The military-industrial scientific research system of the academic master.

Liu Yongquan standing next to him did not seem too surprised by this inference.

After all, he had long known from Chang Haonan that after the 601 Institute failed in selecting the fourth-generation aircraft, it had come up with the idea of ​​skipping the development of the fifth-generation fighter, and even booked a technical verification cooperation with the Aviation Power Group for the next-generation variable cycle engine.

But Lin Jihong never expected that his new leader's ideas were so wild.

"Next generation?"

Generally speaking, although preliminary research work carried out in advance is common, it is basically concentrated on conceptual and theoretical research, or simply focuses on a specific key technology, and the overall design is rarely included.

For example, in the early 90s, when China had just finished making the second-generation fighter jets, it started to use the J-7 and J-8 to verify the technology of their fly-by-wire systems and stealth capabilities.

The actual practical concept plan for the fourth-generation fighter jet was not put forward until the beginning of this century, when the J-10 was finalized.

"yes……"

Yang Wei nodded:

"In fact, if we summarize the aircraft design since the jet age, especially the missile age, the overall trend is towards simpler configurations and more complex controls. So I wonder if the fighter jets of the future will have extremely simplified wing structures, relying only on a small area of ​​action surfaces to maintain stability and maneuverability?"

"If this is the trend, then the active control system must be used frequently. If some additional technology can be used to compensate for the additional radar reflection area generated during the opening and closing of the wing surface, the radar signal characteristics of the entire aircraft can be reduced to a very exaggerated range..."

Lin Jihong had not considered such a long-term thing. After thinking about it for a while, he said in a half-joking tone:

"The wing structure is simplified, relying only on the action surface to maintain stability and control... Why does this sound like a flying wing layout?"

After he finished speaking, the three of them all laughed out loud.

Although the flying wing layout has various advantages, it is obviously not suitable for use in fighter jets that require flexibility.

After laughing for a while, Yang Wei shook his head jokingly:

"The flying wing layout is better left to bombers or transport aircraft..."

Liu Yongquan couldn't help but joked:

"If the flying wing layout is also counted, then the Americans can completely modify the definition and count the B2 as the next generation of equipment after the F22 and F35, so that they don't have to do research and development..."

Another burst of cheerful laughter.

Only after he calmed down did Liu Yongquan answer the question Yang Wei had just raised:

"In theory, the control strategy for making plasma cover any position is similar, but at least at this stage, the transportation of plasma is still highly dependent on a high-temperature and high-pressure gas environment... If you want to free up two additional flow channels in the engine and ensure that the fluid energy in them remains unchanged, this is almost impossible to achieve in engineering, unless..."

Having said this, he hesitated for a moment.

"Unless what?"

Yang Wei's speaking speed was much faster than before.

Liu Yongquan shook his head:

"Nothing... Unless we use a ramjet engine with higher energy and more direct work form to ensure sufficient fluid energy, but as you know, Mr. Yang, this form of power is difficult to use on ordinary aircraft due to problems with starting conditions and working stability..."

"..."

……

With the concerted efforts of almost half of the China Airlines system, the Yudu No. 243 test bench, which had been out of service, was put back into use in a very short time.

A J-10S prototype that had been replaced with a WS-10A plasma test and verification aircraft was also subsequently removed from its wings and transported by land from Chengdu to Chongqing.

A single-engine aircraft equipped with an engine that has not been fully tested would never be allowed to take off directly.

When Liu Yongquan came to the electromagnetic testing center for the second time with the testing machine, the back hill of the old park, which was originally quite deserted and even a little dilapidated, had regained its popularity.

Nearly a hundred technicians from several different units are adjusting the fixing method of the J-10S prototype in accordance with the requirements of the test plan.

Although the support base has been optimized in profile and made of materials with strong scattering energy, in order to avoid interference with the test results, in addition to the noise reduction settings in the radar software, it is also necessary to place the aircraft at a more appropriate angle.

In particular, the most critical target of this test is the radar signal characteristics directly behind the aircraft, so a certain elevation angle needs to be set to ensure that the incident angle of the radar wave is flush with the aircraft's central axis.

Seeing Liu Yongquan and Lin Jihong walk into the control center, Zhang Pinsheng handed the command walkie-talkie to another staff member next to him, and then led the two to a very old-fashioned computer.

On the screen, a curve is displayed that is high in the middle and low at both ends:

"As a blank control, we have recorded the RCS value of the rear hemisphere of this aircraft without starting the engine. The horizontal axis 90° is directly behind the fuselage..."

Zhang Pinsheng introduced:

"In fact, under normal circumstances, the RCS of an aircraft that has not undergone stealth treatment should be the largest on the side. However, in order to ensure the test accuracy within the critical range of 60-120 degrees, several major reflective features on the side of the aircraft are shielded by the support platform, so they appear to be relatively small. Fortunately, it will not have much impact on your test needs..."

"..."

Yudu is the electromagnetic testing center, and the staff there have almost never seen a real aircraft in working condition, so the startup process requires the assistance of technical personnel brought by Lin Jihong and Liu Yongquan.

Of course, since it is a test aircraft after all, it is impossible to let a pilot sit in the cockpit.

All startup processes are remotely controlled in the control center.

For the veteran pilots from the 606 and 611 research institutes, the whole process was as normal as eating and drinking.

Through the camera installed at a distance, one can see that as the throttle control lever is slowly pushed to the bottom, a light blue afterburner flame suddenly appears at the tail nozzle, like a raging fire spewing from the mouth of an angry dragon, fiercely licking the concrete floor below.

After being reflected by the specially installed water-cooled flame shield, it turned into a tangible heat wave that surged upwards, even causing the surrounding air to appear slightly distorted.

After confirming that several core parameters had gradually stabilized, Lin Jihong turned to look at Liu Yongquan who was not far away:

"Boss Liu, the engine has entered normal afterburner operation. The next operation is up to you."

The latter did not reply, but simply activated a string of code that had already been entered in the computer -

The plasma magnetron procedure is quite complicated and may be further adjusted at any time. In addition, the performance of the old equipment here is really limited, so it is not made into a fool-proof operation with one-button start.

After Liu Yongquan pressed the Enter key, the situation in the test area changed quickly.

"I go……"

Zhang Pinsheng, who rarely saw the engine powered up, even exclaimed in surprise—

The tail flame, which was originally only a light blue, turned directly into a relatively dark blue-purple color, which looked very beautiful under the slightly gloomy sky in the middle of winter.

"There's nothing I can do about it. There are some side effects of the built-in plasma tube..."

Liu Yongquan naturally noticed the other party's surprise and quickly explained:

"If I have to say it, it's actually a waste of a lot of energy."

After all, there was still work to do, so Zhang Pinsheng quickly suppressed his shock and moved to the microphone to start arranging the work:

"Radar No. 1 is turned on, and it will perform a semi-period round-trip motion around the orbit, 10 cycles!"

At the edge of the test area, about 1 km away from the aircraft, a track car carrying a radar antenna array began to move in uniform circular motion.

Like many natural phenomena, the reflection intensity of radar signals is not a stable value, so in the next 15 minutes or so, the car will run back and forth 10 times to ensure a more representative result...

But not long after, before even the first cycle was over, someone discovered that a faint halo appeared not only around the engine tail nozzle, but also on the horizontal tail and the edges of the double ventral fins on both sides of the aircraft.

At first, some people thought it was their own eyesight or that the resolution of the optical observation equipment was not enough.

But soon, the halo intensified to the point where it could no longer be ignored.

The plasma sheath itself is of course optically invisible, but the high-energy airflow that serves as a carrier has become a symbol of some kind, giving people the opportunity to "observe plasma with the naked eye."

"It can actually stably cover the surface of the fuselage..."

Lin Jihong's eyes widened slightly.

But besides being shocked, he suddenly became a little worried:

"By the way, Mr. Liu, the tail and ventral fins of the aircraft have not been specially treated for heat protection like the engine nozzles... If they continue like this, won't they be burned out due to the high temperature?"

"You really hit upon my blind spot..."

Faced with this question, Liu Yongquan scratched his head in distress:

"However, according to Academician Chang, the concept of plasma temperature is rather special, and the so-called temperature is essentially equivalent to the macroscopic presentation of particle kinetic energy. Using electromagnetic fields to control the coverage of plasma can itself play a role in isolating particle kinetic energy to a certain extent..."

Before Lin Jihong could respond, Zhang Pinsheng interrupted in surprise:

"This principle seems to be...similar to the Tokamak?"