Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 593 Interview with Soviet pilots, military technology exchange

As soon as Sergei finished speaking, a Soviet pilot with short light brown hair and oil stains on his cuffs took off his hat and said, "Comrade, that air battle was more like a 'chaotic charge made of ammunition'—our rockets were hardly accurate at all, and their effectiveness depended entirely on their 'wide-area attack effect'."

This person spoke with a Moscow accent, which, in contrast to the classical, aristocratic speech of Leningrad (St. Petersburg), was the 'standard language' being promoted in the Soviet Union.

He pulled up a wooden chair and sat down, gesturing with his arms to show the formation of the fighter planes: "At that time, we had twelve I-16s, armed with RS-82 rockets, and were ordered to intercept fifteen Japanese Type 96 fighter planes. Those Japanese planes were fast and agile, and initially they wanted to flank us from the rear. But they didn't expect that we were equipped with new weapons for this air battle. But we all knew that the single-shot hit rate of these things was less than 10%, and they could only be effective by using concentrated firepower for indiscriminate attacks."

"When I pulled the trigger, the cockpit was shaking." Another pilot with a scar on his right cheek picked up the story, recalling the details. "Four rockets flew out, trailing white smoke. At first, they were together, but then they started to scatter. One of them even crashed and landed in the grassland below; the second grazed the wing of a Japanese fighter without causing any damage; the last two simply flew into the air, without even touching the Japanese. But it wasn't just me. Out of the 48 rockets fired by the entire formation of 12 aircraft, only two or three actually hit the fuselage—one Japanese fighter had its wing blown through and crashed down, belching black smoke. The rest were just disrupted by the blast waves."

The other pilots also started discussing it amongst themselves.

In fact, this new weapon was not considered outstanding by Soviet pilots, who preferred to trust the aircraft's machine guns and 20mm cannons.

Sergei, however, was not satisfied with the pilot's words and offered his own additions.

"We designed a two-stage air tactical arrangement, which is the first stage. A large number of aerial rockets were fired simultaneously, not to 'shoot down' the enemy, but to break up the Japanese formation. Once the Japanese formation was broken, they could not form effective coordination, and then our fighters could achieve better combat results. This was exactly what happened. After being attacked by rockets, all the Type 96 fighters were flying in evasive maneuvers. The originally neat formation instantly became chaotic, and several planes almost collided."

Fang Wen nodded: "And then what happened?"

"That was the real decisive moment!" The scarred pilot clenched his fist, his eyes lighting up. "After the rockets were launched, we immediately launched an attack. The Japanese planes were still frantically adjusting their formations when we had already broken in. I spotted a Type 96 fighter that was running in a panic, and I circled behind it, shooting off its tail fin with my machine gun."

“I had one too,” the light brown-haired pilot said proudly. “A Japanese fighter plane was so badly damaged by the blast wave from a rocket that its tail rudder was malfunctioning and it was flying crookedly. When I rushed up to it, it couldn’t even complete its evasive maneuvers. I fired a burst of bullets at its engine, and it immediately started belching black smoke before plunging headfirst into the swamp.”

He paused, his tone becoming more earnest: "To be honest, those rockets were actually quite good. Just like in ground warfare, you attack the enemy with artillery fire first, then launch an assault."

“Yes.” Sergei was pleased that the pilot understood this tactic. “That’s what we were thinking. If we launch a rocket attack before close-quarters dogfighting, it will have a destructive and morale-boosting effect on the enemy. This should be the air force’s composite attack mode.”

He looked at Fang Wen: "Comrade Fang, what do you think?"

Fang Wen put down his pen and nodded in affirmation.

"Our Taishan Army shares the same military philosophy. The army can conduct deep firepower operations to strike the enemy in a three-dimensional and multi-layered manner. Why can't the air force have a richer air strike capability? I think the air force's combat weapons will continue to develop in this direction in the future."

He could speak, but only touch upon the subject; Fang Wen would not reveal even a single detail of the rocket guidance technology.

During the subsequent discussion, Fang Wen pressed for details about the salvo of rockets, and several pilots added their own accounts: some said they deliberately kept their distance to avoid being hit by the rockets; others said the aircraft's mounting rails fell off after the rockets were launched.
From the pilots' words, Fang Wen could tell that this was their first time encountering air-to-ground rockets, and that many aspects were still imperfect before they were put into actual combat.

Only the Soviet Union dared to take such a crude approach; other countries, including Fang Wen's Taishan Military Industry, would not dare to do so.

After the interview concluded and the pilots left, Sergei spoke up: "Now we can talk about the military technology you brought. How effective are the rocket launchers from your Taishan Military Industry?"

The rocket launcher is the technical equipment that Fang Wen brought for this military exchange.

Although this is military technology from 10 years in the future, it is not impossible to achieve now. If he can make it, the Soviet Union can too.

But for Fang Wen, the truly groundbreaking technological value lies in long-range guidance.

Fang Wen smiled and replied:

"We designed two specifications, 10 and 14 rounds. Because they are launched simultaneously, the scattering effect is lower than that of multi-stage launches. In addition, the rockets use delayed fuses, which are designed to destroy the target by scattering shock waves from a long-range explosion, rather than aiming for a direct hit."

Fang Wen's words greatly surprised Sergei.

Although I have seen the actual rocket launcher.

But he didn't expect that so many rockets could be loaded into it.

As someone who personally experienced the military's live-fire tests of air-to-ground rockets, he is familiar with his own country's air-to-ground rockets.

Soviet-made air-to-ground rockets used the PC-82 rocket launcher configuration, with eight rail launchers on each rocket, and the distance between the rockets was relatively large to prevent them from interfering with each other.

Taishan Military Industry's rocket launchers are centralized and can hold 10 rockets. This means that the spacing between the guide tubes (rails) inside the launcher is very small, and the high temperature and vibration during launch will not affect the other air-to-ground rockets inside the guide tubes.

This technology is not so easy to implement.

He then chuckled lightly, his tone tinged with disbelief: "Comrade Fang, it's not that I doubt your technology—our RS-82s, mounted under the wings, can still veer off course several meters when fired individually. How could you possibly have lower dispersion when firing ten or fourteen at once? And what about the delayed fuse? How do you control the explosion distance? It can't be based on the pilot's estimation, can it? What I find even more absurd is your ammunition capacity. I don't think it's possible to fit ten rockets in."

“This is your problem, not mine,” Fang Wen said with a smile.

"But you have to convince me. Our ordnance division tried placing more rockets together and launching them via rails, but the results were poor because the spacing was too close. Half of them got stuck in the rails, and others collided with each other as soon as they took off. During expert discussions, it was concluded that a maximum of 8-rail launch mode could be used, yet you claim that you have already achieved simultaneous launches with 10 and 14 rails?!"

Sergei's skepticism was very reasonable from his perspective. The Soviet Union, as the first country to use air-to-ground rockets in actual combat, had not yet overcome the challenges of weapon precision and integration. He did not believe that Taishan Military Industry could achieve such excellence.

In response to these questions, Fang Wen explained: "Major Sergei, our launch pod is not a simple 'rail,' but has an independent flow channel, so the exhaust flames of each rocket will not interfere with each other—just like each arrow has its own quiver, so they will not collide during takeoff. Moreover, our structure is the result of very meticulous calculations and experiments, and it is the optimal solution in military engineering technology. As for the delayed fuse, we added a simple timing device to the tail of the projectile, which presets the detonation time according to the flight speed, ensuring that it detonates at a fixed distance, covering an area with fragments and blast wave."

Sergei was skeptical of these words.

Don't be fooled by how simple Fang Wen's words were; he summed it up in just one sentence.

But to actually achieve it is not as simple as it sounds.

Has Taishan Military Industry, this rising star, really lived up to its claims?
“Talk is cheap.” Sergei straightened up, his gaze sharp as he looked at Fang Wen, his tone more urgent. “Comrade Fang, if your launch pod is really that good, then please prove it to us. If it is true, we are willing to pay a price that satisfies you in exchange for this technology.”

Fang Wen couldn't help but feel secretly delighted.

That set of precision manufacturing process data was calculated by him using the supercomputing power generated by his supernatural ability. If the Soviet Union took a liking to it, it wouldn't hurt to sell it to them. It would simply increase the number of PC-82 rockets launched from the 8 rails to 10.

Actually, his purpose in coming here was to secure one last deal in technology and equipment before the start of the Great Patriotic War in the Soviet Union. After that, with the German advance eastward, there would be no more opportunities. He looked at Sergei and smiled, replying, "I can prove it to you, I can prove everything I say with real combat experience."

"You want to join the war? I can't make that decision."

Sergei escorted Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng to their residence, then took his leave to report on the situation.

After he left, Gong Xiuneng, who had been silent, closed the door and said, "Commander, if you really want to join the battle, it's a huge operation involving hundreds of planes. Others don't even know you, and you might even get shot by your own people during the air battle."

Gong Xiuneng is a veteran, and his analysis is correct. Fang Wen is not a Soviet soldier and has not received wartime training. If he rushes into the air combat zone, he might actually be mistaken for an enemy plane and shot down.

Fang Wen nodded: "That is indeed possible. But our main purpose this time is to demonstrate the long-range area strike capability of air-to-ground rockets, not to participate in air combat. If they agree, I will explain the situation."

Waiting doesn't guarantee immediate results.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, Sergei returned and said that no decision had been made yet and that they would have to wait until tomorrow.

When he returned, there was one more thing he wanted to do: take Fang Wen and the other person out for a meal.

This area was a rear base for the Soviet army, with numerous camps for different branches of the military, each with its own dining area.

Sergei led Fang Wen and the others to the Soviet First Army Air Force Field Mealhouse.

There weren't many people eating in the cafeteria, but the food was plentiful.

There is borscht, a soup that Soviets loved to eat. The orange-red soup is filled with diced potatoes, beets and a few slices of bacon.

A plate of thick borscht, along with a palm-sized loaf of rye bread, makes up the main course.

Sergei asked in a low voice, "Can you eat lard? If so, I suggest you have some."

Fang Wen nodded, and Sergei picked up two pieces of milky white lard and poured them into Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng's borscht. The white lard slowly melted in the hot soup, adding more layers of flavor.

In addition to staple food, there are also vegetables.

150 grams of beef cubes, or a salted fish.

Fang Wen chose beef without hesitation.

After getting their food, the three of them sat down at a table and began to eat dinner.

The palm-sized rye bread has a slightly charred crust, and when you break it open, you can see the fine bran grains inside, some of which still have crispy, hard edges.

This kind of dry, hard food must be eaten with borscht, otherwise it is difficult to swallow.

But it's edible, and the taste is actually acceptable.

Oh, and there's also beef cubes. Fang Wen put the beef cubes on a slice of bread and ate them with borscht, treating it like a roujiamo (Chinese hamburger).

He ate quickly, and after finishing, he looked at the other people in the cafeteria.

Perhaps because of the rich and oily food, these people didn't eat much. Some had already finished eating and were smoking or taking out tea bags to make tea.

After observing the situation for a while, Fang Wen said, "Sergei, if you agree to participate in the war, I have one request."

Sergei put down the fishbone: "What are your requirements?"

"Just like your aerial rocket tactics, for me, as a rocket launcher, to carry out an aerial salvo, I need a combat formation to cooperate with me to achieve better results."

"Yes, we need an air combat formation to cooperate. If the higher-ups agree, I can arrange it. Why don't you meet with them now?"

With that, Sergei got up and walked to another table.

After a while, he brought four people over and introduced them to Fang Wen.

“This is the flight squadron I used to lead. If the higher-ups agree, they can cooperate with you to complete the combat test.”

Fang Wen was familiar with the Soviet Air Force's operational organization. At that time, the smallest operational unit of the Soviet Air Force was an air squadron with 3-4 aircraft, and it had not yet been reorganized into the dual-system of main force and wingman.

He smiled and shook hands with the four men, exchanging greetings. Because of Sergei, he quickly became acquainted with the four pilots.

At that moment, a soldier entered the mess hall.

"Major, the General Staff is looking for you. Please come with me."

Sergei stood up. "Fang, wait for me in the canteen. I should have the results soon."

Fang Wen nodded, watched Sergei leave, and continued chatting with the four pilots.

Twenty minutes later, Sergei returned, his face beaming. "Agreed. Comrade Fang, you'd better prove it well. I hope your weapon is as powerful as you say."

"Don't worry, it will definitely work."

Because they would be going to war tomorrow, Fang Wen immediately got up and took Gong Xiuneng to the plane for pre-battle preparations and maintenance.

(End of this chapter)