Great Power Fighting Falcon

Entering May, the highest daytime temperature in the Beiku area has risen to more than ten degrees, while the lowest temperature at night is still around minus five degrees. The temperature difference between day and night is very large.

When Li Zhan piloted the No. 02 SU-27SK heavy fighter jet and landed at Nanku Station, Niu Yaoyang and Miao Yu's maintenance team were already waiting on the apron. Under the roar of the AL-31F engine, the empty Nanku Station finally ushered in a glimmer of life.

Shi Zezhong of Nanku Station is also looking forward to it on the tarmac.

Beikuchang Station was reorganized and upgraded into a combat training base, and most of the cadres were promoted on the spot. This temptation was really hard for Shi Zezhong to resist. After all, Nanku Station is also one of the stations of the 101st Brigade and should receive the same treatment. It became increasingly important to have a good relationship with Li Zhan, who had high prestige and influence in the 101st Brigade.

Today is Labor Day, and it is the third day that the Southwest modified J-10A detachment of the Falcon Brigade has withdrawn to Beiku. The 101st Brigade received an order from the Air Force Duty Room of the Military Region, requesting that a fighter plane be dispatched to support the local area in carrying out a special task - assisting the farm. Spray cotton fields with pesticides.

After Xue Xiangdong consulted his superiors that day, the aviation commander issued an order that afternoon, ordering all trained pilots of the 101st Brigade Falcon Brigade to return to the Beiku Combat Training Base to resume normal training. As for whether the J-10A will still be modified, the aviation department has no clear result.

However, everyone knows that this time back, the Falcon Brigade basically has no chance with the J-10, so that everyone laments that the J-10 is really the unicorn of the captain, and something will happen as soon as they are combined, and it will be a big deal.

The main reason why Li Zhan strongly suggested taking the initiative to return to Beiku was that he was keenly aware of the positive changes in some major environmental factors. One of his most powerful judgments is that the Air Force will most likely replace all the second-generation aircraft of the 101st Brigade with J-11Bs. His basis was simple - his senior brother who was flying fourth-generation aircraft at Chengdu Loma told him that Shen Hoy had solved the problem of domestic TH engines.

As far as Li Zhan knew, Shen Hoy had a large backlog of airframes that only lacked engines due to an unexpected lag in engine development progress. In other words, as long as the engines are in place, Shen Hoy can deliver dozens of fighters to the army in a very short period of time.

No one knows better than Li Zhan what kind of aircraft the Falcon Group and even the 101st Brigade need most. Although he personally likes the J-10 the most, he must admit that heavy-duty twin-engine aircraft like the J-11 are the most important. Range fighters are the best choice for the 101st Brigade, which has a vast jurisdiction.

Therefore, he clearly expressed his attitude and suggestions to Xue Xiangdong from two angles.

The third factor is the intervention of the Water City Eagle Division. The impact is on the table and does not need to be analyzed.

Based on this, proactively requesting withdrawal is more in line with the future development of the 101st Brigade than remaining entangled at a good station.

After returning to the Beiku combat training base, Li Zhan immediately conducted a day of ideological education to restore low morale. The training of the Falcon Brigade quickly resumed, but May Day was a legal holiday, and the Falcon Brigade also got a rest.

In order to let the soldiers have a good rest, Li Zhan decided to personally fly the plane to carry out the task of assisting the local government in pesticide spraying. He really wasn't paying for the rod.

"Stationmaster Shi, is the disaster serious enough that troops need to be dispatched for support?" After getting off the plane, Li Zhan first performed a military salute and then asked Shi Zezhong directly.

Shi Zezhong returned the courtesy and said, "It's very serious, Captain Li. Let's talk as we go."

Li Zhan motioned to him to wait a moment, and walked over to talk to Niu Yaoyang and Miao Yu, "This is Chief of Staff Yang Jinshan's phone number. Please do your best."

His No. 01 SU-27SK fighter was gone, and he had to fly someone else's to carry out missions. It happened that Yang Jinshan went out to attend a training class, so he took Yang Jinshan's landline and used it first. The airframe does not have much life left, but the situation is better than the previous No. 01 SU-27SK.

Miao Yu said, "Captain, as long as you drive leisurely, there will be no problem."

"How else can I spray pesticides? Flying a fighter jet to spray pesticides is a test of my skills." Li Zhan shook his head helplessly.

Niu Yaoyang said, "It's no problem. I'll be able to do it in two or three hours when the place sends the sprinklers. Su Liangqi's low-altitude performance is fully capable of doing the job."

"It's still too fast. It's best to transport five small propeller planes like this." Li Zhan said.

Miao Yu said, "The local agricultural aircraft are operating at full capacity, otherwise they would not ask for help from the army. I heard that the Army Aviation Brigade will also send out aircraft to help. The cotton fields in the Beiku area are really too big. "

"Be more serious."

Li Zhan waved his hand and said a few words, then walked over and got on the commuter bus with Shi Zezhong to the infield.

In the car, Shi Zezhong said solemnly, "The Beikuku area is an important cotton planting area. This year's planting area reaches tens of millions of acres, equivalent to half the area of ​​the capital city. It is mainly concentrated in the south of our Nankuchang Station, in the basin. In the south, that is, in the area south of Wulun Lake, most are farms, and a small part are planted by ordinary people. May and June every year are important times for pest control. How well the pest control work is directly affects the harvest in September and October. So everyone in the local government pays more attention to it.”

"But the situation this year was very sudden. The pests broke out almost overnight, and then spread at an extremely fast speed, catching everyone by surprise. Last night, the Army Aviation Brigade dispatched 12 helicopters to assist the local area in pesticide spraying , but it’s a drop in the bucket.”

Li Zhan interrupted Shi Zezhong, "Wait a minute, Station Commander Shi, twelve helicopters from the Army Aviation Brigade have gone up to replace the vehicles. What use is my measly fighter jet?"

"Fighters are fast and they have to race against time. The shorter the pesticide is sprayed, the less damage will be done," Shi Zezhong said.

Li Zhan shook his head silently, "That's not how it works. There is a speed requirement for spraying pesticides. If the speed is fast, the pesticide will evaporate before it reaches the ground. What's the use of being faster?"

He doesn't know how to spray pesticides, but he knows that the use of any mounted weapon has flight height, speed, etc. requirements, and it is not just a matter of shooting at any time. Take the YJ-91 air-to-surface missile, for example. If you want the missile to go the farthest, it must be launched at a specified high speed, such as 12,000 meters. It cannot be higher or lower.

All have strict operational requirements.

If you launch an air-to-air missile with ten overloads, even if you lock on the enemy aircraft, the missile will not be able to hit the enemy aircraft, because the missile will either not be able to be fired or it will disintegrate in the air not long after being launched, because of the pressure added to the missile. The overload exceeds the design value!

"This... you can talk to the local agricultural experts later. I don't understand it very well." Shi Zezhong said, "The situation reported by the local government is very serious and critical. If this war with pests cannot be won, the entire Beikong The region’s cotton production will take a devastating hit this year.”

In fact, the leaders of the 101st Brigade did not know much about the situation. They received orders from their superiors to send outstanding pilots to fly SU-27SK to the Nanku Field Station to assist the local area in completing the pesticide spraying task. Other than that, there was nothing else. content.

Nankuchang Station is only tens of kilometers away from the cotton planting area with millions of acres in the south. Local agricultural experts have already arrived here, waiting for Li Zhan's arrival.

In the only two-story building at the station, a section chief from the relevant local department and three agricultural professionals were already waiting anxiously. The scope of pests has been expanding. For them, time is measured in hours. It is simply a forest fire fighting battle to prevent agricultural pests. It is very urgent.

"The pilot is here. This is Captain Li Zhan, our best pilot." Shi Zezhong introduced as soon as he entered the conference room.

Li Zhan saluted them, "I learned that the situation is urgent. What should I do?"

The section chief who was about to exchange pleasantries did not adapt to the army's behavior and was embarrassed. However, the oldest agricultural expert with gray hair simply said, "Captain Li, I need to open an insect-proof belt as soon as possible. Time is very tight."

Maps have been laid out on the conference table.

Li Zhan didn't even put down his flight helmet. He held it directly under his ribs. He put the white labor protection gloves he had taken off into his pocket and walked over.

The agricultural expert pointed to a straight line from east to west that had been drawn on the map and said, "From Dongli to the south of Shuihe River, we need to urgently open an isolation zone about two kilometers wide. Cut it out and isolate the parts where the infestation has appeared.”

"Similar to a fire belt?" Li Zhan suddenly understood the reason why he was asked to fly a fighter jet over.

The entire isolation zone is a cutting line from Kudongli in Dubei to the south of Shuihe River, covering a distance of about 700 kilometers. The entire journey requires low-altitude flying. Except for the SU-27SK, no fighter aircraft can fly back and forth twice. It is even less possible for agricultural aircraft, and neither can the helicopters of the Army Aviation Brigade.

"That's right." The agricultural expert said solemnly, "In an isolation zone about two kilometers wide, saturated spraying at a height of 144 meters will take two round trips."

Flying at a low altitude of about 150 meters, the maximum range of the SU-27SK will not exceed 1,700 kilometers, which means that it will be enough, leaving about 200 kilometers of redundancy. Two round trips are 2,800 kilometers, which means Li Zhan needs to land once to refuel.

No wonder the superiors designated the SU-27SK to come here. Except for these long legs, no fighter in active service can complete such a special spraying mission by landing and refueling only once.

In addition, the minimum allowable speed of the SU-27SK at low altitude is 200 kilometers per hour, which is also an advantage for spraying pesticides. Even those who are not professionals know that it is basically impossible for agricultural aircraft and helicopters to spray pesticides at speeds greater than 200 kilometers per hour. It is estimated that the performance of the aircraft has been submitted to agricultural experts, indicating that the SU-27SK is capable, otherwise such a plan would not have been formulated.

Li Zhan looked carefully at the map dedicated to the agricultural department. Most of the agricultural planting areas marked on it were different from ordinary maps and military maps.

He frowned and asked, "Has the pest spread from Shuihe to Beikudongli?"

This is definitely a big event and cannot be overemphasized.

However, the agricultural expert shook his head and said, "No, it's just the area south of Wulun Lake. But to be sure, the superiors asked to expand the defense range and conduct emergency spraying of the entire cotton growing area in the Beiku area. The purpose of our establishment of the isolation zone is First control the scope of the pest, and then further spray the pest area. Captain Li, in addition to you, we have also requested the helicopter unit to help us carry out a second targeted spraying of the isolation zone, and on the ground We mobilized tens of thousands of people to carry out carpet spraying from the isolation zone to the south to resolutely win this cotton defense war!"

Li Zhan was shocked. Isn't this a saturation rescue?

At this time, he had noticed that all pest-infested areas were marked in red. From the map, it was only a small area south of Uulun Lake. There was no need to mobilize such a large force!

Perhaps sensing Li Zhan's doubts, the agricultural expert explained, "This pest outbreak was sudden. This has not happened in previous years. The most important thing is that it spreads very quickly and causes great damage to cotton. Our experts are working intensively on research and analysis, but what is certain is that our drugs are effective against these pests. Superior instructions require that the range of pests be controlled at all costs, the threat of pests be eliminated in the shortest time, and the threat of pests be reduced to the greatest extent. Property damage to the people.”

Li Zhan couldn't help but look at the agricultural expert a few more times, and he spoke more like an official than a technical expert.

The section chief coughed and said, "Stationmaster Shi, Captain Li, this is Deputy Director Zhong from the Research Institute of our regional Agricultural Bureau."

Deputy Director Zhong looked ashamed, "Our work is not done well. This sudden pest infestation really makes it impossible for us to respond in time, so we ask for help from comrades in the army."

"Director Zhong, the theoretical minimum speed of my aircraft can reach 200 kilometers per hour, but that is already close to the envelope. If the speed is higher, will it affect the spraying effect?" Li Zhan is more concerned about how to complete the task. .

Deputy Director Zhong said, “As long as it does not exceed 250 kilometers per hour, it will not have a big impact on the spraying effect. We have considered redundancy when formulating the route plan. However, the flight route must be as exhaustive as possible. The possible accuracy is related to the spread of pests, and the less losses there are, the less losses there will be.”

"I understand, just give me the navigation point. In addition, have you considered the weather? The wind direction and strength will affect the spraying range." Li Zhan said.

Deputy Director Zhong said, "It has been included in the calculations. The Provincial Meteorological Observatory has given very accurate data. We have coordinated with the civil aviation department and sent several teams of personnel to stationed at several points to conduct segmented guidance and orientation of the aircraft. Confirm that there are also weather vehicles following to collect weather data on the spot in real time.”

Generous.

Just coordinating so many departments and using so many resources is amazing.

Li Zhan said, "I have no other questions and can leave at any time."

He appreciates this kind of saturated disposal method very much, especially when facing emergencies. The excessive investment of rescue resources and strength can minimize the losses to the greatest extent and control the scope of the impact as quickly as possible. .

During the catastrophic floods of 1998, in just one month, our country mobilized more than 300,000 People's Liberation Army and armed police soldiers to fight against the floods.

During the 2008 earthquake, we mobilized more than 100,000 troops from five military regions and more than 20 arms to join the rescue effort within three days. During those three days, the country’s fire protection system, health system, and railway system , communication systems, etc. are invested in disaster relief at all costs.

The number of rescue and disaster relief personnel even exceeded the number of people affected by the disaster in Wenchuan!

One is in 1998 and the other is in 2008.

Now in 2011, Li Zhan firmly believes that the pests in the cotton growing areas in southern Beiku will be eliminated in a short time by saturated resources.