It was still Runway 1 where the Y-9 was tested previously, but this time parked at the end of the runway was a prototype of a new fighter jet designed and manufactured by Chen Xin.
At this time, the aircraft was different from when Chen Xin saw it before. Not only had the avionics system and the railgun on the nose been installed, but the entire aircraft had also been painted.
At this moment, it was parked quietly at the end of the airport runway, looking like a silent ghost, completely blending into the darkness. Only the light from the navigation lights could confirm its existence.
The cockpit of this aircraft is completely different from the traditional transparent cockpit. The cabin cover is a metal outer layer integrated with the avionics fairing on the nose. The interior is a display screen made of several high-definition LCD screens. Several high-definition cameras provide footage for it.
The pilot sitting in the cockpit looked at the display screens around him and felt a little uncomfortable.
As an experienced pilot and a test pilot, I have flown a lot of airplanes. It will be difficult to change the habit brought about by the traditional transparent cockpit.
However, although they were not used to it, the pilots quickly discovered the benefits of the LCD screen.
If it is a traditional transparent cockpit, there will be no light in the cockpit during night flights. There will only be a very weak luminous display on the instrument panel to prevent you from seeing the readings clearly.
Moreover, there is basically darkness as far as the eye can see. Most of the operations are guided either by night vision goggles or electronic systems, and cannot be confirmed with your own eyes.
This is a very technical test for pilots, because when you fly, the top and bottom are dark, and it is easy to lose your ability to judge, causing the plane to get lost.
But now, a large number of auxiliary displays on the LCD screen can not only help you judge the situation, but also come with intelligent high-definition display. Compared with the past, which relied on the naked eye to judge the situation and the pictures captured by night vision devices, it is much clearer.
Even if necessary, the entire screen can be switched to day mode, that is, night is turned into day through artificial rendering.
Of course, this mode will occupy a lot of onboard computer resources, and pilots will not turn it on unless necessary.
After manually checking all systems and confirming that there were no problems, the pilot sent a signal to the tower and was ready to start this test flight.
Although I have spent a lot of time learning how to operate this new aircraft and how to use the new equipment on the aircraft, after all, it is a new aircraft that is completely different from the aircraft I have flown before, and the pilot is still a little bit confused. Nervous, palms sweaty.
"Xiao Feng, this is the tower. It's clear now and you can take off." Just as the pilot was nervously holding the control stick and waiting, the tower's voice came from the headphones.
"The wind is blowing, get ready to take off!" The pilot took a deep breath, held the control stick, and began to control the plane to glide forward.
The new aircraft was named Chaofeng, named after the third son of the nine sons of Longsheng, which means Chaofeng's life of danger.
According to Chen Xin's design, the three ion thrusters can allow the aircraft to obtain vertical lift by flipping the nozzles and achieve vertical takeoff and landing.
But for the first test flight, everyone unanimously chose the more secure ski-jump take-off instead of vertical take-off.
As the pilot operated, the plane began to slide forward, getting faster and faster, and a strong pushing sensation even pressed the pilot into his seat.
But under the influence of the new anti-G suit, the pilot did not feel any pressure.
As the plane accelerated, the pilot pulled the nose of the plane, and the plane jumped into the air very lightly. It was not as light as a plane weighing more than 20 tons, but like a flying swallow.
"It's so beautiful!" Everyone in the tower applauded as they watched the plane fly smoothly.
Although everyone cheered in the same way before during the Yun 9 test, this time everyone applauded Chen Xin.
A new fighter jet can complete the process from design to test flight in such a short period of time. Chen Xin's "ability and level" have deeply impressed these people.
However, Chen Xin just shook his head modestly and did not get lost in the compliments. He turned to the commander in charge of air traffic control and asked: "Have the two J20s in the confrontation taken off?"
"Two J20s simulating enemy aircraft have taken off from the airport in Jincheng and are expected to arrive in the scheduled combat airspace in 30 minutes." The commander glanced at the display screen in front of him and replied to Chen Xin.
Chen Xin nodded and said to the commander: "Let Chaofeng lower the reflection angle and test the radar's invisibility effect."
"Xiaofeng, this is the tower. I order you to put down your reflection angle and enter stealth mode." The commander repeated Chen Xin's instructions to Xiaofeng's pilot.
In order to test the performance of the new fighter, Chen Xinli defied public opinion and applied for two J20s to conduct simulated air combat exercises on the new fighter before it had even been tested.
After some discussion, the military approved Chen Xin's application, transferred two J20s to him, and made temporary modifications to ensure that the aircraft could take off.
However, in order to protect the aircraft, the three fighter jets did not fly to high altitudes, but maintained their altitude below 8,000 meters.
According to the preset settings, Xiaofeng will approach the airspace where the J20 is located in stealth mode and try to break through the interception of the two J20s. This breakthrough of course includes the option of Xiaofeng "shooting down" the two J20s.
Although Xiaofeng does not carry ammunition as a test aircraft, and the J20 does not carry live ammunition, but as an exercise, as long as the radar illumination and locking are completed, it means that the aircraft has been shot down.
After all, in modern air combat, being locked basically means there is no way to escape.
However, before the exercise even started, there was a slight problem on Chaofeng's side.
Because when the pilot of Xiao Feng closed the reflection angle as instructed, the entire aircraft disappeared from all radars.
This caused a slight commotion in the tower. The commander switched different radar bands, but could not find any trace of Xiaofeng. If the communication had not been maintained, people would have almost thought that the new fighter jet had crashed.
But such a result is exciting, because if all one's own radars cannot detect Xiaofeng, this undoubtedly shows that Xiaofeng's stealth performance is quite excellent.
"Academician Chen, is Chaofeng's stealth performance so strong?" an air force officer who came to observe the exercise asked Chen Xin.
"The appearance is coated with special paint. I'm not surprised to have such a result." Chen Xin could only smile inexplicably at this.
