Great warships

Chapter 787 The Tilt Rotor Project

Oscar was very grateful to Qin Tao, it was Qin Tao who pulled him out of hell, gave him light, and gave him a brand new life, where he lived happily.

"Oscar, how do you feel here?" Qin Tao said: "I have always wanted to see you for the past few years, but I have been too busy with work, so I have never taken care of it. However, I often hear them talk about Regarding your affairs, you, Miguel, Sangare, Helen and others, I heard that you all work very hard, and I thank you on behalf of Dongfang."

"We had a great time in the East." Oscar said, "Boss Qin, thank you for taking care of us all the time."

What care, Qin Tao has long forgotten them.But now, speaking of it sincerely, Oscar was very moved.

At this time, Qin Tao nodded upon hearing Oscar's words: "It's all as it should be. By the way, I heard that you are here to play the leading role, which has greatly accelerated our research and development of Zhi [-]?"

"No, I just did what I should do. The designers here are very capable and strive for excellence in their work. I am very satisfied with them and our cooperation is very pleasant."

The others were a little surprised. They never expected that Oscar, who always had a straight face and always criticized this and that, could say such things. Is the sun coming out from the west today, or is Mr. Qin's charm too great? ?
"Now, tell me about your progress."

Deng Hui acted as a foil. When it comes to technology, Oscar is really good, so let Oscar introduce it to Qin Tao here.

"President Qin, what we are currently developing is a ten-ton general-purpose helicopter. This kind of helicopter has a wide range of uses and great effects. Therefore, we also pay special attention to general-purpose operation during research and development. Of course, throughout the research and development process, The hardest thing is the powertrain..."

Oscar's introduction was eloquent, and Qin Tao listened carefully. While listening, he watched various parts of the plane with Oscar.

"The main reducer is produced by Mingzhou Group. We have already tested it and it proves that this main reducer is very good and fully meets our needs." Oscar said pointing to something above his head.

Helicopters use turboshaft engines, which are improved from jets. One of their characteristics is that they rotate at very high speeds. The rotors of helicopters must not rotate at too high a speed, otherwise the outside of the propellers will be supersonic. You need a reducer.

This reducer sounds simple, but it is quite difficult to manufacture. They found several supporting manufacturers, but they could not process qualified products. Then they found Mingzhou Group. The former water pump factory has now become an advanced Whether it is a pump jet propeller, a propeller, a lift engine, or a reducer, it can process whatever it wants, and the processed products can fully meet the requirements.

"After hundreds of hours of operation, after we disassembled it, there wasn't even a single piece of metal debris inside, which is really amazing." Oscar said: "We are so impressed by the technology of the East, Mingzhou Group is the best."

When he said this, Oscar gave a thumbs up. Qin Tao had a smile on his face, and he did as the Romans did. Now Oscar has become an out-and-out oriental.

"Currently we are mainly waiting for the turboshaft [-]. After this engine is finalized, we can officially start the flight test work." Oscar said: "With Ermao's technology in it, we think that this engine will not be too big. It's a big problem. Zhitwenty should be able to complete the research and development soon."

"If you're in a hurry, you can install Ermao's engine first." Qin Tao said: "You can test it first, and when the test is almost done and the engine is built, it's not too late to change the engine. "

In the East, this kind of operation should be very common. When the J-[-] is test-flying, it is necessary to use the turbofan [-] first, and wait until the turbofan [-] is mature before changing it.

The helicopter engine developed by our own side may take a long time to conduct various tests, so under the current situation, it should be very common to install the mature engine first, and then replace it with a new one when it arrives.

Motor Sich has been producing TV3-117VM turboshaft engines, which are used in many old Maozi ten-ton helicopters. The power output is absolutely fine, but the weight, fuel consumption, and control system are lacking.

He felt that he had made a very wise decision, which could solve the urgent need here, but unexpectedly, Oscar shook his head.

"Sorry, Mr. Qin, we don't think this is a good way."

"why?"

"Because this may delay time even more." Oscar said: "Our aircraft has already used all redundant digital control systems, including the throttle lever. If TV3-117VM turboshaft engines are used, then our digital flight If the control is not used, the test flight cannot be performed normally, and it has to be modified. After the modification, the test flight is completed, and it has to be replaced again, which is too troublesome.”

The current throttle lever is already electronically controlled, and the output below is an electric signal. If you want to change it to an ordinary old-haired engine, and use a steel cable, then you have to make a big change inside, and they don't want to change it. , or one step in place is better.

"Digital fly-by-wire flight control?"

"That's right, this set of flight control hardware is already complete here on your side. We can purchase it directly and then write the program. You should know that this kind of flight control is more useful for helicopters, and it must be It needs to be cross-linked with the engine."

Don't worry too much about other things. After all, other planes don't need to fly at ultra-low altitude for a long time. What about helicopters?On the battlefield, they almost always fly at the height of a tree. In the past, it all depended on the boldness and carefulness of the pilot, but with the continuous use of high technology, the operation of the helicopter will become easier and simpler.

The radar in front of the nose can use terrain surveying and mapping to scan all the landforms ahead. If you encounter hills, tall trees or even utility poles, you can immediately pull them up. At this time, it is not enough to just control the joystick, you must You need to be able to control the engine. If you pull it up suddenly, you need to fully open the accelerator.

On fighter jets, it can also be used in this way. This is called flying fire push cross-linking, but it is generally used when the fourth-generation aircraft is used. The third-generation aircraft is not so good, it just controls the various rudder surfaces.

Hearing Oscar's words, Qin Tao nodded: "I don't know much about technical matters, but I believe that everyone's choice now is correct, and I support you."

"Mr. Qin, why don't you understand technology? The electronic control modification of the engine was proposed by you." This guy Oscar still hasn't learned the essence of the East, he doesn't know how to flatter, but only exposes shortcomings.

When Qin Tao was discussing the development of helicopter engines with Lao Maozi, he proposed an update plan for the engine control system, requiring the use of a dual-redundancy full-authority digital control system, which is FADEC, which can pass various sensors and fuel metering. Components such as components and compressor control components fine-tune a series of parameters such as engine throttle, speed, and stator blade inclination to achieve control, which is completely digital.

However, when Qin Tao mentioned that at the beginning, he was just trying to catch up with the trend of the world, because he knew what the prospect of this technology was. There is no way to replace the normal engine.

"Humility, modesty makes people progress." Qin Tao said with a smile.

Everything is ready, except for the engine. Now everyone is assembling the plane and working very hard. Before I know it, it is already noon.

"President Qin, Leader Wu, everyone came here unexpectedly, and we didn't prepare a luncheon." Deng Hui was a little embarrassed.

"Just go to the cafeteria to eat, Lao Deng, you can find out after asking, we like to eat in the cafeteria."

"Oscar, come together, let's have a chat while eating."

Originally, Oscar, a workaholic, would not eat without waiting for the food in the cafeteria to be reheated two or three times, but since Qin Tao came today and invited him to have dinner together, of course he had to accept.

A group of people came to the cafeteria.

The food here is not particularly good, but four dishes and one soup are considered normal. Qin Tao didn't dislike it, so he ordered a few dishes and sat down with everyone.

This is not the first time Wu Shengli has come here, he has been used to it for a long time, and now he is happy to let Qin Tao play the leading role.

"Wait until the engine is in place and intensively tested, it should be about a year or two?" Qin Tao asked.

"Well, we're confident."

"That's good. It seems that it can catch up with our 002 aircraft carrier. In the future, the design of the helicopter hangars of our navy's surface ships will also be based on the Z-[-]."

"If you want to change to a ship-borne helicopter for the navy, you need to make some changes. However, since the navy needs it, we will do our best to ensure that the use of the navy will not be delayed." Deng Hui said.

The [-] research and development funds are mainly from the army, so they first designed it according to the land-based helicopter. From land-based to ship-based, some improvements are needed. The salt and humidity in the sea are very high, so it will definitely not be improved. will reduce lifespan.

"Our navy also paid for it. You can't just think about using it for the army." Wu Shengli said.

Deng Hui nodded in embarrassment.

"When the basic model is completed, you will be working on improvement next, right?" Qin Tao asked.

"Yes, we will first ensure the use of the navy, and secondly, we also need to ensure the plateau requirements of this helicopter, and then we will also improve the armed type."

The purchase of the Black Hawk back then made this helicopter the most suitable helicopter for the plateau. Over a long period of time, this helicopter has proved its reliability. Now, the domestically produced Z-[-] not only looks like the Black Hawk, but also has the same performance. It must be the same or even improved. It must be able to go to the plateau, which is also an urgently needed performance in China.

Of course, Black Hawks are not the only ones who go to the plateau. After purchasing a large number of Mi-171 helicopters from Lao Maozi, some of them have increased engine power and have the ability to go to the plateau.

Everyone knows this, but what about an armed version?

"Aren't we going to develop a professional armed helicopter? Do we need to directly add short wing pylons to the Z-[-] like the Z-[-]?"

At present, the armed helicopters used by the army are mainly Wuzhijiu, which add short wing pylons on both sides of the Zhijiu and hang four anti-tank missiles. It does not look domineering at all, and it is incomparable with mainstream armed helicopters.

The transport helicopter is a modification that can be armed. Even the Mi-171 can add short-wing pylons and mount more weapons, but this is only temporary after all.

The transport helicopter has a large body and a large bombardment area, so it is easy to be attacked by weapons such as RPG. The pilots are arranged on the left and right, so the vision is not good.A professional armed helicopter is a two-seater tandem front and rear, with the front low and the rear high.The frontal projected area of ​​the body is also very small.

"The research and development of professional armed helicopters takes a long time. The army can't wait that long. Now that there is a mature transport helicopter, of course it needs to be modified on the basis of this helicopter, and the Wuzhijiu set It can be transplanted, and it can be transformed into an armed helicopter in no time, and, on the American side, it has been done like this."

Speaking of American armed helicopters, many people will blurt out: Apache, in fact, the Americans also have armed helicopters transformed from transport aircraft, and pylons have been added to both sides of the Black Hawk to become an armed Black Hawk, and, In the hands of many troops, it has also played a good role. For example, those special forces take a helicopter to go deep into the enemy's rear. After landing, if the transport helicopter is armed, it can directly provide fire support, saving the need for a special Apache. Another trip, one helicopter is easier to conceal than two helicopters.

At this time, after hearing this introduction, Wu Shengli became interested: "In other words, our navy's helicopters can also be transformed in this way?"

The Navy’s helicopters are mainly used for anti-submarine. In the era of Zhijiu, two helicopters were needed, one for sonar buoys and one for anti-submarine torpedoes. A difference of ten tons.

However, for the eastern navy, there are not only anti-submarine needs, but also a more important task: cross-sea landing.

In this case, the navy's helicopters need to be able to attack the ground. If this kind of battle is really carried out, they will definitely get the support of the air force. After all, the strait across is only one to two hundred kilometers wide, and even the strong five can fly over , However, it is more appropriate to have one yourself than to call for support.

In the past few years, Qin Tao has been nagging about the amphibious assault ship. In the package plan provided to some small countries, he directly replaced the aircraft carrier with the amphibious assault ship. Naval construction.

However, with the amphibious assault ship, what kind of aircraft are on it?
There must be a J-31A that takes off and lands vertically, but it is too monotonous to have only this one. If you get a batch of carrier-based armed helicopters, it will be cool.

"Of course, we can even reserve the interface, and change it at any time when we need it in the future." Deng Hui replied.

"Okay, then change it like this!" Wu Shengli was very excited. : ""

The matter was settled like this, the big guys ate with gusto, and seeing that they were about to finish eating, Oscar said: "Actually, helicopters are already outdated. We can see that the West has already started to manufacture tilt-rotor aircraft, and it has already been finalized for service. gone."

At that time, in the early exploration of helicopters, there were many design schemes. Among them, the method of a large plate on the top and a rotor at the tail finally won the approval of everyone and became the most common helicopter layout. Two small plates are It is non-mainstream. The two small plates are set in one shaft, which is coaxial reverse. It is mainly used by old people. The two small plates are arranged in tandem propellers one after the other, mainly in the US CH- 47 etc. used.

Many of the plans back then naturally included tilt rotor aircraft.

Helicopters have successfully achieved vertical take-off and landing, flying forward, flying sideways, etc. It is very convenient, so it has become the most important helicopter at present. However, this kind of helicopter also has many shortcomings. The most critical problem is the large plate on the head. The huge flight resistance brought by the sub.

It is precisely because of the large plate above the head that the helicopter can pull the green onions on the dry land and fly vertically, but how does the helicopter move forward?

This requires the large plate above the head to be tilted forward, so that the thrust of the large plate not only has a vertical component to counteract gravity, but also a horizontal component to make the helicopter move forward. However, this horizontal component is not all, resulting in high fuel consumption. The flight range is short, but the key is that this big plate not only provides power, but also causes huge flight resistance. Therefore, the flying speed of a helicopter will not exceed [-] kilometers per hour, and generally it can fly up to [-] kilometers per hour. Not bad.

Early aircraft designers began to think, since the large plate above the head will cause resistance, then simply rotate the large plate!When taking off and landing vertically, the large plate is above the head, and when flying horizontally, the large plate is in front. Isn’t this the same as a propeller plane?

When flying horizontally, the lift is provided by the wings, and the big plate only provides forward power, so the speed is fast, the fuel consumption is low, and the range is long. After research, it is found that if there is only one big plate, the flight safety cannot be guaranteed, and the layout is not convenient. , so it was changed to two large plates, each of which can be installed on one side of the wing. This is the special layout of the tilt rotor aircraft.

In fact, many aircraft designers had studied this flying method back then, and Lao Maozi’s Mili Design Bureau had also produced prototypes. However, it was the Bell Helicopter Company of the United States that really succeeded. decades.

Since the late 40s, when helicopters had just been put into practical use, Bell Helicopter Company began to engage in this kind of thing. The first to develop was the XV-3, but it could not solve the problem of aeroelastic instability, so that in the wind tunnel experiment, the rotor directly separated from the fuselage.

However, they were not discouraged and continued to develop, and later launched the development of the XV-15. This prototype eventually developed into the V-22 Osprey.Of course, it still took a long time. The project started in 72 and was officially completed in 97. It can be seen how long the history of this tiltrotor aircraft has been.

However, its performance still makes people feel that the long development has not been in vain.

For example, its maximum speed has reached 647 kilometers per hour. After serving, in order to ensure safety, it was limited to 509 kilometers per hour, which is much faster than helicopters. At the same time, its range has increased to more than 600 kilometers, and its maximum take-off weight It is as high as 27 tons. These performances cannot be achieved by ordinary helicopters. It has also set a record of flying 8 kilometers in [-] hours under full load conditions, which provides a strong guarantee for the long-distance combat of this aircraft.

Of course, according to the characteristics of this aircraft, the Marine Corps is the most suitable user, but both the Navy and the Air Force are using it, and this Osprey has become a substitute for the Black Hawk.

When the East began to develop Black Hawk-class helicopters, the United States had already entered service with a more advanced Osprey, which completely eliminated the Black Hawk.

Now, of course, Oscar is not satisfied with just developing Straight [-], he has even bigger dreams.

"That's right, the U.S. Navy's weapon is a generation ahead of us." Wu Shengli said: "This is a big gap, but we don't have any experience in the development of tilt-rotor aircraft. Everything starts from scratch and we want to master it." The development of such an aircraft is not easy."

Of course, the navy knows that the Osprey is more useful, but it took years of research by the Bell Company to come up with it. How long will it take for our side to start from scratch?
"Any aircraft starts from scratch. If they can succeed, so can we!" Oscar said: "As long as the navy is determined, those of us who are engaged in technology will go all out. This kind of aircraft is very useful, not only It can be used as a transport type, an armed ground attack type, a special operations type, and even an early warning type, which is very useful.”

Oscar really wanted to engage in this kind of thing. As a technician, of course he had to pursue the best.

Wu Shengli turned his attention to Qin Tao. You have dug this person back. Now, for his research project, you have to support him.

Qin Tao nodded: "Yes, this kind of aircraft is indeed very useful. If you have this idea, you can do technical demonstration and pre-research work after the development of the project at hand is completed. After these are done, you can decide Whether to proceed to the next step."

"What about the cost of technical demonstration and pre-research?"

"Our Mingzhou Group will undertake it. If we really decide to develop it, then we will do it in our Mingzhou Group. When it is done, our Mingzhou Group will have complete intellectual property rights." Qin Tao looked at his father-in-law and said.

"President Qin, if we want to do it, we also hope to join in." Deng Hui said: "We can also raise part of the funds."

With Mingzhou Group in the picture, there will be no problem. After all, vertical take-off and landing fighter jets have been produced. Is this kind of tilt-rotor aircraft difficult?

If this kind of thing is fiddled with, then the helicopter will become obsolete tomorrow. The market for this kind of thing is even bigger, and it can even be sold all over the world in the future!
(End of this chapter)