"Comrade Manturov, I heard that you proposed a plan for improving these two aircraft. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ”

At a military airfield outside Moscow, a comparative test is being prepared. In addition to the I-16 and I-15, which were massively equipped with the Soviet Air Force, there were also newly developed prototypes of the Lager-5 and Yak-3.

The purpose of this test is to compare the differences between the new models (Lager-5 and Yak-3) and the old organic species such as the I-16 and E-15, and to show their respective performance advantages.

In addition to experts and representatives of the People's Commissariat of Defense, the Deputy Prime Minister of the USSR Manturov, who was in charge of heavy industry and the defense industry, and even the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin, accompanied by his son Vasily, personally came to the military airfield.

"Comrade Stalin," said the young Deputy Chancellor Manturov to Stalin, who was seated apart, "and the improvement of these two aircraft was indeed proposed by me.

Now, the Germans have begun to develop a fighter with superior performance, while also improving existing aircraft such as the BF-109. But our current I-16 and I-15 fighters are lagging behind the latest BF-109 at all levels, and they are not as good as the FW190 being developed by Germany. In the event of a war between the Soviet Union and Germany, our army may quickly lose air supremacy.

So, I think it's necessary for us to develop some fighters that can compete with German aircraft, or even surpass them. In this way, our air force will be able to compete with the Luftwaffe, which has superior equipment and training, and grasp air supremacy on the battlefield. ”

Stalin nodded, seemingly pleased with Manturov's performance, "Vladimir Fedorovich, it seems that I have made the right decision to nominate you deputy chairman of the Council of People's Commissars (deputy prime minister)."

Since you took office, China's industrial output, technological level, and even comprehensive national strength have improved a lot. With you, no matter how powerful the enemy is, we can defeat it! ”

"Comrade Stalin, these are my duties, and they are all things I should do." In front of Stalin and many other high-ranking cadres, Manturov had to be modest, otherwise he would attract the jealousy of others, "Even if you are replaced by another person in this position, as long as he can do his duty and serve the people wholeheartedly, I think his political achievements will be similar to mine, or even better than mine." ”

"It's a pity that it's hard for me to find someone like you who can do his part. It is even more difficult to find someone like you, who has a long-term vision, wisdom, and multifaceted talents. Stalin's eyes showed admiration, without a hint of jealousy.

However, before the crossing, Manturov, who had read some books about Stalin, had always thought that Stalin was a jealous man. In Manturov's observations, almost everyone, including himself, was jealous, but did not show it. So he, in front of Stalin, kept belittling his talents.

It's just that talent can be belittled, but height cannot. Before the crossing, Manturov once read a book saying that Stalin was even jealous of other people's height, so there were no "tall people" around him, so he especially liked to use some short and fat people, such as Zhdanov, Khrushchev, Malenkov, etc.

Fortunately, since he began to contact Stalin two years ago, the steel leader has not given up on promoting this outstanding man who has achieved outstanding political achievements and is appreciated by Voroshilov and Kaganovich because of Manturov's height of 1.82 meters. Stalin, who was 1.74 meters tall (Note 1), was not dissatisfied with his height and was not jealous of Manturov's abilities.

"Koba," sat between Manturov and Stalin, Marshal Klimant Voroshilov, who had just stepped down from the post of defense minister, and whom he called each other by the code name when Stalin was a member of the underground party. Without him, these two fighters would not have taken shape so quickly. ”

"It seems that Comrade Manturov is indeed a man of many talents." Stalin smiled lightly and satisfactorily, "Volodya (Voroshilov's code name during the underground party), it seems that your daughter is not married to the wrong person." ”

"Yes, I'm also glad that my daughter can marry such a good person as Vorodya (Manturov's nickname)." Voroshilov smiled with satisfaction.

Although Voroshilov had stepped down from the post of defense minister, and his mistakes during the Soviet-Finnish war had been criticized by the top echelons of the party, his mood and state had not been affected by this.

Because, after he left the post of Minister of Defense, Voroshilov was also appointed Deputy Prime Minister of the Soviet Union, and in fact he was promoted, not at home as the outside world imagined. Besides, his status as a member of the Politburo, a revolutionary hero, and a founding father has not been shaken in any way.

"Two comrades, I'll be absent for a while, and you can talk slowly." When Manturov saw a middle-aged man in a suit, he said goodbye to the two giants and went to the man to ask about the plane's engine.

"Comrade Klimov," Manturov asked, walking up to the middle-aged man in a suit, "how is the development of the engine?" ”

Vladimir Klimov looked at the young man in front of him wearing the uniform of the political commissar (general) of the 2nd nd Army, and felt very unfamiliar, "Comrade political commissar, the research and development of the new engine is going well, and the research and development of the M-105PF has been completed recently.

In addition, a breakthrough has been made in the development of the M-107 engine, which is expected to be ready for production within six months, and the output will exceed 1,600 hp. ”

Manturov pointed to the Yak-3 with the M-105 engine, "Comrade Klimov, is this Yak-3 equipped with the latest M-105PF engine?" ”

"Yes, comrade." Klimov paused, "To be precise, it should be the M-105PF2 engine, which has a longer service life than the PF, and the output power has also increased slightly, reaching a thousand kilowatts, that is, 1341 horsepower." ”

Hearing Klimov's report, Manturov's heart also settled. Before that, he was worried that Klimov would not be able to develop the M-105PF2 engine before 1941. In this case, the Yak-3 can only be equipped with M-105P (1050 hp) or ASH-82-111 (1540 hp, but high drag and weight) engines, and may not be able to fly at speeds of more than 600 km/h.

Therefore, after Manturov became deputy prime minister, he used his authority behind the scenes, providing Klimov and Schvetov with a large amount of research and development resources, including financial resources and human resources, in order to improve the research and development efficiency of the latest engines.

As a result, after a few months, Klimov got the M-105PF2 out. In this way, the Yak-3 with the M-105PF2 can reach a speed of 650 kilometers per hour, which is about the same as the latest German development of the BF-109F.

If the development of the M-107 engine could be completed in May 1941, the speed of the Yak-3 would be able to increase to 720 km/h, faster than any future BF-109 and FW190, and the flexibility performance is incomparable.

? (To be continued.) )