Spark

While Chen Nian was meeting He Hongwen, at Kadena Air Force Base, Leon was sitting on an office chair, and in front of him were two specially summoned Lyons and Weiss.

He took out three cigars from the drawer, cut off the ends of the cigars thoughtfully, and handed them to the two of them respectively.

"The weather in Kadena is still as bad as ever. I really can't stand the temperature here. It will be January soon, and the temperature is still 20 degrees Celsius. I really miss the cold wind of the Arctic."

Lyons and the two of them looked at each other. They had heard that the newly transferred commander had a strange temper, and they were always a little uneasy.

Seeing him handing him a cigar kindly just now, he had already relaxed a little, but unexpectedly, a word from the other party made them nervous again.

Isn't Kadena's climate like spring all year round?

What kind of person would say that he misses the cold wind of the Arctic?

Perhaps what he misses is not the arctic winds but the days when he faced off with a country's underwater ghost in Alaska.

Thinking of this, Lyons gave a dry laugh and replied:

"Maybe it's a different experience, but we've never been in the frigid climate, I'm an old partner with Wes, transferred here from New Mexico, it seems to be hot all the time"

"There's a chance, lads, trust me, this is just the beginning for you."

Leon waved his hand boldly, lit the cigar in his mouth, and then his expression became serious.

"Okay, I think that's about the end of the session about the weather."

"Next, I want to ask you something. I hope you will tell me everything you know without reservation, understand?"

The two nodded quickly. In fact, since they walked into this office, they knew what kind of "inquiry" they would face.

Leon smiled with satisfaction, then he put down his cigar and asked:

"On December 22, the two of you drove an EP-3E to the vicinity of the target location and completed an unconventional reconnaissance there, right?"

"That's right, we've received instructions to get as close to the coastline as possible, so..."

"Don't say unnecessary words, just answer my question!"

Lyon interrupted a little impatiently, and continued to ask:

"During the approach, how many times have you encountered harassment in total? What configuration are those fighter jets that harassed you? Are there any weapons mounted? "

"These questions, I want you to answer me in chronological order, accurate to every second."

"Also, you have to tell me how you felt at the time. I need to rely on your information to judge how tough the other party is, understand?"

"Understood, sir!"

Lyons and the two answered loudly, and then a long "interrogation" began.

The interrogation lasted a full three hours and, as Leon said, he really asked for all the details.

When the interrogation progressed to the second half, Lyons also began to understand.

It wasn't that the other party couldn't understand the flight log, nor was he deliberately putting pressure on himself, but was doing some kind of special profile.

He wants to restore the scene at that time in his mind through a lot of details from the first perspective, so as to support his judgment.

This kind of ability and this kind of method opened the eyes of the two people who were interrogated.

To be able to achieve this position at the age of 40 is really not an ordinary person

By the end, the two are in it too, and even when Leon finally declares that "the conversation is over," there is still something left to say.

"Is that all right? If we need more information, we can go back and think about it."

Weiss spoke.

"No need, these are enough."

Leon picked up the extinguished cigar, which he had only smoked from the beginning to the end, and relit it, then waved his hand to signal the two to leave.

And after they walked out of the office, he showed a satisfied smile.

After a while, a young officer opened the door and walked in.

And he was the "herald" who delivered the order from Washington to Lyon last time, Connett.

"It's over? How's the situation?"

His rank was much lower than Leon's, but he seemed unrestrained in front of him.

"Yes, it's over."

"As for the situation...it's hard to draw conclusions yet, but in short, the Christmas Eve action gave me more sense of security."

"Sense of security? Why?"

Connet asked suspiciously.

"Certainly a sense of peaceful security."

"Judging from the current situation, the other party definitely does not intend to have a head-on conflict with us, and even a small friction does not want to happen."

"Their pilots strictly abide by international regulations, and they don't even dare to take high-risk evacuation actions. Instead, they cautiously keep a distance from us. The previous rumors about the scalpel in the Barents Sea should be rumors."

"Plus, they have shown extreme restraint in our actions."

"When the EP-3E approached the cordon, our people did receive a stern warning, but they did not turn on the fire control radar from the beginning to the end"

"Of course, no fire was fired."

"Maybe it's because we didn't cross that line?"

Connet interjected.

"No, of course not. I believe that even if we stray into their airspace for various reasons, as long as we don't show obvious priority, they will never use force."

"On the one hand, it is because our two countries still maintain friendly relations, on the other hand."

"Now they really can't fight such a battle."

"I still say the same thing, what do they have in their hands? What do they rely on to fight? Do they rely on toy fighter jets? Or rely on those small fishing boats on the sea?"

"At first, I thought that they might fight hard when their equipment was backward, but now it seems that they have lost even such courage."

"So, that's my sense of security."

"Against an opponent who is behind and weak, we will always have more space."

After listening to his words, Connet nodded first, and then said cautiously:

"They're not necessarily backward."

"According to our intelligence, the AL-31FN program was terminated with the utmost determination."

"It is reported that Huaxia has launched a new project code-named 'Project 22', which seems to be related to the new aviation development."

"Project 22? You can't tell anything from the name. Can't you dig deeper?"

Connet smiled helplessly and replied:

"It's not easy to get the name alone. To know the content, we may need a few years."

"However, all kinds of evidence show that this is indeed an aviation development project, but the specific content cannot be obtained."

"The Huaxia people who engage in aviation development are really whimsical. Their leadership will actually pass such a plan?"

Leon asked sarcastically.

"If it didn't pass, the project wouldn't exist."

"Of course, your opinion is correct. When the AL-31FN import project was suspended, most experts and scholars in China opposed the self-developed engine. There was even a senior expert who was interviewed and analyzed the current situation. The current state of China's technology explains why it is not possible to engage in aviation development now."

"Do you know what's interesting?"

Connette made a fool of himself, and Leon said impatiently:

"I don't know, tell me!"

"Interestingly, this expert's opinion is very similar to the opinion of a college student from a traditional Chinese military university we found on the Internet."

"From the time point of view, the expert should have seen the college student's post by chance, and then moved it directly to the TV."

".Such a person is also an expert?"

Leon asked in disbelief.

"Of course, and he is a highly prestigious aircraft expert in China."

"That is to say, although he copied the opinions of college students, at least this opinion is credible?"

"That's right."

Connaught nodded.

"So what's the conclusion? Can you finish the sentence in one sitting?!"

Connet shook his head helplessly, and said:

"The conclusion is actually very simple."

"Based on all aspects of information, we can basically confirm that the suspension of AL-31FN is indeed because Huaxia has launched a new project."

"This project must be based on some kind of technological breakthrough."

"However, with China's current level of basic scientific research, a single breakthrough cannot support the complete implementation of a project."

"So, the product of this project may end up being a long tug of war like WS-10."

"Of course, it won't take that long."

"Maybe, within five years, they will come up with a finished product - this is their most optimistic estimate. Their own industry generally believes that this process will take more than 10 years."

Leon nodded, all he wanted to hear was this number.

"Ten years, I'm starting to get old at that time."

"I wish they were quicker, that would be interesting."

Connet smiled and said casually:

"I only hope that there are more experts who go to the TV to expose their weaknesses like this. Although I can't completely believe it, the information they revealed has indeed saved us a lot of trouble."