Chapter 605: Modifying Fighter Jets for Pesticide Spraying

He Yuzhu and Liu Xiaohua drove into the Nanyuan aircraft dismantling zone.

On the vast, open ground, hundreds of various aircraft were parked densely.

He Yuzhu glanced over them, having no interest in those light fighter jets.

What he wanted were aircraft with the largest payload.

Walking a few hundred meters inside, several large-bodied aircraft came into view.

There were three B-25 medium bombers; the airframes were still relatively intact, just long unmaintained. Judging by the Blue Sky and White Sun liveries, they must have been left behind during the peaceful liberation of Beiping.

He Yuzhu walked straight over and reached out to pull open the cockpit canopy.

The instruments inside were complete; although the buttons, switches, and instrument panels were covered in a layer of dust, the structure was intact, with no signs of parts having been stripped.

He bent down and crawled into the fuselage; the bomb bay doors opened and closed smoothly, and the bomb racks, guide rails, and attachment points were all in perfect condition.

After checking three in a row, He Yuzhu already had a good idea.

These B-25s had no major issues with their airframes, wings, tail fins, or control systems; it was likely just engine aging.

He remained calm and asked silently in his heart: "System, scan and see if there are any B-25 parts in my space?"

The system responded immediately: "Host, you forgot, you have five intact TB-25J trainer aircraft sealed in your space, with all parts complete and the engines in perfect condition."

He Yuzhu's heart blossomed with joy instantly.

"Xiaohua," He Yuzhu pointed at the three B-25s, then pointed at several incomplete B-29 wrecks in the distance, "I've decided, I want all of these. Help me handle the paperwork, and I also need the airport to provide me with a large hangar, the more remote the better, preferably with basic maintenance equipment."

Liu Xiaohua was stunned and asked: "Buddy, let me tell you, the engines on these three B-25s must be completely rotten, otherwise they wouldn't be parked here. And those B-29 wrecks were all salvaged from the Korean War; they are too old, even an immortal couldn't fix them!"

He Yuzhu smiled faintly: "Don't worry about how I do it; give me two weeks, and I can make these four aircraft fly."

Liu Xiaohua thought about it and felt relieved. He Yuzhu was able to get the U-2 aircraft and blueprints back, so how could he not be able to fix these planes?

The two returned to the guesthouse and explained the situation to Secretary Liu. Secretary Liu and Liu Xiaohua made a few calls to the relevant departments together, and the matter was settled.

The next day, the three B-25s and several B-29 wrecks were slowly towed by heavy trailers into a remote, spare maintenance hangar at Nanyuan Airport.

The location was hidden, and once the doors were closed, no one could get in.

He Yuzhu did not call for any workers.

He stood alone in the hangar, looking at the pile of scrap metal, and after confirming no one was around, he moved his mind, and the three aged B-25s and the B-29s all disappeared.

Replacing them were the three TB-25Js and one semi-new B-29 bomber he had in storage.

Over the next few days, He Yuzhu brought in 20 of the most trusted technical backbones from the Tractor Factory.

He Yuzhu only had them responsible for welding and installing the pesticide spraying equipment—large-capacity chemical tanks, high-pressure pump pipelines, spray discs under the wings, and flow control valves.

For this group of backbones who could build diesel engines and modify agricultural machinery, these things were not difficult.

As for He Yuzhu himself, he dove headfirst into the aircraft modification.

He stripped away all the unnecessary turrets, armor, machine gun mounts, and bomb sights from the B-29, keeping only the most basic flight systems to free up a large amount of space for installing giant chemical tanks.

He also removed the unnecessary training seats inside the three TB-25J trainers, keeping only the core flight instruments to make the aircraft lighter and more fuel-efficient, specifically adapted for low-altitude, low-speed spraying operations.

More than twenty people ate and lived in the hangar, with various trucks transporting materials coming in and out; no one knew what was actually happening inside.

He Yuzhu's "stealing the beams and replacing them with pillars" was done very tightly; those who came in to install the spraying equipment didn't know what the planes looked like before, and when the airport staff came in, they felt that it was these 20-plus people who had repaired the old planes into their current state.

Ten days later, He Yuzhu had already finished calibrating all the equipment.

He personally led the workers to polish off the old paint, removing all symbols and markings from the four aircraft, and painted them entirely in silver-gray with "Drought Relief and Disaster Rescue" logos.

Fourteen days later, after He Yuzhu and the workers had finished tidying up all four aircraft, he invited Secretary Liu to Nanyuan Airport; even this leader, known for his composure, was stunned.

Four massive aircraft were neatly lined up beside the runway.

Three B-25s and one B-29, their airframes gleaming, liveries uniform, with spray pipelines, chemical tanks, and spray discs all installed in place, neat and orderly, looking just like brand-new aircraft.

"Little He... you, you did this..." Secretary Liu's voice trembled with excitement, "You really brought these pieces of scrap back to life?"

He Yuzhu smiled and said: "Leader, these planes look okay, and they work for civilian use, but as bombers, they are still a bit old. The pesticide spraying devices have been calibrated, and low-altitude spraying and flow control have all been tested, it's just... having the planes is one thing, but we still need people who can fly them."

Secretary Liu laughed heartily, full of confidence: "Don't worry about that! Ever since you told me the models of the aircraft you were modifying, I've been contacting our pilots. Our Air Force Tu-4 crew has been on standby for a long time!"

"Isn't the Tu-4 a Soviet Union aircraft? Can they fly a B-29?"

Secretary Liu smiled and whispered: "The Su Guo Tu-4 was copied from the B-29; the piloting, operation, and flight characteristics are almost identical, so the pilots can fly them as soon as they get in! The B-25 is even less difficult; any veteran pilot can handle it."

He Yuzhu breathed a sigh of relief: "Then I am completely at ease."

Next was the time for the airport's Air Force maintenance team to come in for acceptance.

The first day was a comprehensive inspection, the second day was ground taxiing tests, and the third day was test flights by test pilots.

All three days of acceptance passed; takeoff was authorized!

On the fourth day, the four large aircraft were already parked steadily on the runway, waiting for takeoff.

A team of Air Force crew members in flight suits ran over quickly, stood at attention, and reported to Secretary Liu: "Tu-4 flight crew, Third Team, all present, please give instructions!"

"Depart!" said Secretary Liu.

Soon, the cockpit canopies closed one after another.

The four silver-gray disaster relief aircraft started their engines in sequence.

The huge roar made the ground tremble slightly, and the propellers kicked up a gale, causing everyone to subconsciously take half a step back.

Liu Xiaohua stood beside He Yuzhu, gave a thumbs up, and said: "Less than twenty days... four large aircraft... you aren't repairing planes, you're transforming them..."

He Yuzhu smiled: "The B-25s didn't have any major issues to begin with, and the B-29 just lacked engines and parts, which I happened to have."

Under everyone's gaze, the four aircraft slowly taxied onto the runway, accelerated, lifted their noses, and took off, soaring into the blue sky one by one.

Watching the planes fly steadily toward the Huabei locust plague area, everyone present let out a long sigh of relief.

Secretary Liu patted He Yuzhu on the shoulder, his tone full of anticipation: "Little He, since you have the skill to repair planes... can you repair a few more transport planes for me? Disaster relief is most in need of these big guys."

He Yuzhu scratched his head and said: "Leader, I have to see if the dismantling factory has any old planes first, right? Otherwise, I can't just conjure them up!"

Liu Xiaohua listened from the side with bright eyes, a knowing, mischievous smile appearing on his face.