Although there were no plans to participate in the Spanish Civil War, this war was a good learning opportunity for Australasia.

Because of the participation of the so-called volunteer armies of Germany and Italy, this war can give an early understanding of the fighting style of the Germans, as well as the current thinking of Germany and Italy on modern warfare.

To that end, Australasia decided to send a military observer mission of limited numbers. The Military Observer Mission remained neutral throughout the Spanish Civil War, and its main task was to observe the tactical systems, operational ideas, and strategic approaches of both sides of the war.

This rare war will also become one of the few real topics of the Royal Military Academy of Australasia, and a small number of cadets of the Military Academy with excellent grades will be given the opportunity to join the Military Observer Corps.

On this point, the British and Australasian ideas are in agreement.

Although the British did not do much in the Spanish Civil War, the British military also sent military observation missions to observe the combat strength of the German and Italian armies.

For the British, the combat capability of the German and Italian armies was crucial to their subsequent diplomatic operations.

If the German and Italian armies were very strong, the British would have switched to France to ensure the balance of power on the continent.

But if the combat effectiveness of the German and Italian armies is like that, and there is not much gap between them and the French, the British will continue to remain neutral and let France and Germany wear each other down.

This is also the reason why the British did not stand up against Germany and Italy sending the so-called volunteers, after all, this was a good opportunity to test the combat capabilities of the German and Italian armies.

November 15, 1934, Madrid, capital of the Spanish Republic.

It was a nice day with clear weather and cloudless skies. Above the vast blue sky, listening to the rumbling of engines, Rino Korfern, a member of the Observation Group, watched intently at the battlefield below.

"OMG! Reno, this is just crazy! Forgive me, what's so good about such a war? There was no air support, no fire coverage, just constant fire from both sides in the trenches.

I doubt that their bullets will hit the enemy, you look at that guy, the barrel of his gun is going to be lifted to the sky! Next to Reno Korfin, David Smith Canon, who was also a member of the Military Observer Group, looked at his companion in surprise and said in a chattering voice.

"Not all countries have our weapons, David." Reno explained: "Moreover, this war is definitely not going to be that simple.

For both warring sides, the capital Madrid is definitely the most important city, and it also symbolizes the initiative of both sides in this war.

If I'm guessing correctly, the German and Italian volunteers will also join this campaign, and it will be exciting. ”

"Hell, didn't the intelligence services say that Madrid was fighting fiercely? Why have we been in Madrid for several days without a decent war? David Smith Canoun also understood that Reno was right, but in terms of the size of the battle that has broken out so far, there is really nothing to observe.

"Isn't that the same with everyone else? Be patient, we are here for military observation, not for tourism. Reno continued to look intently at the battlefield below, never taking his eyes off the binoculars.

Thundered! Thundered!

Suddenly, there was a roar of the engine, which made Reno and David instantly refreshed.

"According to radar detections, we have a squad of aircraft coming nearby, probably the Spanish Air Force." The pilot of the plane reported.

"Look at it, David." Reno said excitedly, "The real war is about to begin." ”

Sure enough, after the appearance of the Spanish Air Force, the army of the Spanish Republic, which was originally only on the defensive, launched a counteroffensive in an instant.

Under the cover of the Spanish Air Force, the Spanish army switched from defense to offensive and quickly gained superiority on the battlefield.

But this advantage did not last long. Soon, planes of the Spanish rebels, including planes supported by Italy, also arrived on the scene.

Germany does not currently have much reserve in terms of military aircraft because of the previous restrictions, let alone take out military aircraft to support Spain.

"It's a good show!" Looking at the planes of the two sides that had begun to fight in the sky, Reno smiled, still focused.

Compared to the aircraft on which the Australasian Military Observer Mission travelled, the Italian and Spanish planes were even more backward.

Their method of attack is also very simple, which is to fire wildly through the machine guns on board the aircraft, but they are rarely able to hit the enemy aircraft.

From the ratio of casualties on both sides, it can be seen that the Italian planes are more advanced than the Spanish planes.

This is actually quite normal. After all, although Italy is less powerful among the great powers, it is also a recognized power, and there is a big gap between it and ordinary countries.

The air battle lasted more than an hour and, in the end, was based on the crushing defeat of the Air Force of the Spanish Republic. In the sky, the performance data of the aircraft is very important and determines the victory of an air battle.

Of course, whether the pilot can bring out the real combat effectiveness of the aircraft is also a very important decisive factor.

By all accounts, the advanced level of Italian aircraft, as well as the capabilities of the pilots of the Italian Air Force, already determined the victory of Italy in this air battle.

"How's it going, David, how is this air battle?" After the whole air battle, Reno had some time to rest, turned his head and asked his partner David with a smile.

"It's good, at least it gives us a lot of experience in aircraft design." David nodded and said with satisfaction.

Yes, Reno and David are not ordinary military observers, but specially sent by the Royal Aircraft Factory.

Their task was to collect data on the enemy's aircraft during the war, and to identify deficiencies in the design of Australasian aircraft based on this data and data from air combat.

"If nothing else, our planes are enough to crush these planes." David smiled and said, "Can you believe it? Their aircraft firepower is still stuck in the era of machine guns. I dare say that as long as our planes join the battlefield, the enemy simply cannot inflict casualties on our aircraft. ”

What makes David so confident is, of course, the advanced degree of Australasian aircraft.

As internal members of the Royal Aircraft Factory, they are naturally aware of the current data of the Royal Aircraft Factory.

The most advanced jet aircraft, the speed of these aircraft in the battlefield is ahead of the whole way. Not to mention, in terms of aircraft weapons, Australasia has airborne missiles and cannons, which are much more powerful weapons than machine guns.

In the face of Italian and Spanish aircraft, the Australasian aircraft could have done it faster, with thicker armor and more firepower.

These three points are already a huge improvement for the aircraft. As long as the pilot's ability is reasonable, the enemy's aircraft are as vulnerable as paper paste to Australasia.

"But there's still a lot to improve." Reno replied with a serious face: "The enemy's aircraft are also developing, which is not a good thing for us. ”

"It seems that this report had to be written earlier, which is very helpful for the study of our sixth-generation military aircraft." David nodded as well.

Because of the importance of data, the transmission of data was not carried out by telegraph, but by the stupidest and most efficient method, which was to transport documents by airplane.

At the speed of an airplane, it takes less than a week to reach Australasia from Spain, which is much faster than a ship.

Moreover, the safety of the aircraft is now guaranteed, which is currently the most suitable way to report important documents.

A week later, on 22 November, the Royal Aircraft Factory received data from Spain.

While Italian and Spanish aircraft could not pose a threat to Australasian aircraft, they did provide some ideas for Australasian aircraft design.

Moreover, the development of Australasian aircraft has not been updated for a long time.

Since the invention of the jet engine, Australasia has been exploring more advanced jet engines, which have greatly improved the speed of its military aircraft.

And after that, in less than a month, Arthur had already received design drawings for the sixth-generation military aircraft from the Royal Aircraft Factory.

Looking at the design drawings in front of him, Arthur was slightly surprised.

Although the sixth-generation military aircraft has been being studied, there are some problems that have reached a stalemate, which is also the reason why the sixth-generation military aircraft has not been developed.

It has only been about a month since the data of the air battle from Madrid was received, how did the Royal Aircraft Factory solve the previous problem?

With this question in mind, Arthur called in the head of the Royal Aircraft Factory, Robert Hernandez.

"Director Robert, can you tell us about our sixth-generation military aircraft?" Arthur said.

"Of course, it is my pleasure, Your Majesty." Robert Hernandez nodded with a smile, and then introduced to Arthur: "Your Majesty, you should have also seen the design drawings of our sixth-generation military aircraft.

The sixth-generation military aircraft uses two new Diesel axial jet engines, which are expected to reach a maximum thrust of 2x775kg, which is far faster than our fifth-generation military aircraft.

Thanks to engine improvements, our fifth-generation military aircraft can be equipped with more weapons and ammunition, as well as more powerful armor protection.

According to the data of the air battles in the Spanish Civil War, we canceled the reconnaissance aircraft in the sixth generation of military aircraft, attaching the functions of the reconnaissance aircraft to the single-seat fighter.

At present, there are three types of our sixth-generation military aircraft, namely single-seat fighters (Raptor-6A), two-seat fighters (Raptor-6B) and single-seat bombers (Falcon-6A). ”

Arthur took the data, his gaze cursively scanning.

BP6A single-seat fighter (Raptor-6A)

Length: 11.5m

Wingspan: 12.4m

Height: 3.5m

Empty weight: 4200 kg

Maximum take-off weight: 7045 kg

Crew: 1 person

Engines: Two Diesel axial jet engines

Thrust: 2×775kg

Maximum flight speed: 675km/h

Practical ceiling: 9500 m

Range: 1250km

Rate of climb: 1025 m/min

Thrust-to-weight ratio: 0.28

MAIN ARMAMENT: TWO CA-2-27MM RAPID-FIRE CANNONS

2 MA-107 Maxim heavy machine guns

12 airborne missiles

Robert is right, compared with the previous generation of Australasian military aircraft, the sixth generation military aircraft has indeed ushered in a considerable increase in speed.

The speed of the fifth-generation military aircraft is only less than 400 kilometers per hour, and the sixth-generation military aircraft has been increased to 675 kilometers per hour.

The faster the plane, the easier it will be to dodge enemy attacks in air combat. This also means that Australasian aircraft will have a higher survival rate in the event of an encounter with an enemy aircraft.

Of course, speed can also be very useful when chasing enemies. On the whole, this aircraft can fight if it can beat any enemy, and run if it can't.

And, unless you're faced with a one-to-many situation, it's hard to hit and run on this plane.

The data for two-seater fighters and single-seat fighters are about the same, after all, the biggest difference between them is only the addition of a pilot's seat.

BP6B two-seater fighter (Raptor-6B)

Length: 11.7m

Wingspan: 12.4m

Height: 3.5m

Empty weight: 4350 kg

Maximum take-off weight: 7045 kg

Crew: 2 people

Engines: Two Diesel axial jet engines

Thrust: 2×775kg

Maximum flight speed: 655 km/h

Practical ceiling: 9500 m

Range: 1200km

Rate of climb: 1000 m/min

Thrust-to-weight ratio: 0.28

PRIMARY ARMAMENT: 1 CA-2-27MM rapid-fire cannon

1 MA-107 Maxim heavy machine gun

36 airborne missiles

In addition to the addition of a pilot seat, the biggest difference in the two-seater fighter is that the secondary firepower of a heavy machine gun and a machine gun has been eliminated, and the number of airborne missiles has been increased instead.

The change in this point also comes largely from the data from the Spanish air battle sent back by Reno and others.

The current heavy machine guns are not very threatening to the aircraft of Italy and Spain. For the most advanced new generation aircraft in Australasia, the threat of machine guns has been minimized.

Therefore, on the new generation of two-seater fighters, the Royal Aircraft Factory directly reduced the number of machine guns and machine guns, adopted more missiles, and tried to further increase the firepower of the fighters.

Such an improvement is not bold, and it is a first for the development of an Australasian military aircraft.

It is no exaggeration to say that before such improvements, the Royal Aircraft Factory relied on nothing more than the data of the Spanish air battles, and only their own guesses.

If the missile did not play to the imagined advantage in the aircraft battle, then the design of this two-seater fighter would have turned into a major mistake of the Royal Aircraft Factory.

I'll leave it for now.

(End of chapter)