"Hmm, is it a ramjet? The aircraft was propelled to a certain speed with two hydrogen-fueled turbofan engines with a thrust-to-weight ratio of 15. And then start the ramjet engine to accelerate the aerospace aircraft under the condition that the ramjet engine works to meet the conditions for the operation of the ramjet? That's a good idea," Rumsfeld kept nodding his head at the model on the table, and kept chanting words in his mouth, "No wonder it can fly so fast, if it uses a supersonic ramjet engine." It's understandable, but in that case, wouldn't they have solved the problem of manufacturing and materials for reusable supersonic ramjet engines? Damn, that's really not good news. ”

The U.S. military and several major arms manufacturers, as well as NASA, have been working on reusable ramjet engines, but little progress has been made.

Speaking of ramjet engines, ramjet engines are similar to turbofan engines and turbojet engines, and they are also a type of jet engine. The slight difference is that, in principle, the ramjet engine uses the pressure change generated by the high-speed airflow under the change of speed to achieve the purpose of gas compression.

Because the ramjet engine itself has no moving parts, the airflow enters the engine from the front air intake, and the change in the cross-sectional area of the duct is used to reduce the high-speed airflow and increase the gas pressure. The compressed gas enters the combustion chamber, mixes with the fuel and burns, so the principle of this engine is much simpler than that of a traditional turbojet engine or turbofan engine. However, the ramjet engine does not have a compressor and cannot be started when the ground is stationary, so it is not suitable as a power plant for ordinary aircraft.

However, the ramjet engine has the characteristics of simple structure, light weight, small size, large thrust-to-weight ratio, low cost, and suitable for manufacturing high-speed propulsion aircraft, which has fascinated countless aviation scientists, believing that this engine is the best power choice for aerospace aircraft, but the most serious reusable problem in a series of problems of ramjet engine has also made aviation power scientists worry about their gray hair.

James nodded, yes, this is really not good news, for the United States, if its opponent has such an ultra-high-altitude reconnaissance plane, it means that the vast majority of the secrets of the United States have no secrets for their opponents.

For a long time, they have relied on the SR-71 "Blackbird" high-altitude reconnaissance plane to bully the Americans, who were not able to hit such a high-range missile in the former Soviet Union and China. The most uncomfortable thing is that for this damn guy who is on top, he can obviously see it, but he can't reach it, can't catch up, can't hit it! That's the most depressing part.

The US military has a sober understanding of the strategic value of high-altitude and high-speed reconnaissance aircraft, and the reason why it has placed this thing on a strategic level is because, to a certain extent, the reconnaissance capability of this thing is even a little better than that of high-altitude reconnaissance satellites.

After all, reconnaissance satellites are dead and can only reconnoiter targets along the way according to a given route, but the super-high-altitude manned reconnaissance plane is different, and if the pilot on it is also an experienced high-altitude scout -- this is simply certain, and the military of no country will waste such strategic equipment -- he can carry out repeated and detailed reconnaissance of targets that he considers to be of great value, so as to make a final confirmation of this area or target. At the same time, different reconnaissance equipment can be replaced according to different tasks, and comparatively, it is much more convenient and practical than reconnaissance satellites.

What made Rumsfeld even more frightened was that the cockpit arrangement of this reconnaissance plane was very strange, not the traditional tandem layout, nor the common side-by-side layout among bombers, but the strange 2+2 tandem layout, that is, there were two seats in the front and two seats in the back, and it was a strange four-seat reconnaissance plane. …,

What does this mean? Rumsfeld knows very well that this is definitely not that the degree of automation of this reconnaissance plane is not advanced enough and more manpower is needed to operate it, but it means that the performance and technology of this reconnaissance plane are extremely advanced, but even so, the two crew members cannot complete the corresponding work, and can only make up for it by increasing the number of crew members!

You must know that the SR-71 "Blackbird" supersonic high-altitude reconnaissance plane, which the Strategic Reconnaissance Division of the US military intelligence department is proud of, is nothing more than a two-person crew configuration with a pilot and a system operator...... Rumsfeld felt that his head was starting to hurt even more.

After pondering for 10 minutes, Rumsfeld finally raised his head, frowned and asked James, "Has the Alice Group revealed this secret to other countries?" ”

"Nope."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. General, I'm sure! ”

If that's the case, Rumsfeld mused: Then I think I understand what they mean, and if that's the case, things will be much easier...... In this world, I am not afraid that you will ask for money and benefits, but I am afraid of meeting those unreasonable madmen.

"I'm going to find the president. I think our president is going to have to prepare his rhetoric and see how he can convince the damned members of Congress. Rumsfeld muttered softly.

Well, that's true, but before you do that, you have to think about how you can convince Mr. President to agree to your proposal. Looking at Rumsfeld, who was muttering, James thought to himself.

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"Is that so?". Looking at Rumsfeld in front of his desk, looking at the report submitted to him by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, and some relevant materials on this ultra-high-altitude reconnaissance plane provided by the Alice Group at the request of the US Department of Defense, Bush Jr. felt that he was about to go crazy! Could it be that this damn Alice Group is its own nemesis? Why is it that I am always so unlucky every time I meet Alice Group?

If I had known that being the president of the United States was such a hard job, I would have beaten myself to death and not run for this damn president! Bush Jr. thought angrily in his heart, although he himself understood that no matter what the reason, his idea, well, was just a thought.

"There's no doubt that that's the way it is." Rumsfeld shrugged his shoulders helplessly, and for the president in front of him, Rumsfeld empathized with his feelings, and expressed deep sympathy: Although people who really know know that the US president is actually the world's largest gas bag, the president in front of him ...... It is estimated that it can be called the largest punching bag among all the presidents of the United States.

"Damn, they're threatening me!" This time, George W. Bush finally couldn't hold back any longer. Angrily slammed the desk in front of him: the strong desk!

It is not for nothing that Bush Jr. can be so angry, because the information provided by the Alice Group about this ultra-high-altitude reconnaissance plane is already very detailed:

The ultra-high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft uses two modified versions of the liquid hydrogen-powered turbofan engines used on the previously unveiled fighter jets to power the aircraft during take-off and landing, and two reusable, liquid hydrogen-fueled supersonic ramjet engines as the power for high-speed cruise flight at ultra-high altitude.

When two turbofan engines powered by liquid hydrogen accelerate the aircraft to a high speed of Mach 2.5 at an altitude of 15,000 meters, the supersonic ramjet engine starts to work, and then pushes the aircraft to cruise at an altitude of 50,000 meters at an ultra-high speed of 5.5 times the speed of sound, and when it is time to return to the base, the aircraft is first slowed down to Mach 2.5, then the supersonic ramjet engine is turned off, the two turbofan engines start to work, and the aircraft gradually begins to slow down and return to base. …,

The real reason why Bush Jr. and Rumsfeld had to make the decision to compromise with the Alice Group was because of the frightening high flight altitude of this aircraft! The maximum flight altitude is 50,000 meters! The maximum maximum flight altitude is 55,000 meters!

That's right, it's 50,000 meters, that's 50 kilometers! The flight altitude of 50,000 meters is definitely a flight altitude that makes all manned aircraft and all the active air defense missiles in the world desperate, and at present, no anti-aircraft strike weapon in the world can pose any threat to this ultra-high-altitude unmanned reconnaissance aircraft.

After all, the theoretical maximum launch altitude of the US "Patriot" PAC-3 air defense missile, which claims to be the best air defense missile in the world, is only 24,000 meters, the maximum launch altitude of the most advanced "Standard 2" 4A air defense missile used by the US Navy is only 27,000 meters, and even the maximum launch altitude of the Russian S-300 "Antey" long-range air defense missile system, which has the highest range, is only 27,000 meters.

If we want to deal with ultra-high-altitude reconnaissance planes flying at an altitude of 50,000 meters, it seems that there is probably no way to deal with the Russian S-400 ultra-long-range territorial air defense missile system, which has just completed its first test launch and is claimed to be able to reach a maximum altitude of 50,000 meters, or the "Theater Area High-altitude Defense" interceptor missile (THAAD), which has just been put on the research and development agenda by the United States and is said to have a theoretical maximum launch height of 40,000 meters, or the "Standard-3" air defense missile of the navy is also good. Perhaps only in the future will an improved version of this interceptor missile be possible to pose a threat to this high-flying super monster.

But it is only possible to pose a threat, and we must not forget that there is a lot of water in the words of the Russians, and it is still very doubtful whether the S-400 has such a powerful shooting capability. The THAAD system or the Standard-3 is just a so-so way to reach this ultra-high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft, but the problem is that the cruising flight speed of this high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft at an altitude of 40,000 meters has reached 5.5 times the speed of sound, that is, about 6,700 km/h!

And the maximum ceiling has reached an astonishing 55,000 meters!

And what should not be forgotten is the flight speed of this reconnaissance aircraft, which makes all anti-aircraft missiles in the world desperate: Mach 5.5! At present, no air defense missile can reach this flight speed, and it can be said unceremoniously that within 30 to 40 years, this high-altitude monster will have no opponent, and even if it conducts reconnaissance flights at an altitude of 10,000 meters, no country's air defense missile will be able to knock down this monster.

"Yes, Mr. President," Rumsfeld nodded. "There is no doubt that they are threatening you, and not only you, but our great United States of America, but now it seems that we do not have a suitable solution in the short term, except for a temporary compromise with them."

"Damn it, damn it......" Hearing Rumsfeld say this, Bush Jr., who had just been angry, lowered his head in frustration and could only vent his inner depression and anger with an angry scolding.

Not only is Bush Jr., the cowboy president, depressed, in fact, the entire Bush Jr. ruling team is depressed, and it is not only successful politicians who can come to this point, but also top figures in military, financial, economic, social and many other aspects, but now, they are also curious, how the Alice Group successfully developed a reusable supersonic ramjet engine, And the successful application of this kind of engine, which is only in the process of basic theoretical research in any country in the world, to practice? All of them don't understand.

Naturally, for this secret, Alice, Zhang Lan, and Xiao Chenxi were naturally tight-lipped and refused to reveal half of their mouths...... There are naturally no fewer people who want to know.

But it doesn't matter if they don't understand, this does not prevent them from making all kinds of speculations: it is probably related to the damn special composite ceramic materials in the hands of Alice Group, because ceramics are much more resistant to high temperatures than metals, and it is well known that the best composite ceramics in the world are currently only available to Alice Group. …,

"This is not the most fatal, the most terrible thing is that, according to my opinion, this ultra-high-altitude and ultra-high-speed reconnaissance aircraft can be transformed into a strategic bomber that can carry out intercontinental flights," Rumsfeld sighed aggrievedly, "Once a strategic bomber with this capability is put into service, with its own ultra-high flight altitude and ultra-high flight speed, the airspace of any country in the world is like visiting the back garden of its own home, and it is like entering and exiting in a no-man's land. China, which has always been under our strict guard, will be a huge threat to us as long as it has two such bombers. Although this cross-aircraft does not say that it has stealth capabilities, this flight speed. In fact, there is no need for any stealth ability. ”

"......" The crowd sighed helplessly, and the Alice Group used this fact to prove one point to them: the world's martial arts are only fast and unbreakable.

"Well, Mr. Minister, please tell the Alice Group that we need them to conduct a flight test, and we need a convincing fact to convince the damned members of Congress, damn, those damn members of Congress have a mixture of poop and stones in their heads, smelly and hard!" George W. Bush said desperately pulling his hair.

A group of people nodded their heads in agreement, and indeed, it was fitting to describe the heads of those damned MPs as "stuffed with a mixture of shit and stones."

――――――――――――――――

This demand of the US military naturally fits Zhang Lan's heart. Americans don't give up if they don't see the real thing, so why don't they want to take this thing out to scare them? Since the Americans took the initiative to come up with sticks and cry and shout to be Huang Gai, then they have to meet their little request no matter what, right?

The meeting point is located in the airport tower of Las Vegas International Airport, a famous casino city in Nevada. The U.S. military suggested that Alice and Zhang Lan go to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada to conduct the test, but Zhang Lan and Alice rejected this request without even considering it.

Joke! What is Nellis Air Force Base? This air base is one of the most mysterious air bases in the United States, and it is only less than 300 kilometers away from the most mysterious area 51 in the United States.

Because of such a trivial matter, all your hole cards are leaked? Are you kidding!

In charge of receiving Zhang Lan and Alice and his entourage was the Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Murphy. Wilfordwitz. Zhang Lan was not dissatisfied that he was only a deputy secretary in charge of receiving him, you must know that although this guy is only a "small" deputy secretary of defense, he is also the chief strategist of Bush Jr., and speaking of which, he is also a very high-ranking think tank in the Bush administration.

Except for Paul. In addition to Wilforditz, what surprised Zhang Lan a little was that among the people present, in addition to the people of the US Department of Defense, there were some guys.

"Hello, Dear Miss Alice, and welcome." Seeing Alice and Zhang Lan arrive, Paul. Wilfords bowed slightly to Alice with a respectful expression.

"Hello, Mr. Paul," Alice smiled and nodded, "I'm glad to see you here." ”

Paul. Wilford's face suddenly froze: "Happy to see me? Is it possible that I am sending you money...... Although it is highly likely that it will be sent to you for money.

"Hehe, Miss Alice, you've won the prize," Paul said. Wilforditz smiled awkwardly, seeing that Xiao Chenxi seemed to be a little interested in these guys around her, he hurriedly took advantage of this to divert his embarrassment, "By the way, Miss Alice, let me introduce you, this is ......"

"This one I know, it's Northrop. Mr. RonaldSugar, CEO of Grumman," Alice smiled and held out her hand to RonaldSugar, "Fortunately, I will be glad to meet you!" ”……，