In the heavy four project using the manufacturing technology demonstration machine for comparative test flight, this is the F-22 fighter project used in the development method, the same is also the way used by the US Air Force LWF project, and in the United States, this development method is called: prototype test flight.

The LWF project actually refers to the Pentagon's light fighter program, which was the most close to the mafia's aircraft developed by the U.S. aviation community at that time under the operation of the fighter, and here, the LWF project is actually the F-16 fighter program of the year.

Then people who know the LWF project plan must also know that the project derived another YF-17 fighter, a aircraft that is compared with the YF-16, and then participated in the project failure to be seen by the Navy to develop into F-18, and then there is another series of stories.

Prototype comparison test flight, as the name suggests is to develop at least two models of prototype, through the prototype test flight data comparison, and then a comprehensive comprehensive consideration of the score, so as to maximize the ability to obtain the competition model of their respective advantages and disadvantages data, in order to help the army choose the most suitable for their own fighter model.

From the final results of the LWF project, the final is indeed to give full play to the maximum effect of the development method, and the project results have also been maximized by the US military, which can be described as a typical example of high investment-high return.

So relatively speaking, although the prototype compared to the test flight benefits a lot, but the project cost is absolutely a lot, in the development of light fighter this is not a complex fighter, it seems to be able to accept, after all, it was in the Soviet attack on the United States and the United States, the United States did not dare to save this small money.

But who knows how the F-15 fighter was developed before the F-16?It is necessary to know that the F15 fighter program was also a comprehensive program bidding for the entire US aviation industry, and the companies participating in the bidding were no less than the companies that later participated in the ATF project bidding.

A strange question is coming, why did not hear a plane that compared with the F-15 prototype test flight, you know that there was no so-called YF-14 also did not have the number of YF-16?

At this time, it is necessary to mention another military fighter development method: "validation confirmation" mode, the so-called verification confirmation mode, which means that the project does not need to manufacture a prototype for comparative test flights, the model only needs to compete for all the test work except the prototype test flight.

The project's avionics equipment is tested on the simulator; the advantages and disadvantages of the pneumatic design are tested through the wind tunnel; the radar reflection cross-sectional area is obtained through the prescribed test method; the manufacturer also manufactures a full-scale model for the necessary evaluation and so on.

The entire design pattern is to test the design of the subsystem through various methods, but will not manufacture prototypes for comparative test flights, and only manufacturers that have won the confirmed mode can finally be allowed to enter the full-scale development stage, so as to create prototypes for test flights.

The F-15 fighter is actually designed and manufactured using a verification confirmation model, and the fact shows that the final project bidding scheme is indeed excellent, which also strongly shows the correctness of the model.

The entire system of heavy fighters is extremely complex and difficult to design, the US Air Force did not have enough funds to force, and Congress even wanted to cut the F15, and then the Navy's saltwater chicken was used by the Air Force, so various reasons led to the F-15 project did not use the prototype to compare test flights.

Later, with the success of the F-15, the U.S. military found that heavy-duty aircraft can also be developed in this way, so in the ATF project, in fact, the U.S. military also initially intended to let the ATF project continue the previous F-15 mode, and eventually may not have YF-23 aircraft.

However, the ATF project competition is the most intense time is also the eve of the Cold War dawn, in 1985, the U.S. military is holding the idea of preferring to spend more money to develop the best fighter to ensure the advantages of the intergenerational, so the project finally chose the LWF project prototype for comparative test flight mode, so that YF22 and YF23 two fighters.

Later, when the JSF Joint Strike Fighter was completed, it was entirely because the American aviation industry had a large number of mergers at that time, leaving three companies with the ability to develop military fighters, and the Noger's program of the three was obviously unreliable.

So the final bid was for only two companies, which spent a little more money to allow both companies to try to build prototypes to test flights, which would also allow the only remaining U.S. military fighter companies to master the technology of four generations.

When the United States developed five standby aircraft, it took the prototype compared to the test flight route, but the Republic really had to apply the end of the game.It is necessary to know that the development of four generations of heavy fighters is really not cheap at all, even if it is just the development of prototype test flights, this is also a big expense.

Do not know that after the completion of the bidding of the four major projects of the previous republic, the alliance leader in order to raise funds for the northeast side to complete the development of the 31 program, it is really smashing the pot to sell iron, it is to sell all the car business of AVIC industry to reluctantly put together funds for the development of the prototype, but after the last 31 program of the first prototype, is not still facing the embarrassing situation of no money?

What is the cost-burning place of the prototype compared to the test flight compared to the verification confirmation?

First of all, you need to complete the detailed design of the aircraft airframe, the need for the structural performance of the aircraft to analyze and test, the design and analysis after the completion of a variety of parts processing and manufacturing, and the first processing and manufacturing of the aircraft requires a lot of effort and resources in the process, and the aircraft to fly first need to have a static test machine static test, only after all these are completed, it is possible to carry out comparative test flights.

And the above all kinds are extremely expensive, the heavy four projects really want to play like this, Yang Hui to ensure that the government on the side of the money bag directly will be scolded, if forced to do so, then the three project programs may be able to get some funds, but in the end certainly no one is enough.

In contrast, in Yang Hui's view, it is better to go directly to the verification and confirmation mode, so that the cost is relatively small, the only drawback is that the failed bidder will not be able to develop the stealth fighter in this lifetime, and even may be directly squeezed out of the military fighter industry.

Now the pros and cons of both models are obvious, one is to threaten the current progress of the development of the fourth major project, and the other is to directly threaten the future development capability of military fighters in the whole Republic, both of which are destructive.