Philip Wright, the most famous American designer of the M1 tank!

Born in 1922 in a poor village called Newton in the southern state of Alabama, he grew up in the nearby town of Ozek and joined the Chrysler Company in 1950, where he has been associated with military vehicles ever since.

Despite his humble background, Dr. Wright had a talent for design, and after six years at Chrysler, he became head of the design department, a total of 37 years of service, and he just retired this year.

During his working career, he presided over or participated in the research and development of many military vehicles, such as the T-51 heavy rescue vehicle, the HET-70 heavy equipment transport trailer, the bridge erection vehicle, etc. He even developed the K1 tank for the southern kimchi country, but he was most proud of the M1 Abrams main battle tank, he participated in the entire research and development process, and in the United States, he is known as the father of the M1 tank.

You know, there is a big difference between the military research and development of the West and the East, although they also have a chief division system, but the chief engineer is unknown, you can ask, who knows who the designer of the F-15 is? Who was the designer of the F-16? Who did the Aegis destroyer?

Look at Lao Maozi again, when you talk about MiG and Sukhoi, you can immediately know who the chief division is, and when you talk about T-72 tanks, you will know Kartsev.

In a U.S. military industrial system that pursues collective honor and ignores individual credit, it is enough to see Wright's merits and contributions to be remembered as the father of the M1 tank.

Now, such a famous person actually came to find him? Is retirement work boring?

"You are the father of the M1 tank?" Qin Feng asked.

"Those are all false praises from everyone." Dr. Wright said with a smile: "I am just an ordinary person, and when I was developing the M1 tank, I was questioned by many people, and the success of this tank in finalization and service is due to everyone." ”

"No, your credit is very important, you insisted on using the gas turbine to make the M1 tank achieve excellent mobility, compared to the diesel engine, the gas turbine starts quickly, accelerates sharply, and does not stall, it is simply the best tank power." Qin Feng said: "Your tank has brought a new revolution!" ”

Even Dr. Wright, who has retired, has a proud look on his face, yes, the gas turbine is indeed a revolution for tanks, and the only flaw is that the fuel is consumed too quickly, but for the US military with a strong supply convoy, it is nothing to burn more fuel.

"Dr. Wright, did you come to me on purpose?" Seeing that the two sides communicated harmoniously, Qin Feng finally got to the point.

"Yes, Mr. Qin, I heard about the Essen Security Exhibition, at that time, your future warrior system was too popular, we were all shocked, and then you showed the achievements of bulletproof technology, which surprised us." Dr. Wright said: "Everyone knows that although you are participating in the exhibition on behalf of private enterprises, behind you stands the entire Eastern military-industrial complex. ”

Qin Feng smiled, there was no affirmation, no denial.

Behind what stands the entire military-industrial group, there should be a lot of pink eye similar to Pan Daqing, and it would be good not to stumble on yourself. However, outsiders don't know, this feeling of pulling the tiger skin as a banner is still very good.

"A few days ago, the relevant team in Germany tested the ceramic pieces obtained from you, and after combining them into composite armor, the protection is really strong." Dr. Wright said, "I don't know how you make ceramic pieces? Can you sell us this technology? ”

This guy is actually here for this?

Qin Feng shook his head: "I'm sorry, we are only responsible for the promotion of this kind of tile, not the production, and we are not qualified to sell technology." ”

Dr. Wright was relieved in his heart, this Mr. Qin was really honest, and he actually told the inside story, and he also just learned the news from the intelligence agency, which was said to be information from the Kingdom of David. Mr. Qin's factory is responsible for sales, and there are other factories in production, which seems to be the case.

So what's next? Request contact information for this plant? Wouldn't it be a little aggressive and ruin the atmosphere?

"The technology of the United States is the best in the world, you should have a material with stronger protection than this, right?" Qin Feng said: "Moreover, you have such a good relationship with the British, you will definitely be able to get Chobham armor, and maybe you will improve it to a more advanced model, you shouldn't look down on our bulletproof equipment, right?" ”

The American M1 tank was not good at first, so when the British developed the Chobham armor, they immediately used it, but by the time of the Gulf War, their depleted uranium armor was also mature, so they replaced it with depleted uranium armor.

This has to be admired by Dr. Wright in front of him, the M1 tank he developed is not only advanced in performance, but also values the ability to upgrade, in his eyes, he just provides a weapon platform, and can be upgraded at any time with the improvement of technology in the future.

Therefore, the M1 tank has been used for decades, the armor has been upgraded from Chobham to depleted uranium, the tank gun has been upgraded from 105 mm to 120 mm, and the on-board electronic system has been upgraded several times to become an information-based tank.

Dr. Wright was a little embarrassed, in fact, of course, American tanks do not need to consider the problem of protection, the research and development of depleted uranium armor is nearing completion, and it can be replaced at any time, but the United States needs individual soldiers!

Their individual protective equipment is only equipped with special forces, and the distribution of all personnel is still very expensive, if you want to be able to prevent the shooting of medium-caliber bullets, you have to use boron carbide, which is the nobility of bulletproof materials, if you can use Eastern technology, you can produce cheap alumina ceramics ...

"I think that the development of armor has reached an extreme, and in the future, if you want to further improve the protection of the tank, you still have to improve the tank structure." Qin Feng has already changed the topic: "Dr. Wright, you introduced a gas turbine to the tank, which is equivalent to a power revolution, but in other aspects, you are still not bold enough, and the basic structure of the tank has not been changed drastically. ”

When the tank first appeared, it was a monster wrapped in tall tracks on both sides, and the turret was on both sides, which was very unique, but over the decades, the tank structure finally matured, with the front crew compartment, the middle fighting compartment, the turret mounted, and the engine compartment in the tail.

How else can the basic structure be changed?

It occurred to Dr. Wright that the man in front of him had given the Germans the idea of simply installing a wedge-shaped add-on module in front of the turret to improve the protection of the tank gun, and now, what new technology might he come up with?

"Mr. Qin, please speak." Dr. Wright was excited.

But Qin Feng didn't speak, he just looked at the sky above his head: "Today's sky is so blue!" ”

"That's right, today is indeed a good weather, Mr. Qin, you said the structure of the tank..."

"This air is really fresh..."Qin Feng found that the person in front of him really didn't understand: "I went to Germany at the time, but there was no such fresh air, but when Mr. Herbert put the check for 100,000 marks in my hand, I immediately felt a lot easier to breathe, Gillian, do you remember when I received the check with my left hand or with my right hand?" ”

Zhao Jiao couldn't help but smile: "Mr. Qin, you took it with your right hand." ”

"Well, that's it." Qin Feng stretched out his right hand and rubbed his thumb and index finger a few times.

Dr. Wright finally reacted: "Mr. Qin, I also have a check here, how about 100,000 dollars?" ”

"Ahem, Dr. Wright, I didn't mean that, I just reminisced about the feeling at the time, this wedge-shaped armor module of the turret, the idea is worth 100,000 marks, this new tank structure, at least a million dollars, after all, it is not easy to stuff a 140mm tank gun into the inside of the tank."

140 mm tank gun! Hearing Qin Feng's words, Dr. Wright's eyes widened: "Mr. Qin, do you also think that such a large-caliber tank gun is needed on the battlefield?" ”

"If you don't have a 140 mm caliber, how can you achieve a penetration depth of one meter? If there is no penetration depth of one meter, how can you penetrate Lao Maozi's new generation of tanks? ”

Dr. Wright took a deep breath: "Mr. Qin, you said that Lao Maozi's new generation of tanks has a one-meter protection power?" How is this possible? ”

Now, the Americans can already get in touch with the T-72 tank exported by Lao Maozi from the international market, the front armor of this tank is 200 mm thick on the front of the hull, consisting of 3 layers, from the outside to the inside is 80 mm thick homogeneous armor, 100 mm thick non-metallic materials, 20 mm thick inner armor, the thickest part of the cast turret is more than 200 mm, and some ceramic balls are stuffed inside, and the overall estimate is that the protective force is equivalent to about 350 mm.

Although the Yankees use the NATO standard 105 mm L7 tank gun, the shells are developed by themselves, and they are completely sure to tear the main armor of the T-72 tank, but if they face Lao Maozi's own model, especially the high-end T-80 tank, it is still a little powerless.

Therefore, they plan to import the patent of the 120-mm smoothbore gun from Germany to produce the same type of tank gun, which should meet the needs for a long time to come.

But now, Mr. Qin has said this terrible number, one meter!

Qin Feng continued to look up at the sky: "Dr. Wright, doesn't your intelligence system know that the artillery used in Lao Maozi's next-generation tank is a 152 mm caliber?" You should already be working on a 140mm tank gun internally, right? ”

"How do you know?" Dr. Wright was shocked again, this Mr. Qin actually knew everything!

Of course, Qin Feng knows that the famous M1 tank has also carried a 140mm gun, and is called M1A3, of course, this M1A3 is not improved on the basis of M1A2, it is completely the product of different technical routes.

In the late eighties, after the Yankees learned about Lao Maozi's advanced tank project, they immediately launched the M1TTB project, the full name of which is M1ABRAMS Tanktestbed, which translates to M1 Abrams Tank Test Platform. A 120-mm gun of the M256 type was installed on this test platform.

But this is still temporary, after all, how can a 120-mm gun fight against Lao Maozi's 152-mm gun? So they worked on a more technologically advanced M1CATTB project, that is, a high-tech test bed for armored combat vehicles, on which the Americans stuffed the XM291 140-mm tank gun.

This cannon appeared in the nineties, and in the late eighties, it should also be in the making. Looking at Dr. Wright's surprised expression, Qin Feng knew that he had guessed correctly.

It's not interesting to come to the United States, just fool Dr. Wright and earn 1.8 million in consulting fees. The cost of coming to the United States is appropriate.

Qin Feng looked down at Dr. Wright and smiled without saying a word.

Dr. Wright reacted: "Mr. Qin, you wait, I'll call the company." ”

If it's $100,000, he can call the shots directly, but $100,000 is a lot, and he needs to say hello to the company, but with his qualifications and prestige, he should still be able to apply for this money.

"I have a new design solution here, which can not only meet the loading of 140 mm guns, but also solve the problem of protection reaching a depth of one meter." Qin Feng said: "That is, I only planned to take it out after seeing you, Dr. Wright, and I look forward to your good news." ”

When Dr. Wright went to call, Zhao Jiao looked at Qin Feng curiously: "Brother Feng, can you design a tank?" ”

Qin Feng shook his head: "No." ”

That's fooling the Americans like this!

"But I'll copy other people's plans. Walk, go into the office, and I'll draw a picture on the desk. ”

The office has been emptied, only the tables, chairs and benches remain, and the integrated air conditioner on the window has been removed, leaving a big hole, which is filled with cold air, but at this time, Qin Feng's heart is on fire.

By the time Dr. Wright came back, Qin Feng had already drawn a simple structural diagram, Dr. Wright held up a check for one million dollars, handed it to Zhao Jiao, and then leaned over, only glanced at it, and exclaimed: "Two-section track? Is this reliable? Why is it designed? ”

It is already the consensus of everyone that there is a track on each side of the tank, but the tank in front of you divides the track into two parts, front and rear, each forming a closed ring, so that it becomes a two-stage track, why do you want to do this?

More than a decade ago, the Swedish UDES tank research group, Bofors and Heglon proposed an experimental articulated tank concept and built a prototype. It can be said to be similar to this one, but after testing it, I gave up because this one is not mature at all.

The design in front of me is very bold and beyond imagination!

"There are so many benefits to this design." Qin Feng said: "Our tank is planned to fly to 80 kilometers per hour in the field, so the power needs at least 3,000 horsepower, but the largest engine on hand now is only 1,500 horsepower, so we designed it into a two-stage type, in the center of which is the driving wheel of the front and rear tracks, each driven by a 1,500 horsepower engine." ”

During the Cold War, the horsepower of the main tank was only five or six hundred, the British challenger was only one thousand two hundred horsepower, and only the United States and Germany took the lead in developing a 1,500 horsepower engine.

Qin Feng put forward three thousand horsepower, where is this tank, it is simply a land cruiser!

"At the same time, this also provides power redundancy, on the battlefield, if the engine in front is hit, or the track in front of it strikes a mine, it will not make the tank lose power, and when driving on the road normally, only one engine is enough."

Qin Feng said endlessly, and Dr. Wright also nodded again and again, that's right, there is indeed a doorway inside!

The hull forms an inclined plane from front to back, the whole is like a tilted armor, the protection is first-class, the tank gun is mounted in the center, there is no turret, the shells are placed side by side in the back, and they are placed at an angle, so that you can use the whole load, and the power is definitely greater... Wait a minute!

"Where are the tankmen?" Dr. Wright was raved about the new design when he saw it, but he just couldn't find the place for the tanker! This can't be an unmanned tank.

"I'm not done yet." Qin Feng said: "The tankman is behind. ”

Behind?

Normal tank layout with the driver in front, the turret in the center, and the engine in the back. Now this tank, with the engine in front, and two more, and the gun in the center, then there is only space left in the back! And from front to rear, the hull is gradually raised, and only the space in the back can accommodate the tanker.

"The entire hull is a large area of inclined armor, and if a shell flies from the opposite side, through the hull, through the two engines, through the cannon, it will reach the crew here." Qin Feng continued to draw the tankman on it and introduced: "In this way, even if you use ordinary homogeneous steel, the protection of the entire hull is more than 1.5 meters, and if you use composite armor, the protection force is more than two meters, which can perfectly deal with any threat in the future!" ”

Looking at the position of the tankman drawn in the back, Dr. Wright frowned: "Only two people?" How does the gun commander aim at the target and fire? ”

"Periscopes, and all kinds of sighting devices!" Qin Feng said: "It's the 80s now, and the United States has the most advanced technology in the world, so can't even solve this kind of problem?" In the future, the development of tanks will inevitably be a two-person system, with one less person and less war death pension. ”

Dr. Dewright is powerless to refute this sentence, can he say that the United States does not have enough technology? Moreover, if you work hard, it is still no problem to hide behind and aim and fire, that is, the light path of the tank sight is just a little farther, and even if it is well coordinated, it is no problem to put the sight directly at the back.

"What about the driver? Do you want to drive like this all the time? ”

The driver of the vehicle sits in front, and now this kind of driving is similar to reversing, and the driver is definitely not used to it.

"This is also simple, the driver's seat can be rotated, and when the army is usually marching, the driver turns to the back, so it's the same as normal, but the tank is driven upside down, and the gearbox of our tank has as many gears as it moves forward and backward."

Dr. Wright's eyes widened again.

Usually open upside down, the field of vision is the widest, and the battlefield is open, after all, it is important to save your life, which can really solve the problem.

Mr. Qin's design drawing... It's all innovation, and a million dollars is well spent!