On the blue sea, blue waves are shining brightly.
On the sea, a fleet of warships braved the wind and waves, driving forward, leaving behind white water waves.
This is a huge maritime formation, with frigates and destroyers on the outside, cruisers on the inside, and two aircraft carriers at the core of all ships.
Two large aircraft carriers, with open decks, look like a fortress on the sea.
"Right rudder three, turn against the wind, and prepare to release the carrier aircraft." On the Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier, Captain Blanche shouted. He was wearing sunglasses and looking forward with piercing eyes.
Although aircraft carriers have efficient catapults, headwind, which can reduce the power of the catapults and improve the take-off efficiency of aircraft carrier-based aircraft, has always been the favorite of aircraft carrier captains.
At this time, on the catapult on the deck, a Tomcat fighter full of Phoenix missiles was preparing for takeoff.
The belly of the Tomcat fighter is flat. Four of them are mounted on the front and back. On the wing box, two more Phoenix missiles, totaling six, make the Tomcat fighter look full of power. , But also greatly increased the take-off weight of the Tomcat fighter.
Each missile weighs half a ton, and six missiles increase the weight by three tons. At the same time, with full fuel, the Tomcat fighter reaches its maximum take-off weight of 33 tons.
Even if it was Nathan, it was the first time to drive such a Tomcat fighter. He used to drive mostly tomcats in an unloaded state, with no bullets. Now, he is already excited.
"The Lone Ranger requested to take off." Nathan yelled from the radio. At this time, his fighter was on the No. 3 catapult on the angled deck.
The strength of the U.S. aircraft carrier lies in its dispatch efficiency. In later generations, China has its first aircraft carrier, which makes countless people proud of it. However, in addition to excitement, we must see the huge difference clearly. China’s aircraft carrier depends on For ski-jump takeoff, you can only use the jump deck at the bow of the ship. The risk is high during takeoff and the flying efficiency is low.
In the 1970s, the Kitty Hawk has four catapults and can eject four aircraft at the same time.
"You can take off."
A command came from the headset.
Nathan looked outside, the various vests were busy, indicating that he had hung up the ejection slider, Nathan turned on the engine's afterburner, and looked at the familiar posture of the ejector, on his back, violently The feeling of pushing back came.
Only relying on the aircraft’s own engine can never experience this feeling. Now, the high-temperature and high-pressure steam in the catapult rushes violently against the piston of the C-13 catapult. The upper end of the piston is pulling the landing gear in front of the fighter. At the moment of ejection, the acceleration is as high as 6G.
This process can make people want to die.
If you don’t have any experience, you can faint if you sit here. Even an experienced pilot will feel different every time he shoots. If his body is not in good condition, he may lose consciousness instantly.
The body was pressed tightly on the backrest, and he couldn't make any movements at all. Everything on both sides was retreating quickly.
As the plane taxied forward on the deck, a puff of steam rose from behind.
As the piston moves forward, a large part of the thrust of the steam behind will push the steam ahead. It makes people feel that the catapult is not as fast as the aircraft's own engine.
When it reaches the front end of the deck, the acceleration has dropped to about 1G, and the average acceleration during the whole process is only 2G.
The moment the aircraft left the deck, the entire fighter jet sank down. At a speed of 185 knots, the fighter jet easily got rid of the sinking state and began to accelerate again.
The ejection was successful!
During the Vietnam War, Nathan had ejected from an aircraft carrier countless times. However, after driving the Tomcat, most of them flew on land, with only a dozen aircraft carrier ejection and landing opportunities.
Now, this familiar feeling returned to his body again. He felt that every cell of his body was excited. As a pilot, flying the most advanced fighter plane and fighting the sky was his happiest thing.
This heavy ejection made him full of excitement.
The two TF30 engines in the tail are constantly jetting backwards, and the wings have been swept back to the minimum. This is the method of least drag, which allows the engines to achieve the most efficient flight under the condition of insufficient thrust.
The body modification potential of the Tomcat fighter is huge. In later generations, Grumman once proposed a development plan for the Super Tomcat 21. After a large number of composite materials, the F14 was replaced with the F110-GE- of General Electric. After the 129 engine, the Super Tomcat can achieve M1.5 supersonic cruise, which is a highlight and standard of the typical fourth-generation aircraft: supersonic cruise. In addition, the F14 itself can be overloaded up to 7G at the speed of M2. Mobility is also one of the typical fourth-generation aircraft standards: super mobility.
It is a pity that this excellent fighter was eventually voted to stop production by Congress, which is simply a big loss for the US Navy. When the sluggish big bug rushes to the battlefield at a speed of Mach 0.7, almost all the US Navy misses the sky where the Tomcat dominates, right
Nathan stopped his own fancy thinking, these things are all 20 or 30 years later, now, let's talk about this exercise.
Shooting in the air, shooting six Phoenix missiles at the same time, aiming at six targets, this is the most arrogant display of their own force.
"Hawkeye calls the Lone Ranger, and Hawkeye calls the Lone Ranger." A new call came from Nathan's headset. Upon hearing the call, Nathan immediately replied: "The Lone Ranger received it. Please indicate the location."
For this target shooting, a Hawkeye was ejected into the air twenty minutes ago.
The Hawkeye is the U.S. Navy's carrier-based early warning aircraft and the eyes of the U.S. Navy aviation.
The earth is spherical, and the sea has a curvature. Therefore, the ship-borne radar on warships is limited. Generally speaking, warships on the sea beyond 100 nautical miles have already exceeded the horizon, and the radar cannot search. To.
Only by moving the radar up to the sky and condescending, can we see clearly below. This is the meaning of the existence of early warning aircraft. For modern air combat, early warning aircraft is a multiplier of air combat power.
Beginning in 64, the first E-2A Hawkeye was delivered to the U.S. Navy. Now, it has developed to E-2C. At this time, in the airspace of 6,000 meters away from the aircraft carrier formation two hundred nautical miles, the E-2C The early warning aircraft is flying steadily.
It is not a lonely one. Around the AWACS, there are two F-4 fighter jets escorting it. At the same time, there is a stranger-shaped aircraft with a big head and a thin body, just like a big-headed monster. . There is a big bag bulging at the top of the vertical tail. (End of this chapter)