Dominate South Asia

Outside, it was a dark night sky. Sitting in this sci-fi fighter plane, every time, there would be a sense of pride. Now, at the moment of launching the attack, Whitley was even more excited.

There was something extra in his buttocks, which was a bit strange. 18 hours, even Whitley felt that this would be a difficult flight. The biggest test for them was fatigue.

The whole machine was powered on, and then the target coordinates were loaded into the avionics system using the data transmission module of Smith Industries. With the use of advanced equipment, the attack became simpler and simpler, almost like playing video games.

Whitley made various preparations before takeoff in an orderly manner. When the tail roared, the canopy had been closed, entering the final stage before takeoff.

The ground staff waved to indicate that the engine had been successfully ignited, and Whitley's plane slid gently onto the runway.

When this aircraft was being developed, in order to reduce costs, existing components were used as much as possible, such as the F-16's 4-degree-of-redundancy fly-by-wire control system, the C-130's environmental control system, the F-15's brakes, the F-15, F-16 and A-10's ACES2 ejection seats, and the F-18's similar engines. Although this aircraft has a special appearance, it is actually very easy to operate.

At this time, the clock has already pointed past 12 o'clock, and the next day has arrived.

"Tonopah, Nighthawk requests takeoff." Whitley said on the radio.

"You can take off, good luck." The voice of the base commander came from the headset.

The engine has no afterburner, and the aircraft can only accelerate on the runway with full throttle, and soon it flew into the sky.

"One, two." A few kilometers away, using a special infrared night vision device. From this angle, the tail flame can be clearly seen. Although this aircraft has tried to eliminate the tail flame, it is still impossible to reach the same temperature as the air.

Therefore, these seemingly ordinary tourists secretly arranged around the base observed the takeoff of these special aircraft at the base that night.

In the past, training almost always took off after it was completely dark. After several hours of training, the plane landed in the second half of the night and returned to the hangar. The training for one night was over.

And taking off in the second half of the night like now is definitely unusual!

"Send the message back through the Internet. Tell our people that the target has taken off!" Putting down the night vision goggles, the leader said quietly.

The Internet is still a new thing. Using it for communication can have many advantages, such as convenience and speed, such as no electromagnetic radiation, no leakage of information, and no exposure of location.

In the future. For example, when the United States attacked the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, as long as the B-52 bombers in the airport took off, it could be calculated that an air strike on the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia would be launched in a few hours. There was even a bombing schedule on the Internet, which was comparable to their bombing plan.

Now, the Internet is still in its initial stage, and few people would think of using the Internet to transmit this information. There is no one to monitor the Internet.

After the fighter took off, it quickly climbed to an altitude of more than 10,000 meters. This type of aircraft has poor aerodynamic performance due to its stealth performance. Only at high altitudes with thin air can it reduce fuel consumption.

"Attention, turn off all navigation lights. Keep radio silent and fly to the first refueling point." Whitley said.

This is a stealth aircraft. During the takeoff and landing phases, the navigation lights need to be turned on to ensure flight safety. In normal flight, especially when approaching the target airspace, all navigation lights must be turned off. Otherwise, it is equivalent to turning on the flashlight in the dark, and the anti-aircraft artillery troops on the ground can knock them down visually.

After adjusting the flight attitude and aiming at the target airspace, the next step is to hand it over to the autopilot.

If you keep a high level of vigilance for these 18 hours, your brain will be tired long ago. You can rest during this period of time.

Whitley loosened the joystick. The aircraft with fly-by-wire operation can fully control the flight with a computer. He can now be a passenger temporarily.

More than two hours of flight passed quickly. Whitley regained his spirits and said on the radio: "Attention, turn on the navigation lights, our cow is in front."

A large KC-10 aerial refueling aircraft was cruising in the refueling area, waiting for the arrival of the receiving aircraft. This is a new type of refueling aircraft, which is much better than the KC-135 refueling aircraft of the US Air Force.

At this time, a round rod had been extended from the belly behind the refueling aircraft. This is a special refueling device called a flying truss telescopic truss aerial refueling equipment, referred to as a hard refueling equipment.

General refueling devices are hoses, which are released by the refueling aircraft. The aircraft receiving fuel needs to rely on superb flying skills to contact its refueling probe with the funnel-shaped refueling cone floating anchor at the end of the hose. Both parties are in flight and are affected by complex airflow, resulting in each docking refueling, which is as thrilling as dancing ballet in the air, and the success rate is low.

The US Air Force uses hard pipe refueling. For them, whether the refueling is successful depends on the operating level of the control personnel on the refueling aircraft.

At this moment, in the control cabin at the tail of the KC-10 tanker, an operator was lying there, looking at the light spots through the porthole while wearing night vision goggles.

For the pilot of the receiving aircraft, he only needs to follow his aircraft behind the tanker and open his refueling port at the same time. At this time, the specially trained operator is fully focused on operating the refueling boom in front of him through the handle. There is a V-shaped operating surface in the middle of the refueling boom, and the angle between the trailing edges is about 130 degrees. The function of the V-shaped operating surface is similar to the elevator of an aircraft. Manipulating it can move the refueling boom within a certain range. It can move up and down, left and right, and the refueling boom is composed of two retractable rigid telescopic tubes. In this way, it can move back and forth in three-dimensional space. For example, the refueling boom commonly seen in the United States has an inner tube telescopic distance of 6 meters, an up and down range of movement of degrees, and a lateral range of movement of degrees, which is enough to meet the needs of adjusting the receiving aircraft within a large range.

Generally, the receiving aircraft has a marking line on the back, which allows the refueler to operate the refueling boom more easily for aerial refueling. The current F-117 has a black fuselage and no obvious marking line. However, when the cover of the refueling port is opened, there is a fluorescent substance inside, which allows the refueler to see clearly.

Skillfully operate the refueling boom and aim it at the refueling port. When the two are connected, with a slight sound, the refueling boom will automatically lock. At the same time, the fuel is continuously delivered to the Nighthawk through the fuel pump.

In addition to making the operation of the receiving aircraft easier, this hard pipe refueling method has another advantage, that is, because the refueling pipe is very thick and hard, the speed of oil delivery is very fast, nearly ten times that of the hose! Soon, the Nighthawk's fuel tank was full and began to detach.

One by one, six Nighthawks were all refueled, re-formed and sailed, and turned off the navigation lights. They became ghosts in the dark again. The sky began to brighten, and a new day had arrived. If you look at it visually, you can see this black spot. After all, the Nighthawk is designed to be deployed at night. During the day, the Nighthawk cannot be invisible.

However, the land below is the United States. Americans will not make a fuss if they occasionally see it. Moreover, even if someone finds it, it can be explained by UFO.

The formation continued to fly, the land turned into the sea, and the day turned into night. The diaper in the pants was already full of liquid, and the high-energy compressed food in one pocket of the flight suit was also eaten up.

The body is indeed beginning to get tired. After this flight, it’s time to rest well! Whitley said on the radio: "Nighthawk No. 6, join me for the final attack, and the other fighters will return to the Florida Air Force Base."

Six planes were used this time, mainly for backup. Since it was only the first attack, two were enough. Now, Whitley chose No. 6 to act with him because among the six, only No. 6 had the best mental state. Long-distance flights are a test of their endurance.

"Got it, good luck to you." The other pilots said, they pressed the joystick, rolled, turned, and flew to Florida.

Whitley, with fighter No. 6, refueled for the last time before the attack. After refueling, they would head straight for Panama!

At the same time, at Howard Air Force Base in the Panama Canal Zone of the United States, a large number of fighters also mounted ammunition, waiting for the Nighthawk to launch the first attack, and then joined the attack, and the paratroopers began to board the plane and prepare for parachuting. More than 20,000 army soldiers were also ready to launch a swift offensive.

Take Panama in one fell swoop!

In the dark night sky, Whitley, who was about to enter the sky over Panama, confirmed again that all the external navigation lights had been turned off, leaving only the dim fluorescence of the instrument panel in front of him. He had been flying for more than ten hours for this moment!

This Nighthawk, which cost as much as 350 million US dollars, is the crystallization of American technology. It will show its advantages on this day and at this moment!

He began to gradually descend in altitude and entered the bombing route of about 6,000 meters. Thanks to the development of electronic technology, the United States has laser-guided bombs, a high-precision ground attack weapon that can be used.

He didn't know that he was not a ghost in the dark at all, and his whereabouts had been tracked! (To be continued ~^~)