Chapter 398: A Wonderful Vision of the Future

At the airship landing site in Valladolid, newspaper reporters from various European countries were already eagerly awaiting the airships.

They looked toward the sky impatiently; even though the blue sky was devoid of any objects, it could not dampen their enthusiasm for the airships in the slightest.

It could not be helped; for everyone, the airships currently undergoing trials were a brand-new and astonishing invention.

Before the birth of the airship, no object had ever been able to carry people into the sky, let alone fly for several hours or cover distances of dozens of kilometers.

The current airships had achieved this and were still being continuously improved, something no European could have imagined before their inception.

The current airships represented a massive change in the future of European life, as people could choose airships as a mode of transportation; this was the reason for the reporters' excitement.

Because the straight-line distance between Madrid and Valladolid was 162 kilometers, even if the airship could successfully complete this test, it would be impossible to reach Valladolid in just a few short hours.

The reporters gathered at the landing site had long been prepared for a long wait; once they spotted a black dot in the sky resembling an airship, they would frantically raise their cameras to snap a few photos first.

Even if it were eventually determined that the black dot was merely a bird, the reporters would still be tireless in their efforts. This was because they were not just recording a simple photograph, but a significant chapter in the history of humanity taking to the skies.

Just as the reporters were heatedly discussing when the airship would arrive in Valladolid, a large black dot suddenly appeared in the distance.

"An airship, it's an airship, the airship is here!" Following the surprised cheer of a reporter from Germany, the reporters turned their gazes toward the large black dot in the distant sky.

That was right, it was undoubtedly an airship.

This large black dot could not be an animal like a bird; the only possibility was the airship rushing toward Valladolid.

As the airship gradually drew closer, some reporters were able to make out its shape using binoculars. Those who did not carry binoculars had to wait for the airship to get closer and closer before they could clearly see its size and appearance.

While the reporters cheered in excitement, the experimental personnel at the landing site were already preparing the relevant guidance work.

After all, the airship was flying in the sky; to ensure it landed smoothly, the pilots had to be guided to clarify the landing location.

The good news was that the sky was quite clear at this time, with neither clouds nor wind, making for a perfect landing environment.

Under the guidance of the personnel at the landing site, the airship began to descend slowly onto the designated area.

The reporters watching from the sidelines could not wait to take photos, recording this important moment in human history with excitement on their faces.

The airship landed smoothly on the ground, which also meant that this flight experiment was a complete success. For these gathered reporters, they had personally recorded a major news story and could not wait to write their drafts, take the manuscripts and photos back to their countries, and then rush to print them to sell newspapers and make a fortune.

As for Spain, such a successful airship test would not only fulfill the plan of Carlos but also temporarily replace airplanes as a reliable mode of aerial transportation.

The success of the airplane and airship flight tests was only one piece of good news for Spain; another was the progress of the Water Tank Project team.

The Sky Project team was responsible for developing airplanes, while the Water Tank Project team was responsible for developing tanks.

Previously, the development of tanks had been hindered because the power provided by the propulsion system was insufficient.

At that time, the tanks were merely cars with a thin layer of iron plating added, and then equipped with a machine gun.

Such vehicles could not even mount artillery, because the massive recoil would cause problems with the connection between the artillery and the vehicle, potentially even causing the entire vehicle to fall apart.

Even if the experts of the Water Tank Project team wanted to improve the recoil issue of the artillery, they could not modify the existing tanks.

There was no way around it; due to the limitations of the power, the current iron-plated tanks could not have anything else added. Otherwise, the tank's power system would simply go on strike, and by then, let alone being deployed to the battlefield, the tank would struggle even to run.

After establishing the National Power Laboratory, Carlos ordered the chief engineer of the National Power Laboratory, Diesel, to be responsible for developing a more powerful diesel engine to solve the biggest current trouble for the tank project.

It had to be admitted that Diesel's research and development of diesel engines was indeed leading the world. In less than two months, Diesel had manufactured a more perfect diesel engine based on the materials and related equipment that had been shipped in.

In the following months, Diesel continuously improved the existing diesel engine, eventually increasing its power by nearly double.

A diesel engine with more powerful output was clearly a more suitable choice for a tank engine.

Relying on the diesel engine provided by the National Power Laboratory, the Water Tank Project team soon began the improvement and research of the tanks.

With a more powerful engine, the project team could safely make various additions and subtractions to the tanks.

For example, the tank's armor protection, which was originally just a thin layer of iron, immediately became ultra-thick steel armor covering all sides after having the new engine.

Even with the tank's own weight having doubled, the tank's average speed could still maintain 15 kilometers per hour or even faster, which was clearly quite good news.

Although a speed of 15 kilometers per hour was not fast, tanks did not need to compete in speed; what they needed to compete in was the ability to cross obstacles and conduct siege warfare.

Currently, car tires were all rubber; the advantage of this was that the grip was relatively strong, allowing cars to have higher speeds.

However, rubber was clearly not suitable for the battlefield. Once it encountered sharp objects, the rubber tires would be damaged, which would severely destroy the tank's mobility.

To prevent the tank from falling into the embarrassing situation of being unable to move due to damaged tires like a car, the Water Tank Project team specifically developed iron tracks for the tank.

Although these tracks would make the tank's speed far inferior to a car, for a tank going to the battlefield, speed was the least important thing.

With these iron tracks, the tank could easily cross trenches and other obstacles. Soldiers could also safely hide inside the tank and attack the enemy with the machine guns or artillery mounted on it.

Currently, according to the research progress of the Water Tank Project team, the first true tank was expected to be unveiled within this year, which also meant that Spain was about to welcome its own tank force.

Of course, even with improvements in power, the current tanks still had various problems.