Chapter 171: Powerful Automated Firing

Since it was a test, the machine gun was not loaded with live ammunition, but instead used a laser pointer to simulate the firing trajectory.

Following an electronic beep, the machine gun's laser pointer lit up, and two red laser beams pointed directly at the target drone in the sky.

"Hit! Repeat, hit! From detection to interception, total time 4.2 seconds."

A burst of cheers erupted on the test field. 4.2 seconds—this was more than three times faster than the 10-15 seconds for manual operation, and the precision was higher.

"Prepare for the second wave of testing, medium-speed target drone."

This time the target was a small powered target drone, equipped with a simple jet engine, with a speed of about 300 kilometers per hour, representing the speed class of conventional fighter jets.

The target drone took off from behind the mountain, leaving a trail of white smoke in the blue sky, and flew toward the test field at a relatively high speed.

"Target appeared, bearing 135 degrees, distance 4.5 kilometers, altitude 1200 meters, speed 320 kilometers per hour."

The Computer immediately processed the Radar signal; the light spot on the screen moved faster, but the system still firmly locked onto the target.

"Target locked, ballistic calculation in progress..."

This time, the complexity of the calculation increased significantly. Intercepting high-speed targets requires considering more factors, including projectile flight time, the target's acceleration, and possible evasive maneuvers.

It is almost impossible for ordinary manual calculations to complete such complex operations in real time.

"Ballistic calculation complete, Fire Control System ready."

The Anti-aircraft Machine Gun automatically adjusted its direction again; this adjustment was even more rapid, the movement of the barrel almost forming a blurred arc, precisely following the trajectory of the high-speed target drone.

"Simulated fire!"

The beams lit up again, and two red lights intersected in the air, pointing precisely at the position of the target drone.

"Hit! Total time 2.8 seconds!"

This number made the Military Representative present gasp.

Traditional anti-aircraft guns usually require a reaction time of 8-10 seconds to deal with a target at 300 kilometers per hour, and the hit rate is not high.

This system not only shortened the reaction time to an incredible 2.8 seconds, but the precision was also astonishing.

"Final test, high-speed unmanned target drone."

This was the most severe challenge, using a simplified version of the "Divine Eagle" Unmanned Target Drone, with a maximum speed reaching 800 kilometers per hour, approaching the speed of sound, representing the speed class of the most advanced fighter jets.

Traditional anti-aircraft fire is almost unable to effectively intercept targets at this speed.

With a shrill whistle, the unmanned target drone flew out of the distant valley at high speed, drawing a graceful arc in the air and diving toward the test field.

"Target appeared, bearing 270 degrees, distance 6 kilometers, altitude 2000 meters, speed 790 kilometers per hour, descending!"

The sound of the Computer's fan increased significantly; processing data for such high-speed targets requires immense computing power.

The formulas on the screen scrolled faster, almost forming a blurred line.

"Lock-on difficult, target speed too fast... wait, lock-on successful! Ballistic calculation in progress..."

The atmosphere at the scene became tense.

Whether it could intercept such an extreme-speed target was the true test of the system's performance.

"Ballistic calculation complete, Fire Control System ready."

The barrel of the Anti-aircraft Machine Gun jerked upward, quickly adjusting to a seemingly unreasonable angle—the position the muzzle pointed to was far ahead of the target drone's current position.

"Predictive firing mode, predicting impact point based on target trajectory."

As the target drone flew closer at high speed, the machine gun's barrel constantly made micro-adjustments, maintaining that "unreasonable" leading angle.

Finally, at the moment the target drone was about to fly over the predetermined area, the laser pointer lit up.

To everyone's surprise, the target drone flew exactly into the intersection point of the laser beams—the system had precisely predicted the flight trajectory of the high-speed target!

"Hit! Total time 1.5 seconds! Repeat, 1.5 seconds!"

The test field was deathly silent; everyone stared at this scene, dumbfounded, as if they could not believe their eyes.

1.5 seconds—this number was almost impossible.

Traditional Anti-aircraft Systems usually do not even have time to react to high-speed targets at 800 kilometers per hour, let alone intercept them precisely.

"What the hell is going on?" An artillery officer who had just been transferred from the front line broke the silence, his voice distorted by shock,

"I've been doing anti-aircraft duty on the front line for three years, and I've never seen anything like this!"

"Fully automated, from detection to interception in just 1.5 seconds... this is simply... it is..." A Radar expert stammered, unable to finish a complete sentence.

"This is unscientific!" An elderly military expert suddenly stood up and walked to the Computer, carefully checking every connection and setting,

"There must be some trick... this is impossible..."

Li Mingyuan watched the chaotic scene before him calmly, but a sense of pride welled up in his heart.

"Chief Engineer Li, what is the principle behind this?" Minister Zhao walked to Li Mingyuan's side, his voice filled with awe, "

I thought the 'Divine Eagle' Drone was already amazing enough, but this system... it's just fucking awesome."

Li Mingyuan explained simply: "The key lies in three points: precise Radar ranging and speed measurement, high-speed Computer data processing, and automated Fire Control execution. Traditional Anti-aircraft Systems rely on manual operation for all three links, leading to time delays and decreased precision. Our system is fully automated, eliminating human factors and greatly improving reaction speed and precision."

Minister Zhao nodded thoughtfully: "If this system could be deployed on a large scale..."

"It will completely change the landscape of the anti-aircraft battlefield." Li Mingyuan took over the conversation, "Even the most advanced fighter jets and Bombers will face unprecedented threats."

The excitement on the test field continued; the Military Representative and technical personnel gathered together, heatedly discussing the astonishing performance just witnessed.

Someone proposed conducting another high-speed target drone test, while more people were impatient to learn the technical details of the system.

Li Mingyuan looked at the scene before him, already thinking about the next improvement plan in his heart.

Although this system demonstrated the power of automated fire control in a breakthrough manner, there were still many areas needing optimization in practical application, especially in complex scenarios where multiple targets appear simultaneously.

"Chief Engineer Li!" A military general walked over and excitedly shook Li Mingyuan's hand,

"I must admit, I was originally skeptical about this project, thinking it was a waste of resources. But now, I am completely convinced. If this system can be deployed to the front line, it will save the lives of countless soldiers."

Li Mingyuan nodded modestly: "This is only a preliminary test; the system still has a lot of room for improvement."

"No, no," the general shook his head, "it has already far exceeded our expectations. You know, no matter how well-trained our anti-aircraft gunners are, they can only rely on luck when facing targets at 800 kilometers per hour. But your system... 1.5 seconds... this is simply a miracle!"

Just as everyone was immersed in the excitement, a communicator ran over in a hurry, holding a telegram in his hand.

"Urgent telegram! Highest priority!"

Minister Zhao took the telegram, quickly scanned its contents, and his expression instantly turned grave.

"What is it?" Zhou asked.

Minister Zhao took a deep breath, looked up at everyone, and said, "The Star-Spangled Country has officially entered the war."