Happy Tycoon

Appreciating the fighter plane in front of you at close range, its shock is extremely powerful.

After World War II, the U.S. Air Force has become one of the most powerful air forces in the world. The only one that can oppose the U.S. Air Force is the former Soviet Air Force.

As the absolute main fighter of the U.S. Air Force from the 1970s to the first five years of the new century, the F15 plays a decisive role in the U.S. Air Force.

In the 1960s, the cold war between the two super empires of the United States and the Soviet Union became increasingly fierce, and the importance of air supremacy became more and more prominent.

Aircraft designers at that time generally believed that the maximum flight speed and the highest flight altitude were the magic weapon for fighter jets to win. In future air combat, the use of long-range missiles will make close combat a thing of the past.

But this idea was ruthlessly overturned on the Vietnam battlefield, because the American F-4 Phantom fighter jet with these characteristics was repeatedly shot down by the backward MiG-21 or even MiG-17 on the Vietnam battlefield. So the United States began to reflect on this design idea, and turned to a design idea that emphasizes both long-range interception and close-range air combat capabilities.

Under the guidance of this new design idea, the U.S. military ordered the development of a new generation of heavy-duty fighter jets. McDonnell Douglas, which was later annexed by Boeing, won the bid of the U.S. military in 1969, thus starting Develop a new generation of heavy fighters.

According to the consistent naming habits of the U.S. Air Force, this newly developed heavy fighter is named F-15, code-named: Eagle. Therefore, this fighter is called F-15 Eagle, nicknamed American Eagle.

In July 1972, this two-seat twin-engine swept-wing jet supersonic all-weather high-mobility air tactical fighter began its first flight. The first flight was very successful. The US military was very satisfied with this aircraft, so a year and a half later In 1974, the first mass-produced F15 was delivered to the U.S. military, starting the 40-year service journey of this aircraft dominating the skies above the earth.

The birth of F15 made the Soviets panic. Although the Soviets also began to develop a new generation of heavy fighters in 1969, both the research and development speed and the production speed were far behind the F15. The F15 had been in service in the U.S. military for three years. The Soviet new generation of heavy fighters The Su-27 only began its first flight, and it was not until 1979 that the Su-27 was finalized. In 1985, the Su-27, the only heavy fighter that could compete with the F15, began to be installed in the former Soviet Air Force.

However, even though the Su-27 served ten years later than the F15, this pair of old enemies was the most eye-catching opponent in the world at the end of the last century.

But it is a pity that these two famous heavy fighters have never officially fought against each other. At least in the official records, these two classic heavy fighters have never fought against each other. As for whether the two fighters have ever fought in private , this is unknown.

Up to now, F15 has been in service for more than 50 years. Although F22 and F35 have begun to be equipped with more and more U.S. Air Force, F15 is still the main heavy fighter with the largest number in the U.S. Air Force.

After all, the cost of F22 and F35 is too high. The cost of a single F22 is as high as 150 million US dollars, and the cost of a single F35 is not much worse than this figure. But don't forget, the F35 is a light fighter.

The performance of the new fighter is certainly better, but the high cost makes even wealthy Americans feel a toothache, so the main fighter of the U.S. Air Force is still the F15. After all, the funds to build one F22 are enough to build five F15s. No matter how powerful the F22 is, it is impossible to single out five F15s in the air.

In contrast, the cost performance of the F15 fighter is still extremely high.

Looking at this big guy with a length of nearly 20 meters and a wingspan of more than 13 meters, it would be a lie to say that it was not shocking. Although this aircraft can only be regarded as a little smaller than a civil aviation airliner, and there are no weapons on the weapon racks under the wings, it is undeniable that the shape of this aircraft is really murderous, even if it is only parked On the ground, Yang Jing could also feel the huge lethality of this aircraft.

This is a real heavy fighter!

In fact, the most fundamental feature that distinguishes heavy fighters from light fighters is the number of engines. Generally speaking, a twin-engine fighter is a heavy fighter, and a single-engine fighter is a light fighter.

This is also the fundamental reason why the F35 Lightning is greater than the F15 in terms of empty weight and maximum take-off weight, but the F35 can still only be turned into a light fighter.

Another feature is the cockpit. Before the emergence of fourth-generation fighters, the two-seater model was one of the symbols of heavy fighters. Since the three generations of light fighters are mainly used for a single air combat mission, most of them use a single seat. The three generations of heavy fighters or attack aircraft generally use two seats. This is because heavy fighters shoulder the dual combat missions of air and ground at the same time. Pilots not only have to complete flight control, but also attack air targets and ground targets.

Two-seater fighters can take on more tasks because they have one more person. Therefore, two-seater fighters can perform tasks that single-seater fighters cannot perform and are difficult to perform alone, such as air command, electromagnetic suppression, and guided weapon projection.

Of course, with the development of electronic technology, most of the fourth-generation heavy fighters have changed the cockpit to a single seat, because the advanced electronic technology can already replace a pilot. For example, the cockpits of heavy twin-engine fighters such as F22 and MiG 1.44 are single-seater.

The F15 in front of me is a typical twin-engine, two-seat heavy fighter, with two seats in the cockpit arranged one behind the other. If in a normal battle, the front cabin is the main control of the aircraft, this allows the front cabin pilot to concentrate on flight control and air-to-air tasks, while the rear seat is dedicated to ground strikes, thereby improving the effectiveness of weapons and equipment and enhancing the aircraft's combat effectiveness. combat and survivability.

However, this is an F15D trainer aircraft, which is a twin-engine, two-seat trainer aircraft transformed from the F15C single-seat, twin-engine, air-to-air fighter.

Although this is a trainer aircraft, it has all the combat capabilities of the F15C, but it is not equipped with the C-type AN/ALQ-135 electronic jamming equipment. The main difference in appearance is the addition of a rear seat for teachers. The rear instructor's seat has full control capability and good visibility, and can complete any maneuvers within the flight envelope, including takeoff and landing. Since the C-type is mainly used for training, the rear seat has no ability to control the avionics system and weapon equipment used for combat.

But because Yang Jing doesn't know how to control the fighter plane, Yang Jing will sit in the back seat obediently for a while, and George will control the plane in the front seat.

After turning around the plane, Yang Jing was very satisfied, really satisfied. Being able to get in touch with this kind of fighter jet at close range, and to take it to the sky in a while, is definitely not something that ordinary people can do.

Although Oracle's Larry Ellison bought a decommissioned MiG-29 fighter jet for six million dollars and drove it to and from get off work, can the MiG-29 compare with the heavy fighter jet in front of him? If the two meet in the air, the MiG-29 will be crushed.

The performance in the Kosovo War in 1999 has already reflected the gap between these two fighters.

During the Kosovo War that year, 11 of the 16 MiG-29s of the Yugoslav Knights Squadron were shot down by F16s and F15s, while none of the U.S. aircraft was shot down. At that time, the F16 was actually for the F15, and the main combat aircraft was the F15.

The gap between the two is that big.

However, if you want to soar in the sky in this plane, you still need a series of preparations, the most basic thing is to change the flight suit.

Paul led George and Yang Jing to a corner of the hangar, and George said to Yang Jing: Boss, before boarding the plane, we must change into flight suits to ensure safety. Without this thing, I would not take you to the sky .”

Opening the two boxes in the corner, Yang Jing saw two full sets of flight suits inside, including helmets, masks, anti-G suits and life jackets. Important protective equipment.

Yang Jing knew that if he didn't want to be abused in the sky, it's better to put on this thing honestly.

Flight suits are military uniforms worn by pilots when performing flight missions. They are important equipment to ensure that flight personnel can work normally during flight, especially under conditions of high altitude, low pressure, and hypoxia.

These two sets of flight suits are desert yellow. This color is used to wear in the desert environment. Both are protective colors. Once the pilot is shot down, it can serve as camouflage.

The flight suit is integral, that is, the top and trousers are connected together, and there are pockets everywhere on it, which are for the pilot to wear the necessary daily necessities during the flight and after parachuting. Of course, according to the normal requirements, the pilot must also be equipped with a pistol before boarding the plane, in order to prevent the plane from making an accidental forced landing to protect the important data and personal safety of the plane. But this is a trainer, so there is no need to wear that stuff.

Yang Jing has never worn this thing, but both Chris and John know how to wear a flight suit, so with their help, Yang Jing began to put on the flight suit.

Boss, this flight suit is an advanced modern flight suit. It is a flight suit that combines the functions of high-altitude compensatory suit, anti-G suit and temperature-adjusting suit. Wearing it, you and George will be able to fly freely at high altitude in a while. Chris introduced to Yang Jing while helping Yang Jing put on the flight suit.

I said Chris, why are there no buttons or zippers on this flight suit? They are all nylon snap buttons.

Yes, this is because in the early 1950s, during a military exercise in France, an ace pilot in the French Air Force was killed because a button fell into an instrument, so from that accident Afterwards, flight suits all over the world lost buttons and zippers and were all replaced by this nylon snap button.

Yang Jing sighed: This is terrifying.

Chris smiled and said: That's right, pilots, especially fighter pilots, can be said to be the most dangerous profession in the world, so everything must be prepared before boarding the plane. It's like the flight suit you're wearing. It looks similar to ordinary work clothes, but the high-tech content inside is still very high. It’s like the high-altitude compensation suit inside the clothes. When the pilot leaves the plane in an emergency, the oxygen regulator or parachute oxygen supply will automatically fill the compensatory suit and the closed helmet with oxygen quickly, and the compensatory suit will form a compensatory pressure on the pilot's body surface corresponding to the residual pressure in the closed helmet to maintain the internal and external pressure of the human body Balance, prevent lung damage, improve respiratory and circulatory functions, and avoid the additional effects of high-altitude hypoxia and pressurized oxygen supply on the human body.

After putting it on in a few minutes, Chris patted Yang Jing's helmet and said with a smile, Boss, you can board the plane now.

Over there, Clark has pushed over a movable ladder and put it on the side of the fuselage.