely cut off, and Germany has switched to obtaining tungsten resources from South America.

Therefore, in the eyes of the Nazis, China had lost its value.

If that's the case, why can't we accept Germany's military rocket technology?

Fang Wen made the decision and notified Europe by telegram.

Half past three in the afternoon.

Cohen and his team, who were resting at the Taishan branch's guesthouse, finally received the news.

Paul Lin handed four VIP cabin tickets to Cohen: "It's been approved. Here are the tickets. Someone will pick you up when the plane docks in Yangon. Once you get there, you'll be safe."

Cohen took the plane ticket, and his eyes suddenly felt a little hot.

From Southampton to London, and then to Paris, he was repeatedly rejected and suspected, living in constant fear of falling into the hands of the Gestapo.
Unexpectedly, I finally gained the trust I had been waiting for at a branch of an Asian airline.

He clutched the plane ticket tightly; the words "Taishan Airlines" on it gave him more peace of mind than any reward at that moment.

Cohen and his family were then escorted into the airport by Paul Lin through an internal passage and boarded the Lark, a passenger plane that had not yet begun boarding.

The flight attendants approached them with smiles and offered them VIP cabin service. The comfortable environment, coupled with delicious airline food, thrilled Cohen and his companions.

The four people wolfed down their food.

His eyes kept glancing out the window.

Half an hour later, passengers began boarding. After boarding was completed, the plane taxied on the runway and took off, eventually soaring into the sky.

Cohen only relaxed with a sigh of relief after the flight attendants announced over the cabin that they had left Europe and entered Asia.

After a day's flight, the plane arrived in Yangon.

The flight attendants greeted us warmly as we entered the VIP cabin: "Good morning, sir and madam. We have arrived in Yangon. You may disembark now."

"We've arrived!" Cohen drew back the curtains and looked out the window; the outside world was so unfamiliar.

But at least I don't have to live in fear anymore.

He picked up his sleeping daughter and, together with his wife, nephew, and sister, got off the plane.

Outside the plane, Fang Wen was waiting, smiling as he said, "Welcome to Yangon. My name is Fang Wen, and this will be the start of your new life. Follow me."

He led Cohen and his group onto the shuttle bus and headed to headquarters.

After settling Cohen's family's accommodation, Fang Wen looked at Cohen seriously: "Now, let's talk about the Rockets. Take your documents and come with me to a place."

"Where?"

"You'll see when you get there. If your skills are genuine, you can get a good job, and your family will live a good life too."

"It's true, and I'll prove it."

Cohen gave a very affirmative reply, then said goodbye to his wife, daughter, niece, and sister, and left with Fang Wen.

He boarded the plane again, but this time Fang Wen was piloting it. They did not communicate during the flight and arrived at the airspace above the base in northern Myanmar after a 3-hour flight.

"This is where you'll be working from now on, if your skills are genuine," Fang Wen said.

Cohen looked down at the vast expanse of buildings, meticulously planned and orderly, surrounded by dense forest.

Is it a military industrial base built in a dense forest?
The plane landed, and Cohen followed Fang Wen off the plane to the Taishan Research Institute.

There, Fang Wen called Jiang Wenjin from the rocket project team to learn about the German rocket technology brought by Cohen.

In the conference room, Cohen opened the box, took out stacks of documents, and sorted them into categories.

Then, take the initiative to introduce yourself and explain.

“My name is Cohen. I joined Walter von Braun’s team last year to launch the A-4 rocket development at the Peenemünde test range. The project uses a mixture of liquid oxygen and alcohol as propellant, with a designed range of 320 kilometers and a flight altitude of 80 kilometers. The propulsion system uses a turbopump developed by Siemens, which can inject liquid oxygen into the combustion chamber at a speed of 20000 revolutions per minute, generating 26 tons of thrust.”

Fang Wen and Jiang Wenjin looked at the materials while listening to Cohen's explanation.

During the session, Jiang Wenjin asked a question, which Cohen answered.

"After a rocket launch, how can we ensure it hits its target?"

"We used a mechanical gyroscope developed by Zeiss Optics, which can control the flight deviation to within 1% of the range."

"1% of the range? That means its deviation could be several kilometers?"

"Yes, this is our best estimate. In the actual launch, the yaw will be greater due to airflow and other uncertainties."

"Are there any improvement plans?"

"When I left, I heard that preparations were underway for the A-5 project, and there would be targeted improvements. I don't know the specifics, but I do know some improvement plans, such as adjusting the attitude through the tail fin gas rudder to improve lateral deviation, and increasing the diameter of the missile body to accommodate a larger fuel tank, which can increase speed and improve directional accuracy."

After a conversation, Fang Wen gained an understanding of the current German rocket project.

This project, destined to fail, contains immense value; the technology it leaves behind will be the precursor to future missiles and space rockets.

Furthermore, this propellant expert might be able to improve the rocket's propellant, which is currently a major problem facing the Taishan rocket.

In addition, Fang Wen also wanted to learn more about Germany's military industry from Cohen.

(V-2 rocket)

(End of this chapter)