Chapter 838: New Research Topic?

To be honest, along this journey, for Qin Ge, the situation in the inland makes it somewhat hard for him to adapt. There is a great sense of disconnection from coastal cities, and he knows very little about what happens there.

Most people only know that a war broke out in the coastal region, but they know little about what kind of war it is or who the enemy is. Everyone lives as if following a preset routine; although it looks prosperous, it lacks a bit of vitality.

Apart from a very few people, it is hard for Qin Ge to empathize. Therefore, most of the time Qin Ge and the shipgirls are in the wilderness; compared to those preset procedures, he prefers to watch these scenery.

Only then did he understand why recruiting commanders only occurs in coastal cities and not in the inland—the fundamental reason. Perhaps Yixian and others had tried before, but it had no effect, so it eventually came to nothing.

From Zang Yu they took a train all the way back to Hai Qing; Qin Ge and the others bid farewell to the dedicated vehicle they had been using. Because from here they will board a plane, flying to the city nearest the coast, where a vehicle dispatched by the Maritime Affairs Bureau will pick them up, and the final leg of the journey will be by car.

Upon arriving at the airport, they saw a scene different from the train station. Compared to that, there were fewer crowds, less noisy sound, and a greater sense of harmony and tranquility.

Of course, this also relates to the dedicated channel Qin Ge and they used. The aircraft waiting for them is not an ordinary passenger plane but a military aircraft specially allocated from the war zone, merely disguised as a passenger plane, yet all the cabin crew are trained military personnel.

After a simple greeting and bidding farewell to the attendants, Qin Ge led the shipgirls, whose eyes showed astonishment, onto this aircraft.

"What a huge plane—this is far larger than Enterprise's carrier aircraft." As soon as they boarded, Xin Ze Xi excitedly said beside Qin Ge, her eyes darting back and forth, wanting to closely examine the plane's interior structure.

"It is indeed large, and with so much spare space, if it were fully loaded with aerial bombs, its power would absolutely exceed the attack strength of our current carrier." Bisimai stroked her chin and spoke solemnly.

Just then, a female flight attendant in military uniform walked by; upon hearing Bisimai's words, she involuntarily twitched her eyes, which Qin Ge clearly saw as he turned his head.

Qin Ge couldn't help but smile, not explaining anything, but said to Bisimai, "The target is too large; to the Sirens' anti-air defenses, it amounts to an airborne arsenal. This is one reason why the air force and civil aviation are reluctant to have airports in coastal regions."

Perhaps we don't think the Sirens' anti-air capabilities are that strong, but for an ordinary large aircraft, they have no ability to retaliate.

Compared to the carrier shipgirls' carrier aircraft, it cannot shrink, cannot transform, cannot be freely controlled by one's will; if it is merely pure force, it can still be employed in battles lacking air defenses, but for the most part it will not.

"Indeed, as the commander said, this large transport aircraft is rather cumbersome and unsuitable for our combat conditions, but I believe it still has room for development."

For example, mixing carrier fighter jets to take off together, with the carrier fighters providing escort, and after being transformed via the Cube into ship equipment, it can be made to resemble ship equipment; at that point we would obtain a brand‑new bomber.

Moreover, once such a bomber carrying a large payload of bombs appears, it will inevitably boost the strength of our carrier shipgirls. While enhancing their power, it can also enable them to adapt to large‑scale, long‑range combat, making it unnecessary to constantly rush to the battlefield as we do now.

Just as the commander once said about the fighter jets of your era, conducting extreme‑range beyond‑visual‑strike attacks, perhaps we could also consider this direction. Bisimai explained.

Qin Ge blinked, pondering; what Bisimai said is not wrong—it is very reasonable. If we could truly convert such a huge transport into a bomber and adapt it for the shipgirls, the increase in maritime attack power would be far more than marginal, and perhaps later we could change the combat style of the carrier shipgirls.

"What Bisimai said, although feasible, requires that all carrier aircraft be applied onto the shipgirls' ship equipment. Just like such a huge aircraft, our flight decks are far insufficient for takeoff; such a gigantic plane must have its ship equipment replaced, and a corresponding flight deck built, before such carrier aircraft can take off."

Just like Bumblebee's B25—although it was the aircraft she once carried—but because the plane is too large, the number of takeoffs and the takeoff conditions are heavily restricted; thus this research is not merely about turning the aircraft into a carrier shipgirl's carrier aircraft, the key is to create ship equipment decks suited for such aircraft's takeoff and landing.

Thus the workload becomes enormous, not something that can be finished in a short time; it requires long‑term scientific research to effect the corresponding changes. Akagi said from the side, evidently having heard what Qin Ge and Bisimai discussed.

After listening, Qin Ge nodded and said, "Indeed, having a good aircraft is not enough; it must be equipped with the appropriate platform to achieve harmony, allowing the carrier shipgirls to freely operate the aircraft."

However, the point Bisimai raised is excellent and could serve as our next step in scientific research planning. After all, we cannot always rely on others' wisdom; we still have a long time ahead, and we might encounter enemies stronger than the Sirens—even then, the Sirens and Yujin's group could not help us; only ourselves can.

Therefore, self‑reliance and self‑development must be implemented. The Cube's energy comes from a higher dimension; it can carry our imagination, and we are responsible for researching it, continually developing it, and converting its power into ours.

"The commander is increasingly showing leadership poise, with feet on the ground and a far‑reaching vision; it seems I indeed haven't followed the wrong person." Wuzang smiled.

"That's natural; the commander is the strongest person I acknowledge." Xin Ze Xi laughed happily.

"What the commander said—then the new model carrier aircraft and the platform it needs shall be the next research topic. After we finish our research on the scientific shipgirls, we will select a group of people to conduct the study." Bisimai nodded.

Qin Ge chuckled, "Let's talk about this later; right now we are traveling, and during the journey, leaving behind some memorable experiences is what matters."

"I'm really looking forward to it, especially the moment of flying in the air! Just thinking about it makes one tremble." Weineituo laughed.

"Haha, not just you—look at those destroyers; they can hardly control themselves." Zuikaku laughed.

"Cough cough, Zuikaku, go tell them to sit properly—during takeoff they are prone to weightlessness; I don't want them rolling into a ball in the cabin." Qin Ge said helplessly.

"Oh, okay, commander."