Chapter 278: Quantum Stealth Drone Announced

With Xu Yuan's return to the quantum drone project, with the cooperation of the Quantum Innovation Institute, the research progress has increased visibly compared to before, and a quantum network has been established through a quantum direct communication system.

Ensure that within a certain range, quantum drones can stably complete quantum key distribution.

During the mission, there will be no signal interference or interception.

Months passed quickly.

When it was May, the joint project team finally brought good news.

Stable quantum communication within the province was successfully experimented.

Faced with this good news, Xu Yuan made a decision on the spot and began to prepare for the flight test of the quantum stealth drone bomber.

2019 5 Month 7 Day.

on Tuesday.

The May holiday has just ended, and the project team members of Jincheng Aircraft Design Institute have been fully engaged in their work. There is no so-called holiday syndrome, and their faces are full of excitement and joy.

Because today is the day when the quantum stealth unmanned bomber makes its first flight.

It can definitely be called a milestone.

Although the stealth unmanned bomber has not yet been publicly unveiled, it has already passed various tests.

Some teams have even already deployed it.

However, drones previously relied on traditional communication systems, which were easily affected by external factors, causing aircraft signals to be interfered with or intercepted, resulting in automatic landing or crashing.

Now that we are equipped with quantum communication modules, this problem can be avoided well with the help of the characteristics of quantum communication.

So once the experiment is successful, the country's proud advanced drones will be like having a shield.

It can fully demonstrate its excellent performance and is even comparable to overseas bombers.

"Academician Xu, we haven't seen each other for a while. Congratulations on your new research results."

At this time, Yue Jinwei, Chairman Lu Dongming, and Director Jia Yueguang came over. Among them, Yue Jinwei took the initiative to shake hands with Xu Yuan, with a happy smile on his face.

As an air force member, he definitely rarely goes out.

Unless it is a special occasion, you basically never see him.

This time, when he learned that Xu Yuan had combined quantum communication and drones to effectively avoid the problem of signal interference and interception, he would definitely come and witness this good news with his own eyes.

In addition to the fifth-generation stealth fighters, Wing Loong UAVs and stealth unmanned bombers are also officially in service in some of the following departments.

And it showed amazing results in the exercise, and it is no exaggeration to say that it was able to influence the outcome of the war.

This makes their air force pay special attention to drone warfare.

But there is only one hidden danger.

Drones can easily lose their combat capability due to enemy signal interference, thus affecting the execution of their missions.

In some ways it's a double-edged sword.

It makes people feel constrained.

Fortunately, Xu Yuan was very concerned about the issue of drones. Not only did he propose combining it with quantum communication, but he has now successfully developed it for practical application.

It was a huge surprise for them.

Although Xu Yuan had not met Yue Jinwei many times, he was well aware of the other's love for advanced aircraft.

Don't forget to say hello while extending your hand.

"Good job, Commander Yue."

After saying that, he looked at Lu Dongming and Jia Yueguang beside him and greeted them as well.

"Hello, Chairman Lu."

……

Lu Dongming nodded with a smile on his face, and then immediately noticed Pan Xianfeng in front of him.

"Academician Pan."

“Thank you, Quantum Innovation Institute, for your help with this project.”

I quickly started a conversation and was very grateful.

As a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, the Jincheng Aircraft Design Institute, with the help of the Quantum Innovation Institute, can also be regarded as a key project jointly researched by the Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Engineering.

However, Pan Xianfeng had no intention of taking credit for the work. Hearing this, he explained without any hesitation:

"Chairman Lu, you are wrong. The project has progressed so quickly because of Director Xu's personal responsibility."

“We really weren’t able to help much.”

"If we count carefully, we have talked a lot with Dean Xu."

There is indeed nothing wrong with what Pan Xianfeng said. He would definitely not take over credit for something that was not his own.

Xu Yuan listened to the conversation between the two and could only agree, "I definitely can't handle such a large project on my own." It was obvious that he didn't take these honors too seriously.

After all, he doesn't lack it at all.

In the following time, Xu Yuan exchanged fragments with several people and introduced them to some information about quantum drones.

When the time was almost up, he didn't want to delay any longer.

He immediately told Liang Zhanjun: "Then let's start the experiment."

"Okay, President Xu." Liang Zhanjun nodded.

Xu Yuan then led his men to the command hall to keep an eye on the drone's communication and flight status.

Since the results of this test will be announced as an advantage together with the stealth unmanned bomber, in addition to a stealth unmanned bomber equipped with a quantum communication module, there will also be a Wing Loong drone accompanying the flight to film the stealth unmanned bomber's flight process.

At this moment, when you look towards the airport runway, you can clearly see two drones of different shapes parked there.

From the outside, the drone equipped with a quantum communication module is no different from other stealth unmanned bombers.

soon.

As the take-off order was officially issued.

The engines of the two drones started running and pushed the fuselages along the runway.

Gradually increase the speed.

Finally, they took off one after another and disappeared from sight in the blink of an eye.

-

at the same time.

All the staff in the command hall remained focused, their eyes fixed on the flight status of the drone on the screen, not daring to be distracted or careless.

Although quantum communication in the province has been tested before, it is still immature compared to traditional communication.

No one can guarantee that the link will not be disconnected in the middle.

If this were to happen, the plane would be completely out of control.

Various experimental tests cannot be performed.

It's okay to go out.

Of course, safety has also been taken into consideration long ago. The range of drone flight is limited to within the province, and the planned routes avoid cities and densely populated areas.

Even if the quantum communication link is really disconnected, it will trigger the drone's built-in program to land autonomously.

"The quantum communication link is stable and key distribution is normal."

"The drone's flight attitude is normal."

Xu Yuan is naturally confident in the project he is responsible for, and it is easier for him than for others.

Now I heard the staff's announcement again, and I felt even more relieved.

Then he gave instructions to everyone.

"Let's start the experiment according to the original plan."

In addition to conveying various commands to drones, corresponding interference experiments will also be carried out.

To determine whether the drone equipped with the quantum module will still be affected by external signals.

These experimental plans have been rehearsed many times in advance and are actually very simple to implement.

As for Yue Jinwei, Lu Dongming and others, no one interrupted at this time.

Just wait patiently for the experimental results.

The main reason is the absolute trust in Xu Yuan. Since it has reached the process of flight test, it means that the relevant technology should be relatively mature.

Because the decision to make the stealth unmanned bomber public has been made, this experimental flight did not involve raising the flight altitude throughout the entire process, but instead took into account the stability of quantum communications under various flight environments.

This would create a situation where if someone happened to be on the flight path of the drones and looked up at the sky, they might have a chance to notice the two drones.

……

As a photography enthusiast, Su Hongxiang specially invited several friends in the circle to go out for photography today.

The location is somewhere at the junction of Jincheng and other cities.

Over the years, as his photography skills have improved, the photos he shared on his account have been very popular among netizens, and he has accumulated quite a few fans, making him more determined to stick with this hobby.

"Everyone, eat something first. I'll get it from the car."

At this time, a boy in the crowd shouted, and everyone immediately agreed.

They all said they wanted to fill their stomachs first.

After all, carrying the equipment around to find angles and waiting patiently does consume a lot of physical energy.

Upon hearing this, Su Hongxiang immediately stopped filming, put away his camera and prepared to go over to help get the things.

But when his eyes accidentally swept up to the sky, he suddenly noticed two planes of different shapes flying under the clouds, and they were flying at a very fast speed, and were about to disappear back into the clouds.

With the keenness of a photographer, he almost subconsciously picked up the camera and took a picture.

When he focused his attention and looked up at the sky again, the only plane left in his field of vision was the slow-flying one.

He was no stranger to this plane.

He immediately shouted to the others: "Look up in the sky, it's a Wing Loong drone."

I still remember that when the Wing Loong UAV just made its maiden flight, he happened to take a photo of it. After posting it online, it caused heated discussions among netizens, who speculated about the specific model.

After the official news was finally announced, we found out that it was the Wing Loong UAV from the Jincheng Aircraft Design Institute.

So he must be familiar with pterosaurs.

Unfortunately, the other plane was flying too fast and it flew out of sight before I could see it clearly.

The others are all boys too, and they have no resistance to this kind of thing.

Although it was not filmed, many people saw it, and especially when they heard Su Hongxiang shout, everyone was very excited.

"It really is a Wing Loong drone, so cool!"

"It seems there is more than one. Did anyone see the other one clearly?"

"That plane was too fast, but it's definitely different from the Wing Loong. I've never seen a shape like this before." "Could it be that they've developed a new model of aircraft? This trip was worth it."

"Why do I feel so familiar?"

Su Hongxiang came over and after listening to everyone's words, he raised the camera in his hand and said:
“I think I captured it.”

As soon as he said this, before he could react, he saw others had already taken their cameras and were eager to check the photos.

Just as everyone saw the photo and enlarged the image, the outline of another plane finally emerged.

But the next second, everyone gasped.

There was even some fear on his face.

"This looks like a Ghost stealth strategic bomber from overseas, the one that's said to cost more than 2 billion US dollars. How could it possibly come to us?"

"Damn it, don't scare me."

"What a joke! The Ghost stealth strategic bomber is not capable of sneaking to our place without anyone noticing. Do you really think our gallium nitride radar is a fake decoration?"

"Could it be that the Pterosaur drone was chasing it just now?"

When the last person's voice fell, everyone immediately turned their eyes over.

They all looked at me as if I were a fool.

After all, the data of the Ghost stealth strategic bomber is there, and with the positioning of the Wing Loong reconnaissance drone, it is obviously not qualified to catch up with the Ghost stealth strategic bomber in terms of flying speed.

Just when everyone was confused about this, Su Hongxiang suddenly thought of something.

He quickly opened his mouth to express his guess.

"Could it be that we have developed our own stealth bomber?"

As soon as this statement was made, it was immediately recognized by everyone. Everyone knew the name of Jincheng Aircraft Design Institute.

The new aircraft that appear around here are most likely the latest masterpieces of the research institute.

that's it.

After everyone discussed it, they finally decided to upload this photo to the Internet.

There is no reason not to accept the traffic that you happen to come across.

Moreover, since the aircraft can be seen by the naked eye, it means that the flight altitude is not very high, and the confidentiality level is basically limited. Moreover, for the majority of netizens, they have long hoped that the country can have its own stealth strategic bomber.

However, due to the high cost of stealth strategic bombers, this field remains blank.

If netizens now knew that the Jincheng Aircraft Design Institute was suspected of developing a stealth bomber, it would inevitably cause heated discussions across the Internet.

And in fact this is indeed the case.

After Su Hongxiang posted this photo, along with a set of photos he had taken previously, on his own account.

Soon, sharp-eyed netizens noticed the situation and forwarded it to the aviation enthusiast circle.

In less than an hour, the news spread rapidly.

It even topped the trending search list.

Because the aircraft in the picture has the same flying wing design as the Ghost, if you don't look closely you might think it's the Ghost stealth bomber made by Northrop Grumman. But after analysis by professionals, many differences can still be found.

In addition, the shooting location happened to be around Jincheng, and there was a Wing Loong drone accompanying it.

It can be basically confirmed that it was developed by Jincheng Aircraft Design and Research Institute.

It is even possible that Xu Yuan is the person in charge.

Now everyone is undoubtedly very excited, and they all say that the domestically-made stealth strategic bomber has finally been born.

Years of regret are finally satisfied.

In addition to many netizens discussing the pictures, some people went to the official account to verify.

"Oh my god, I actually saw a domestically made stealth bomber. The cost should be cheaper than the overseas Phantom."

"The cost of stealth strategic bombers is too high. In addition, we have gallium nitride radars and stealth fighters, as well as high-performance drone assistance. I thought the stealth bomber project was a fart. I didn't expect to see it today. What a surprise."

"It seems that the person who took this photo is the same blogger who took the photo of the Wing Loong drone before. The probability of encountering new aircraft near Jincheng is high."

"Is this true or not? The official has not responded yet."

"I was really scared at first. I thought it was a Phantom stealth strategic bomber from overseas."

"Let me tell you something. Director Xu hasn't been seen in public for a while. Even after he was selected as Nature magazine's Person of the Year, he turned down Nature magazine's interview. Could it be that he is working on stealth bombers at the Jincheng Aircraft Design Institute?"

"Everyone just needs to keep waiting. Judging from previous situations, it will probably be announced soon."

"We just gained control of the global semiconductor industry, and now we have a stealth bomber. It makes me feel great just thinking about it!"

……

Compared to the liveliness on the Internet, the same is true in the command hall of Jincheng Aircraft Design Institute at this moment.

After several hours of experiments, the quantum drone successfully passed all tests without any quantum communication problems.

Even the most advanced drone jamming equipment had no effect on the quantum drone.

That is to say, within the quantum communication coverage range within the province, drones equipped with quantum communication modules can perform various tasks like ordinary communication drones.

"Xu Yuan."

"Our experiment was successful."

"I'm glad I didn't betray your trust, otherwise I would have felt really bad."

Amid the warm cheers in the hall, Pan Xianfeng said to Xu Yuan with a smile on his face.

I felt a sense of relief.

After all, Xu Yuan has helped the Quantum Innovation Institute so much, and the two of them often communicate with each other about quantum communications. If the quantum drone project experiment they are collaborating on fails, it is inevitable that they will feel like they are being held back.

Upon hearing this, Xu Yuan simply patted Pan Xianfeng on the shoulder and did not continue to say anything else on this topic.

Then, after the hall quieted down again, he reported to Lu Dongming and Yue Jinwei.

"Commander Yue, Chairman Lu, we have succeeded in this experiment, which means that quantum drones are feasible."

"And we will continue to expand the coverage of quantum communications in the future."

“In addition, quantum repeaters can be used to ensure drone communications in an airborne and transportation manner, maximizing the full combat performance of drones.”

Yue Jinwei was already very excited when he saw the result, and the smile on his face became even wider after hearing what Xu Yuan said.

He can be said to be the one who knows best the terrifying combat capabilities of the stealth unmanned bomber.

With low manufacturing and maintenance costs, it is entirely possible to form a large fleet of stealth unmanned bombers. If stealth fighters are equipped with quantum repeaters to ensure communication, such a fleet of quantum stealth unmanned bombers that are not afraid of interference can launch attacks deep into the enemy's belly.

Then I believe the situation will soon become clear.

Crucial quantum communications can also be applied to other fields to ensure the absolute security of their own information.

Then everyone present showed joyful expressions, and Director Jia Yueguang even said on the spot that a celebration banquet would be held in the evening.

Once again, everyone cheered.

At this moment, Zhao Yuefeng came over anxiously.

After stopping in front of Xu Yuan, he quickly explained the situation.

"Xu Yuan."

"Someone filmed the flight footage of our stealth unmanned bomber and uploaded it to the Internet."

"The whole internet is talking about it now. We have developed a domestically-made stealth strategic bomber."

"Want to respond vocally?"

After listening to what Zhao Yuefeng said, Xu Yuan was not surprised.

After all, after the quantum drone experiment was successful, the stealth unmanned bomber was originally going to be officially announced.

Although it is not the stealth strategic bomber that everyone has been dreaming of, I believe it will not disappoint.

Faced with stealth strategic bombers like the overseas Ghost, which are worth more than 2 billion US dollars, a simple stealth unmanned bomber may be insufficient, despite its better stealth performance.

But when the drone’s weakness of being easily interfered with is eliminated, the stealth unmanned bomber will become a formidable existence.

After all, the price gap between the two is very large.

If a real battle on the battlefield were to take place, a ghost stealth strategic fighter would have to face dozens or even hundreds of quantum stealth unmanned bombers.

The key is that even if there is a loss, I don’t feel bad at all.

With the thought staying here, Xu Yuan couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth, with a slightly playful expression appearing on his face.

"Of course I have to respond."

"Not only should we respond openly and openly, but we should also let everyone know how advanced our stealth unmanned bomber is."

"It's time to show off the stealth unmanned bomber."

When Zhao Yuefeng heard Xu Yuan's answer, he knew what he meant. He immediately lit up and nodded in agreement.

"I understand, Dean Xu. I'll arrange for someone to do it right away."

After saying this, he didn't care if there was anything else and immediately turned around and trotted out.

When everyone saw this scene, smiles appeared on their faces. It was obvious that they had been looking forward to this day for a long time.

After all, the stealth unmanned bomber had already completed its first successful flight, but it has been kept secret and has not been publicly released. This is like knowing that your own child is so outstanding and amazing, but you can't tell others about it.

Now that drones can be combined with quantum communications, they are even more powerful and their weaknesses are gone.

There is nothing wrong with announcing it to the public at this time.

In addition, Xu Yuan also wanted to see how Northrop Grumman would react after seeing the stealth unmanned bomber.

Because of the gallium nitride radar issue, the other party caused so many subsequent troubles.

He hasn't forgotten any of this.

Although this led to the birth of photolithography factories and gave Japan a voice in the international semiconductor industry, it is important to respond accordingly.

The Spirit stealth strategic bomber has always been Northrop Grumman's proudest product.

The only one of its kind in the world.

And relying on sufficiently high R&D and manufacturing costs, I don’t think any country can replicate it.

But now, a domestically-produced stealth unmanned bomber with even stronger stealth performance than the Ghost has officially debuted.

It is unknown what new changes it will bring to the international situation.

Zhao Yuefeng naturally attached great importance to the things that Xu Yuan personally instructed him to do and kept an eye on them personally, so the efficiency was also very high.

Almost within an hour after the quantum drone experiment was successful, major official media accounts reported on it, announcing new achievements in the field of domestic drones.

When netizens saw the hot news, they discovered that their guess was wrong and it turned out to be just a stealth unmanned bomber.

It's inevitable that I feel a little regretful.

But when he noticed that the drone was equipped with quantum communication, his spirits immediately perked up again.

……

(End of this chapter)