Set sail1992

Chapter 1455: Equip drones with unmanned refueling aircraft?

Is this the reason...

That's right. The maximum take-off weight of 5800 kg is nothing for a manned aircraft, but for a drone, it is really huge. At present, it is the second heaviest fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle in the world, second only to the US RQ-4 Global Hawk.

And the blame also falls on me. Wasn't it me who said that in order to be on the safe side, I would try to use traditional aviation materials rather than brand-new composite materials to make this drone?

Thinking of this, Zhang Qihang nodded and said, "It's right to do this. At least it can be delivered to users as soon as possible... Lao Zhang, if we follow the current plan, how long will it take to produce a prototype?"

Seeing that his boss had no objection to this plan, Zhang Jiwen breathed a sigh of relief and immediately said, "If we follow this plan, we can conduct a test flight next summer."

"So fast?"

Zhang Qihang was a little surprised when he heard this.

Boris Svetlov smiled. "After all, this is just an aircraft with a maximum take-off weight of no more than 6000 kilograms. For old guys like us, as long as we don't use the latest composite aviation materials, these are child's play."

As Boris Svetlov finished speaking, Alexander Ivanov on the side also said: "If it is a traditional fixed-wing UAV aerodynamic solution similar to the American RQ-1 and MQ-9, the most difficult part is the wing. For example, the MQ-9 has a wingspan of 20 meters, and one side of the wing is nearly 10 meters long. Such a slender wing must be light enough, which is indeed very difficult to manufacture.

But with this plan, the entire wing is divided into four sections, and the longest section of the wing is only six meters. The difficulty of manufacturing and processing is basically zero. In addition, the engine is produced by our company itself, so the progress of the entire project will naturally be much faster.

However, we have also discussed that after the product is finalized and delivery begins, our next stage of work will be to improve the aircraft and explore the application of new materials and technologies to reduce the weight of the fuselage. "

  At this point, Alexander Ivanov could not help but pursing his lips: with the same maximum load of about 1500 kilograms and the same wingspan of 20 meters, the MQ-9 weighs only more than 3000 kilograms, while his own "Double-tailed Scorpion" weighs more than 4000 kilograms, which is one-third heavier than the American aircraft. The gap is too big, and he is unwilling to accept it!

In fact, it is not just the two old men Alexander Ivanov and Boris Svetlov who are unwilling to accept this, but the entire "former Soviet aviation industry retirement group" is also unwilling to accept this.

Yes, the Soviet Union is gone, but in the years since its collapse, these lovely old guys found the burning flag in the far East.

In fact, they are very pleased with the development of China, and they are also very optimistic about Huateng Industrial Group. Although Huateng Group has handed over its aviation engine business, it still has the drone business. As a Bolshevik, they hope to do something for this flag in the last period of their lives.

"Okay, since everyone has already made development plans, I feel relieved." At this point, Zhang Qihang's mind suddenly moved, and an idea he had never had before came to his mind: "Alexander, can we develop an unmanned tanker based on this drone to provide aerial refueling for drones?" "..."

As soon as Zhang Qihang finished speaking, the entire conference room fell silent.

Everyone was shocked by Zhang Qihang's words: What do you think of building a refueling tanker for drones?

Boris Svetlov was equally confused. He frowned and couldn't help asking, "Why, Mr. Zhang? The 'Double-Tailed Scorpion' has a cruising capability of 40 hours. Isn't that enough?"

Zhang Qihang, on the other hand, thought this idea was more feasible the more he thought about it. When he heard Boris Svetlov's question, he asked back, "Boris, if it's fully loaded, how long do you think it can fly?"

As the chief engineer of the project, Boris Svetlov is very familiar with the parameters of the Scorpion. Hearing this, he said without hesitation: "About 20 to 26 hours, but I think this is enough. In the next stage, after the weight of the fuselage is reduced, the freed-up space inside the fuselage can be used to store fuel. At that time, the Scorpion will be considered a complete Scorpion, and it can even have a range of more than 8000 kilometers when fully loaded."

Speaking of this, Boris Svetlov was full of pride: In three to five years, a drone that can reach 8000 kilometers in full load and 12000 kilometers in maximum range will be the world's second most powerful. How proud and proud is this? !

"What you said is all right, and I can fully understand it," Zhang Qihang first agreed with Boris Svetlov's point of view, and then said: "But, Boris, do you really think there is no market for drones that provide aerial refueling for drones?"

Boris Svetlov blinked and didn't say anything. Alexander Ivanov, on the other hand, seemed to be thinking: "I think what Mr. Zhang said makes sense. Our 'Double-Tailed Scorpion' is a large drone, and the enlarged version of the 'Double-Tailed Scorpion' that is being planned in the future can even be considered a strategic-level drone. But now countries are paying more and more attention to the development of drones. I think drones will inevitably be gradually subdivided into light, medium and heavy types, just like fighter jets. Heavy drones with long flight time capabilities are of course fine, but those light and medium drones may not necessarily need aerial refueling..."

"Alexander, that's not what you said," Boris Svetlov retorted, "I admit that what you said makes sense, but the foundation of our 'Double-Tailed Scorpion' is here. Even if we use all of it to carry oil, how much oil can we carry?

You underestimated the difficulty of this project. Don't forget that aerial refueling is a difficult flight subject second only to carrier-based aircraft landing. Even for manned aircraft, if you want to successfully complete aerial refueling, you have to undergo rigorous and long-term training. Now you are letting two unmanned aircraft refuel in the air. I estimate that the difficulty is not much different from space docking..."

Boris Svetlov shook his head repeatedly as he spoke, and it was obvious that he was extremely pessimistic about the project of unmanned tankers refueling drones in the air.

Others had similar opinions as Boris Svetlov, thinking that their boss's idea was a bit too presumptuous.