Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 290, Section 289: Research and Development of the Water Cloud II Gullwing Aircraft, Arms Procurement, and Penicillin Transactions
After observing birds in flight for several days, Fang Wen recorded a lot of data and compiled his own conclusions.

The first type has crescent-shaped wings, which are found in woodpeckers and shrikes. They have fast takeoff speeds but limited flight space, making them suitable mainly for flying in forests and not for long-distance flights.

(woodpecker)

The second type has long, narrow, and pointed wings; various types of swallows have this type.
The wings are relatively long, narrow, and pointed, with no gaps between the contour feathers, making them quite "thick" and able to be flipped backward, similar to the wings of an airplane.

Suitable for high-speed flight, it can generate significant lift and thrust.

This is also the prototype of the swept-wing.

(Swift)
The third type is gliders, mainly seabirds, for which Fang Wen went to the seaside to observe them.

The wings are relatively long, narrow, and flat, with no gaps between the feathers.

During gliding flight, birds do not flap their wings but glide with the airflow to conserve energy.

These wings allow birds to soar high above hot air currents for hours on end.

It is an evolutionary choice to fly over the vast, boundless sea.

(Seagull)
The last type is the ascending wing, which belongs to birds of prey, such as eagles, cranes, and vultures.

The wide and short spaces between the feathers allow for changes in airflow; the wide feathers also help increase the speed of airflow over the upper part of the wings.

These birds gain more power for flight by curling the tips of their feathers upwards, without needing to flap their wings. This wing structure allows birds to utilize the airflow around them to lift off and soar effortlessly.

(eagle)

The wings of four types of birds, the first two of which are more suitable for high-speed fighter jets.

However, in terms of stability and balance, the latter two are superior.

Fang Wen was inspired by this and decided that the design of the Shuiyun II should focus on the wings.

He immediately returned to Wuhan to discuss the matter with the aircraft manufacturing engineers who had been transferred from Yangon.

The best way to determine which wing is more effective is to create a flight model of the corresponding wing.

This small item was not complicated for Fang Wen and the engineers.

Two types of gliding and ascent flight models were quickly produced.

However, during the test, to everyone's surprise, neither of the two replica wings performed very well.

This is because birds fly by flapping their wings to change lift and cope with airflow; it is an instinct that allows them to make precise adjustments.

Human-made aircraft have fixed wings and are powered by propellers; there are differences between the two.

Subsequently, Fang Wen adjusted his approach, focusing on better adapting to the lift generated by the airflow.

In this respect, hang gliders are the most effective.

After further adjustments, Fang Wen designed a seagull wing with an upward-facing angle.

(Three-view drawing of a gull-wing aircraft, derived from my country's early propeller-driven trainer aircraft, the CJ-6, which has been used in the international flight training market for decades.)
With its upward-angled wing, the center of lift is much closer to the fuselage than with a straight wing, giving it a strong gliding ability.

During the test, Fang Wen discovered that this wing could glide even without power, with a glide ratio of about 1 to 9, meaning that for every meter of descent, it could glide for 9 meters.

Moreover, the balance is also greatly improved.

When the aircraft encounters a lateral yaw, it will not lose control; the brilliance lies in the opposing angles of the wings on both sides.

When the aircraft yaws to the left, this wing generates a reaction torque, which in turn produces a counterforce that helps the aircraft return to a parallel state.

This is also the secret behind seagulls' ability to glide and fly at high altitudes for extended periods.

In addition, when the aircraft is climbing at a steep angle, the gull wing can also generate a rearward torque to assist in the climb.

This design inspiration from nature finally allowed the Shuiyun II aircraft to be finalized.

Immediately, Fang Wen began designing a prototype.

The design draft largely follows the design of the Water Cloud I, with no changes to the internal structure and landing gear floats. The main changes and modifications were made to the wings.

Once the design was completed, Fang Wen immediately went to Yangon to arrange for the aircraft manufacturing plant to produce the prototype.

At the Thames Aircraft Manufacturing Plant in Yangon, engineers and technicians skilled in the production of the Surface Type 1 aircraft immediately began production after mastering the ideas for modifying the wings.

In order to save time, they even directly removed the wings of a Shuiyun-1 aircraft that was undergoing acceptance testing and modified it into a gull wing.

The key to this wing modification lies in the upward-sloping outer dihedral wing section.

Because it is not a straight wing, the entire steel structure supporting the internal frame will bend, which requires ensuring the stability of this type of wing.

After all, with this type of wing structure, the outer wings on both sides will bear more stress in case of an accident. If they cannot be guaranteed to be sturdy and durable, it would be a tragedy.

To address this, Fang Wen and his engineers used four steel supports in the wing and welded additional fixing devices to the outside.

After doing all this, Fang Wen piloted the plane on its maiden flight.

The prototype of the Shuiyun II aircraft was pushed into the sea outside the port. Fang Wen took a boat over and boarded the aircraft.

He started the engine, activated the mechanical sensors, and gained a comprehensive understanding of the aircraft.

The aircraft is brand new and in good condition in all aspects; the only uncertainty is the wings.

The plane accelerated across the water, leaving a long trail of water as it flew into the air.

Throughout this process, Fang Wen used his mechanical senses to constantly monitor the changes in the wings.

During takeoff, the lift of the aircraft is slightly less than that of a straight wing, but it does not affect normal flight.

As the aircraft took off, the wings were gradually affected by the airflow, which actually brought out the balance of the gull wing.

Fang Wen reduced the engine power, causing the aircraft to fly at a low speed.

Under the influence of airflow, the aircraft maintains a constant speed in a semi-powered, semi-gliding state at high altitude.

The wings withstood the pressure at high altitudes without any unexpected incidents.

Fang Wen felt a sense of relief.

The Shuiyun II aircraft successfully completed its test flight and production began immediately.

This new type of seaplane, with its high balance, is safer and more reliable.

And because of the gull wing design, although it cannot fly at high speeds, it can greatly increase the flight distance.

This increased the maximum range to 1500 kilometers, twice as far as the Shuiyun-1.

This also means that it can have a longer flight time in the air, better ensuring air superiority.

Therefore, Fang Wen planned to modify all the Shuiyun II models produced into gunboats specifically for military purposes.

As a result, the production of civilian aircraft at Taishan Aircraft Manufacturing Plant was halted, and the entire plant began intensive production of gunboats.

It's not just aircraft manufacturing plants that are getting busy.

The 20mm autocannon production line at the bullet factory is also working overtime to produce them.

7.92mm bullets are also being produced at an accelerated pace.

But this is not enough.

The Taishan mercenary group is still lacking in weaponry and equipment. They need rifle scopes to improve shooting accuracy, as well as steel-core bullets for sniping.

The demand for 20mm cannon ammunition is also enormous. It's impossible to produce all of this solely using Yangon's industrial base.

It's time to spend money.

Fang Wen, after returning to China from Yangon, made a detour to Wuhan and then went to Jinan.

He learned about the escort team in Jinan.

Nothing much happened during this period. Japanese military aircraft had bypassed the Haihe River basin and were flying directly to Qingdao from the Bohai Bay. Some were even flying from the Great Wall to Beiping. The Taishan Air Force was powerless to do anything about this, since it was nominally just a commercial escort fleet and could not manage areas outside the Haihe River basin.

This caused some unrest within the escort team. Having just received praise from newspapers and the public, they now had no choice but to watch as Japanese planes bypassed their escort area and continued to harass North China. Everyone felt very resentful.

This situation could easily affect morale, so Fang Wen organized an internal meeting for all members of the escort team.

During the meeting, Fang Wen first encouraged everyone to speak freely.

As people shared their opinions, the pent-up grievances gradually came to an end.

At this moment, Fang Wencai spoke up to offer some guidance:

"The war hasn't started yet, so everything has to be done according to the rules. But everyone has to be on high alert at all times. Once the war starts, we have to immediately go into wartime mode. When we encounter enemy aircraft, it will be a life-or-death battle."

His words kept the escort team in high spirits, and everything was prepared for a battle against the Japanese army.

After boosting the morale of the escort team, the meeting adjourned, and Fang Wen returned to his residence, sending a telegram to the Shanghai intelligence station.

They were instructed to have the Shanghai intelligence station begin contacting suppliers to purchase military supplies.

Shanghai, the secret outpost of the Taishan intelligence station.

Now that the Taishan Intelligence Station has taken over the resources of the Axe Gang, it has ample manpower and its business covers penicillin sales, intelligence gathering, and some of the original Axe Gang matters.

Every day, intelligence collected from various channels is sorted by station chief Chen Suoxin and then transmitted to the airport outside the city, where it is handed over to the captain of Taishan Airlines to deliver to the general manager.

Today, during his routine coded telegram reception, the station manager received new instructions from the general manager.

He immediately discussed it with the deputy stationmaster, Liu Yingshou.

"The general manager wants us to purchase military supplies. Here is the catalog; take a look."

Liu Ying looked at the telegram.

"100 rifle scopes, a large quantity of 20mm cannon ammunition, and 7.92mm steel-core bullets. These things are not easy to obtain."

"Even if it's difficult, we have to do it. Let's go ask someone."

Immediately, the intelligence station dispatched its personnel.

Shanghai was not only a hub for intelligence, but also a place with many arms dealers. As soon as the original Axe Gang members spread the word, arms dealers immediately took the initiative to contact them.

The two parties chose to meet in a suburb of Shanghai.

As night fell, Chen Suoxin, disguised, arrived first with two of her men, while the others lay in ambush nearby to provide support.

Several tens of minutes later, a car drove up.

A foreigner got out of the car, accompanied by several burly Chinese men.

He walked over and said, "The things you want are very high-end; most arms dealers don't have them. I'm the only one in all of Shanghai who can get them."

Chen Suoxin asked, "Do you have any in stock?"

“Steel-core bullets are no problem. 20mm cannon rounds might be a bit difficult. There's a war going on in Europe right now, and Spain is buying large quantities of 20mm cannon rounds. I don't have many left over from supplying the Central Army. If you want more, you'll have to pay extra. Also, for rifle sights, I have the best—the German Zeiss Dialythan dedicated sight.”

After listening to the other party, Chen Suoxin began to bargain. He had the general manager's permission and was very confident that he could reach a deal.

"I want everything, money is no object. But I have a suggestion: I'll trade you something even better. Are you interested in the Miracle Sterilizer?"

"Miraculous Sterilizer" was the nickname Fang Wen gave to penicillin, and it was also the most popular medicine in Shanghai.

In the era before penicillin resistance, this drug was very effective, and it could effectively treat various bacterial infections and inflammations.

Unfortunately, the supply of goods was always controlled by a few powerful figures in Shanghai, making it difficult for others to obtain them.

The arms dealer, of course, wanted the highly effective sterilizing agent, and he expressed great interest in it.

"You have a super effective sterilizing agent?! That's great! I'm willing to sell you these supplies at the normal price. As for the 20mm cannon shells, there's no need to raise the price, but they will take some time to arrive."

"How long? It would be best if we could settle the payment and goods directly," Chen Suoxin pressed.

"Of course, the 20mm cannon shells need to be shipped from Europe. They're all in stock, in the military supply depot. I have a way to get them directly from there, so you can rest assured. But I need to know if you have some super effective sterilizing agent before we can continue the transaction."

In order to obtain the miraculous sterilizing agent, the arms dealer revealed a little bit of his source, but he also wanted to know if Chen Suoxin had that kind of miracle drug.

In response, Chen Suoxin inquired about the value of the arms dealers' current supplies, then whispered instructions to one of his men, who returned shortly after leaving.

He was holding a small leather suitcase.

Chen Suoxin took the leather suitcase, opened it, and took out a small glass bottle containing white powder. "This contains a highly effective sterilizing agent, worth 1 silver dollars, or 9 US dollars, which is exactly the value of your shipment. We can complete the transaction upon delivery."

The arms dealer's eyes gleamed with greed as he gazed at the powder, which was as valuable as gold.

However, he had no intention of actually robbing anyone. As a seasoned arms dealer in Shanghai, he knew that once he established this connection, there might be even more highly effective sterilizing agents available in the future.

Having access to this life-saving drug is far more valuable than money.

With a smile on his face, he reached the first step of the deal with Chen Suoxin.

The following day, at the same location, the two parties completed the handover of the goods.

A box of highly effective sterilizing agent was exchanged for a truckload of bullets and 100 rifle scopes.

This is enough to demonstrate the value of this medicine.

Throughout World War II, this medicine maintained a price comparable to gold due to enormous demand, yet demand remained high.

Therefore, the penicillin manufacturing plant set up by Fang Wen has become another industry with huge value.

That batch of military supplies was also sent to the airport and transported to Jinan.

Fang Wen inspected the batch of supplies unloaded from the Taishan Airlines plane at Jinan Airport.

The text printed on the packaging paper of the bullets is in German, which suggests that the bullets were supplied with German weapons by one of the Central Army's suppliers.

The Zeiss Dialythan rifle scope was also used by the German army.

Fang Wen brought over a Mauser 98K rifle, installed a scope, and loaded 7.92mm steel-core bullets, then began testing it.

Rifles equipped with 4x scopes have significantly improved accuracy, thus increasing their range from 300 meters to 600 meters. This range is something that infantry without scopes would find difficult to kill.

He adjusted the lens, and as the lens became clearer, the target ring in the distance appeared.

Although he wasn't a professional soldier, in a state of complete physical and mental focus, he achieved the same level of skill as a seasoned marksman.

With each shot fired and his constant adjustments to his aim, Fang Wen achieved an exceptional level of accuracy, hitting the bullseye nine times with every shot from 500 meters away.

This also made him very satisfied with the effectiveness of this rifle scope.

However, his vision of elite infantry would also require light armored vehicles for coordinated operations, as well as mobile infantry guns as a supplement to composite firepower.

These things cannot be bought in a private capacity.

He decided to develop and produce supplies himself to replenish the mercenary group.

(End of this chapter)