Chapter 455: Ground Effect Aircraft Carrier Vehicle

【Countless images and data suddenly flashed through Li Mingyuan's mind, unfolding before his eyes like a movie. He saw a behemoth that existed between a ship and an airplane; it utilized the ground effect principle to fly at high speeds at an extremely low altitude (only a few meters) above the water surface. This vehicle possessed enormous air-cushion wing surfaces that could "lock" low-altitude airflow to form a stable air cushion, drastically reducing drag while providing astonishing lift.】

"That's it, that's it!" Li Mingyuan muttered to himself in excitement, quickly grabbing pen and paper to begin frantically recording the information surging through his mind.

【He "saw" the detailed structure of this vehicle—a massive front wing, a fuselage similar to an airplane's but with a flat underside capable of forming an air cushion on the water surface; the tail was equipped with a powerful propulsion system, capable of using either jet propulsion or ultra-large propellers. At an altitude of a few meters to several tens of meters, it could skim across the sea surface at an astonishing speed exceeding 200 knots, far surpassing any conventional naval vessel.】

Li Mingyuan's pen could barely keep up with the speed of his thoughts, and a sketch of a strange yet scientifically sound large vehicle soon appeared on the paper. It looked like the perfect combination of a ship, an airplane, and a hovercraft.

【The Golden Finger continued to transmit information—theoretically, this vehicle possessed a range close to that of an airplane, but its payload capacity far exceeded that of an ordinary aircraft; it could carry a large number of weapon systems and could even serve as a small mobile base or aircraft carrier platform. More importantly, its ultra-low-altitude flight characteristics made it difficult for traditional Radar to effectively capture, granting it extremely strong stealth and penetration capabilities.】

"Too perfect!" Li Mingyuan excitedly spun around in his chair, "This is the 'asymmetric warfare' weapon truly suited for us!"

Destroyers? Cruisers? Those were all old paths followed in the footsteps of the Star-Spangled Country and the Beijixiong Guo. Li Mingyuan knew deeply that given the current industrial foundation and technical level of the Long Country, catching up to those two superpowers in the field of traditional naval vessels would require a long time and enormous investment.

But this Ground Effect Vehicle was different—it was a brand-new concept weapon, and in this field, the three countries were almost standing on the same starting line. Moreover, due to the success of the Changfeng Missile project, the Long Country had already achieved breakthrough progress in key fields such as materials science and Engine technology, which laid a solid foundation for the research and development of the Ground Effect Vehicle.

【"Ground Effect Aircraft Carrier"—this thought flashed through Li Mingyuan's mind. An aircraft carrier platform capable of high-speed sea-skimming flight, it could carry multiple fighter jets and Bombers, possessed the ability to suddenly appear at the enemy's doorstep, and then rapidly withdraw, with mobility far exceeding any traditional fleet.】

Li Mingyuan's pen outlined more details on the drawing—the layout of the flight deck, the design of the internal hangar, the configuration of the catapult system, the arrangement of Anti-aircraft weapons... Every part was meticulously considered, both fully utilizing future Advanced concepts and realistically accounting for the current technical capabilities of the Long Country.

Time passed unknowingly, and when Li Mingyuan finally put down his pen, it was already late at night. Spread out on the table was a preliminary but already quite complete conceptual design drawing of a "Ground Effect Aircraft Carrier," marked with various technical parameters and notes:

Total length: 150 meters

Wingspan: 80 meters

Maximum takeoff weight: approximately 5000 tons

Cruising speed: 180 knots (approximately 333 km/h)

Maximum speed: 220 knots (approximately 407 km/h)

Cruising altitude: 5-20 meters (within the water surface effect zone)

Range: 5000 kilometers

Aircraft capacity: capable of carrying 24-36 medium-to-small fighter jets or Bombers

Power System: 4 improved "Storm Heart" turbofan engines (based on Changfeng Missile technology)

Li Mingyuan stared at this design drawing, and a smile involuntarily tugged at the corners of his mouth. Vice Commander Liu wanted a destroyer, but what he was about to deliver was a "Flying Aircraft Carrier" that would leave both the Star-Spangled Country and the Beijixiong Guo dumbfounded.

"Brother Liu, isn't it a 'big ship' you wanted? I've prepared a 'big guy' for you, guaranteed to satisfy you," Li Mingyuan said to himself, his eyes flashing with a confident light.

He carefully put away the design drawing, already unable to wait to see the expression on Vice Commander Liu's face when he received this "gift." But before that, there were still a large number of details to perfect, materials to select, and structures to calculate; this would be an engineering project even more massive and complex than the Changfeng Missile.

But Li Mingyuan had confidence; just as he had successfully developed the Changfeng Missile, he would likewise be able to turn this "Ground Effect Aircraft Carrier" from a drawing into reality, showing the world the technological strength of the Long Country.

Walking out of the data room, Li Mingyuan looked toward the starry sky outside the window, his heart already outlining the image of this massive "Flying Aircraft Carrier" skimming across the sea surface and stunning the world. It would become another trump card for the Long Country to show its strength to the world, following the Changfeng Missile.

"Caspian Sea Monster?" Li Mingyuan laughed softly, "No, what we are going to build is the 'East Sea Giant Dragon'."

Time passed silently, like sand slipping through fingers. The successful test launch of the Changfeng Missile made the Long Country famous on the international stage, forcing various countries to re-evaluate the strategic status of this great Eastern power. And at the center of this storm shaking the world, Li Mingyuan had already cast his gaze toward the next field.

A full month passed, and the work rhythm at the 404 Military Base remained tense and orderly. This afternoon, Li Mingyuan put down the document in his hand, stretched, and looked at the wall clock—exactly three o'clock. He picked up the phone on his desk and dialed a number.

"Hello, is this Commander Liu? This is Li Mingyuan."

The surprised voice of Vice Commander Liu came from the other end of the line: "Chief Engineer Li! You finally remembered me! I was just preparing to storm your place tomorrow! How is it, the 'big ship' I wanted, how have you been pondering it?"

The corners of Li Mingyuan's mouth lifted slightly: "Commander Liu, the 'big ship' you wanted, I've thought it through; it can be done."

"Really?!" The voice of Vice Commander Liu on the other end of the line went up an octave, "That's great! When can I see the design drawing? When can construction start? What tonnage is the destroyer? How is the weapon configuration?"

Li Mingyuan chuckled and interrupted his rapid-fire questions: "Don't be impatient, Commander Liu. This matter is quite big, and it's not clear over the phone. How about this, you gather the main persons in charge and the Technical Backbone from the Navy Equipment Department and the Military Industry Commission, and we'll sit down and have a good talk."

Vice Commander Liu was stunned for a moment: "So formal? Alright! Then the day after tomorrow at nine in the morning, Navy Headquarters Conference Room No. 3, set the security level to top secret, is that enough?"

"That is enough. See you the day after tomorrow."

Putting down the phone, Li Mingyuan looked out the window, his eyes flashing with a mysterious light. Oh, Brother Liu, you want a destroyer, but the surprise I've prepared for you will likely make your jaw drop to the ground.

Two days later, inside a tightly guarded conference room at the Long Country Navy Headquarters.

Vice Commander Liu arrived early and personally inspected the conference room's security facilities to ensure everything was foolproof. Subsequently, several generals from the Navy Equipment Department arrived one after another, followed by the Technical Backbone from the Military Industry Commission and the "Seventh Institute" (Ship Design and Research Institute). Everyone's face was written with anticipation and curiosity—what kind of surprise would this "miracle creator," Li Mingyuan, bring this time?

At nine o'clock sharp, Li Mingyuan arrived on time, followed by two assistants carrying thick rolls of drawings and folders.

"Chief Engineer Li!" Vice Commander Liu greeted him warmly, "Everyone is here, just waiting for you!"

Sitting in the conference room were over a dozen high-ranking naval generals and technical experts, each looking at Li Mingyuan with eyes full of respect. Ever since the Changfeng Missile shocked the world, Li Mingyuan's status in the Military had become unrivaled, and some even secretly called him "the Long Country's Aobenhaimo."

Li Mingyuan looked around, nodded slightly in greeting, and then went straight to the point: "Thank you all for attending this meeting in your busy schedules. I know everyone's time is precious, so I won't waste words and will get straight to business."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over everyone present, and then said in a calm but firm tone: "Everyone, for the core strength of the future Navy, we are going to build an aircraft carrier."

The entire conference room instantly froze, as if time had stopped flowing. Everyone was like someone whose acupuncture points had been struck, maintaining their original posture, with only their eyeballs constantly dilating, almost popping out of their sockets.

With a "clatter," someone's fountain pen dropped onto the table; this subtle sound was particularly jarring in the deathly silent conference room.

For a full ten seconds, no one spoke, and no one even breathed.

"Air... aircraft carrier?!" The old dean of the Seventh Institute, Professor Zhang, finally broke the silence; his voice trembled slightly from shock, as if he had heard the most incredible joke in the world.

"Chief... Chief Engineer Li, you... you aren't joking, are you?" Vice Commander Liu asked, stuttering; his complexion rapidly shifted from initial shock to confusion, and then to suspicion.

"We... we haven't even figured out how to build a destroyer yet!" Department Head Wang of the Equipment Department couldn't help but blurt out, then immediately realized his impropriety and lowered his head in embarrassment.

The atmosphere in the conference room became unusually subtle, and people began to whisper and murmur to each other.

"How... how is this possible? Technology, funding, experience... we don't have enough of any of it!"

"Build an aircraft carrier? The aircraft carriers of the Star-Spangled Country and the Beijixiong Guo are all in the tens of thousands of tons; where would we have that kind of strength?"

"Has Chief Engineer Li been blinded by the success of the Changfeng? Isn't this a joke?"

Vice Commander Liu coughed, attempting to regain control of the situation: "Chief Engineer Li, I understand your ambition, but... an aircraft carrier? Isn't this step a bit too big? I originally thought we would start with destroyers and proceed steadily..."

Others echoed this sentiment, and the technical director of the Seventh Institute, Engineer Li, was even more blunt: "Chief Engineer Li, I have been in the ship design industry for thirty years. An aircraft carrier is the most complex platform with the highest technical requirements in modern naval vessels. It requires special steel, an Advanced Power System, complex electronic equipment, professional carrier-based aircraft, and experienced crew... we don't possess any of these!"

Facing the room full of doubt and unease, Li Mingyuan did not rush to defend himself. He scanned the room calmly, the corners of his lips lifting slightly to reveal a mysterious smile.

"Everyone, don't rush to conclusions yet." His voice was not loud, but it possessed a strange penetrating power that instantly suppressed all the discussion, "The aircraft carrier I am talking about might be a bit different from what everyone is imagining."

He nodded to the assistants behind him. The assistants acted quickly, and a huge projection screen slowly descended from the ceiling. At the same time, another assistant turned on the projector and adjusted the focus.

Everyone's gaze was drawn by this series of actions, and the conference room became quiet again, with a tense anticipation permeating the air.

"Please take a good look, everyone," Li Mingyuan said softly, then signaled to the assistant.