Busy times always fly by quickly.
At five o'clock in the evening, under Wang Ye's organization and command, everyone finally assembled the first experimental engine!
Looking at the engine on the test bench, Wang Ye couldn't help but breathe a long sigh of relief. To be honest, if it were just producing a regular car engine, it wouldn't have been so troublesome and wouldn't have required such a long validation time.
The problem lies in the fact that this engine will be used for helicopters!
In a sense, this is a special engine. It needs to provide greater power with smaller mass. Constrained by the manufacturing level of the mechanical factory and the limitations of the production line, it added a lot of trouble for Wang Ye.
Even this engine now has many differences compared to Wang Ye's initial design.
Nevertheless, this engine still couldn't meet the performance requirements of Wang Ye's original design. The most obvious issues are power output, fuel consumption, and lifespan.
Power will determine the takeoff weight of the helicopter. Currently, this engine, after multiple adjustments, is expected to barely reach a total power of ninety horsepower, which is considerably less than the one hundred and ten horsepower Wang Ye expected.
This, in turn, results in the overall takeoff weight of the helicopter being around five hundred kilograms.
The second issue is fuel consumption, which is at least twenty percent higher than Wang Ye's estimate. This relates to the helicopter's endurance. The theoretical endurance time now should be around three and a half hours.
Coupled with the helicopter's maximum flying speed of one hundred and eighty kilometers per hour, which translates to a combat radius of around two hundred and fifty kilometers, including the round-trip fuel. If conducting a suicide attack, the combat radius would be over five hundred kilometers.
Finally, there's the lifespan.
Similarly, in order to squeeze out maximum power, this engine must undergo maintenance every twenty flight hours, minor maintenance every one hundred flight hours, and major maintenance every five hundred flight hours.
Only in this way can operational issues be avoided.
However, in the future, the helicopter will be used as a military aircraft, so such maintenance times are not excessive.
Of course.
If maintenance is not performed, perhaps flying for over a thousand hours wouldn't cause any problems. But that would be purely gambling with lives. After all, if this thing loses power, it can safely glide to the ground in most cases. As for the few exceptions, that's another issue.
Precisely because of this.
Wang Ye also made changes to the design of the helicopter. The current helicopter is basically just an engine with two seats attached. The whole structure is exceptionally simple, consisting of a set of iron frames, an engine, a fuel tank, a pair of power rotors, and a pair of lift rotors. It's like buying an engine and getting a helicopter as a bonus, which is reminiscent of Honda's style in the future.
However, although it looks much simpler, it doesn't affect its combat capabilities.
As for armor and protection, this thing originally didn't need them. If it gets hit by ground weapons, whether it has armor or not, it's a death sentence anyway. It's better to just remove everything. If it's meant to die, it will die—such is life!
"Alright! Let's get started!"
After a brief silence, Wang Ye enthusiastically applauded first. Instantly, the workshop erupted in applause, with some even unable to hold back tears, clapping vigorously.
It's not surprising they're so moved. In just one month's time, these people, who originally only knew how to repair car engines, were pushed by Wang Ye to become half-baked engine engineers. Only they knew how much hard work and sweat they had put in!
"How is it? Have we assembled the engine?"
"Does everyone have confidence?"
Then Wang Ye scanned the crowd and asked again with a smile.
Faced with this question, the dozens of people in the workshop looked at each other, and from their eyes, it was obvious they lacked confidence. After all, in the past, everyone knew their own limitations. Going from repairing cars to building engines—it's something you'd only hear in fairy tales!
"We have confidence! As long as the Chief's design drawings are correct, there shouldn't be any problems!"
"All the parts were produced by us personally, and each part has undergone careful testing, all meeting the requirements. I've also checked the assembly process several times, and it's all perfectly in order!"
"So, there shouldn't be any problems!"
At this moment, a young man in his twenties with a crew cut among the crowd spoke up, his neck straightened. Instantly, the workshop burst into laughter. Obviously, in a sense, this young man was passing the responsibility to Wang Ye. As long as Wang Ye's blueprints are correct, then the product must be flawless!
"Very good! We need this kind of confidence!"
"For the products we produce, we must have absolute confidence."
"Of course, whether it's confidence or overconfidence, whether it's well-prepared confidence or blind confidence, that's another matter."
"In any case, having this confidence is a good thing. The Chief believes in you!"
"I remember you. After night school ended, I specifically transferred you from the manufacturing plant to the mechanical plant."
"Your name is Chen Hang, right?"
Most of the people present were middle-aged or even had graying hair. Only the young people, less than a handful, were the good seeds picked out by Wang Ye from night school, laying the foundation for Wang Ye's next plan. And Chen Hang was one of them.
"Yes!"
Hearing Wang Ye's words, Chen Hang's face turned red with excitement. Beside him, Chen Hang's father, Old Chen, who was originally in charge of automobile maintenance in the mechanical plant, seemed even happier than being praised by Wang Ye, rubbing his hands in excitement.
"Very good. Then it's up to you to start the engine for us!"
"Let's see if it works!"
Under Wang Ye's encouraging gaze, the young man nodded and walked to the side of the test bench. Hesitating for a moment, under everyone's gaze, he pressed the ignition button!
"Sizzle!"
Accompanied by the sound of the starter, the next second!
"Humming!"
The engine started running!
With bursts of smoke emitting and the smell of exhaust filling the air, and the dense sound of the engine running in the ears, it was many times more wonderful than the old trucks and mopeds in the factory!
"We did it! We did it!"
"Hahaha! We did it!"
"We have an engine in our mechanical plant! Hooray! Hooray!"
"Fantastic! It sounds great!"
"Yes, it's far better than those old machines!"
In an instant, the entire workshop erupted in joy, and Wang Ye also began to applaud vigorously. Actually, Wang Ye wasn't surprised by this result because he had handled the parts just now, and he had been watching over the entire assembly process.
The successful ignition wasn't accidental, it was inevitable!
But what comes next is crucial for this engine. Then Wang Ye cleared his throat, and when everyone quieted down, with the roar of the engine in the background, Wang Ye continued:
"Next, divide into three groups."
"The first group, continue to assemble the engine."
"The second group, prepare for the startup of the engine production line and worker training."
"The third group, rotate to guard this engine in shifts. Keep it running day and night for the next ten days. I need to conduct a durability test first!"
Upon hearing this from Wang Ye, a somewhat inexperienced engineer hesitated and said:
"Manager, even if we are conducting a durability test, do we really need that long?"
In response to his question, under the gaze of everyone, Wang Ye waved his hand and explained with a smile:
"Our products, once they leave this factory, represent our reputation."
"We must demand the highest standards for our products so that they can earn us respect in the market."
"It's not just the engine; the same goes for our future products."
"Although we have set the maintenance time at only twenty hours and the minor maintenance at only one hundred hours, this is all precautionary. We must leave enough margin for it."
"Understood? The same applies to the other testing projects that follow. They must be rigorous and stringent!"
Seeing Wang Ye's serious expression, everyone immediately shouted in unison:
"Yes!"
Then Wang Ye led everyone to engage in the subsequent engine testing work. After all, he wasn't planning to return to his office. What if the headmistress caught him again?
Meanwhile,
In the outskirts of Yanjing, at a military base.
In the twilight of the evening, a convoy composed of seven or eight jeeps and cars rumbled through the gates.
"I say, Lao Zhou, you're really something!"
"In the past, you weren't like this. Now, why do you enjoy keeping secrets? You didn't say anything, just had our base accept a batch of goods, and even forbade us from opening them. Now you're dragging me out of the city directly. What exactly are you up to?"
In the car, a middle-aged man in military uniform couldn't help but jest, sitting next to the amiable-faced elder from the Fifth Machinery Department.
"I see you're really troubled, Lao Wei. Bringing you out for a change of scenery isn't good enough?"
"Can't you have a little self-control?"
Hearing the words of the amiable elder, the man in military uniform laughed and said helplessly:
"Self-control? Where do I find self-control?"
"I still have a pile of work on hand that I haven't finished! I'm on tenterhooks! The reforms in the tertiary factories, it's not just you guys who are worried. I have a bunch of factories under my command, and we still don't know what we'll be eating next year!"
"They don't give us much money from the top, and now they want to cut it further. I think there's no way to live!"
As the two were chatting, the convoy quickly stopped on an empty field. After everyone got out of the vehicles, they saw a dusty Liberation truck parked in the center of the field. Several middle-aged men in plain clothes had already been disarmed and were sitting smoking cigarettes under the watchful eyes of the armed guards a few dozen meters away. In front of them were several sealed crates, and the steward's assistant was sitting on top of them.
"Good day, Chief!"
Seeing the arrival of the gray-haired men, the steward's assistant greeted them after hesitating for a while.
Seeing this scene, the amiable elder waved his hand and said to the nearby guards:
"What's with the display? Take these comrades down to rest."
"It's not like they're enemies, just because we aren't allowed to inspect doesn't mean they need to be guarded like this."
Hearing the elder's words, the guards and officers looked at the man in military uniform, who nodded in agreement, and then these people were taken away from the scene.
"What's inside?"
The man in military uniform walked over to inspect the crates for a moment, then turned to the amiable elder and asked. The amiable elder chuckled and said:
"Get a few soldiers to pry them open, and you'll know!"
"When that happens, you'll definitely shout out, saying it's worth the trip!"
Hearing the elder's words, the man in military uniform waved his hand, and the eager guards rushed up, using crowbars to open five or six crates with a few "bangs".
When the soldiers lifted the lids of the crates, the man in military uniform stood frozen in place!
Inside the crates were all dark firearms, but the shapes and sizes of these firearms were significantly different from what he remembered, with the most striking difference being the caliber!
The size of a ping-pong ball muzzle, it was simply terrifying!
"I say, Zhou Jinlie, what is this?"
"Where did you get it from?"
The next moment, the man in military uniform snapped back to reality and turned to the amiable elder, only to see the amiable elder looking at the contents of the crates, smiling with satisfaction, and saying:
"These are special firefighting equipment."
"This one is a revolver-type firefighting grenade launcher, this one is a high-speed firefighting grenade launcher, and this one is a long-range firefighting grenade launcher."
"However, I prefer to call them grenade launchers, machine guns, and sniper rifles!"
"As for where they came from"
Before the amiable elder finished speaking, the man in military uniform suddenly realized and exclaimed in astonishment:
"Red Star Machinery Factory? By Wang Ye?"