Chapter 455: Popod
Dominic came by train, although Steed repeatedly said: "I hope to know the answer quickly, it is very important for 'Saint Etienne'!"
But after hesitating for a long time, Dominic finally chose the train.
This is not only because Dominic has not psychologically accepted airplanes as a means of transportation, but also because he doesn't like the feeling of being unstable in the sky.
He felt safe only when he had his feet on solid ground and felt the pistol between his ribs.
Paris is about 350 kilometers away from Antwerp, and the journey took a full 13 hours, including an entire night on the train, as we had to make way for the military train along the way.
When the car stopped in front of the gate of Charles' headquarters, Dominic was still yawning.
After being allowed in, he suddenly became nervous while carrying the box.
This submachine gun was not developed entirely according to Charles' ideas, so I don't know if there will be any problems.
"Hey, Colonel." Charles came to the door and greeted him warmly. He shook hands with Dominic and asked, "Have you had breakfast?"
Dominic, who was not good at speaking, was shocked: "No, no, General. But it doesn't matter, I, I have no appetite, and I'm not hungry."
"That won't do." Charles immediately asked the orderly to prepare food, and turned to Dominic and said, "Although there is no delicacy here, there is no shortage of food."
Charles brought Dominic into the conference room. It would be better if fewer people knew about the new equipment, as it would have a great impact on future wars.
The airport conference room was a bit messy. The wall on the runway side was burnt black and had not been painted yet. There was a slight burnt smell in the room.
"Sorry." Charles sat down on the chair and said to Dominic, who was eating bread with hot milk, "There was a large-scale battle here not long ago."
"I heard about it." Dominic nodded and answered vaguely while eating his food, with some envy in his eyes: "You launched a surprise attack at night and recaptured Antwerp in just a few hours. It was a great battle, General. Everyone is talking about this battle, and so are the newspapers. It's still the same after so many days."
Ciel accepted the compliment with a small smile.
The battle started in Cambrai and ended in Antwerp. The fighting one day before and after has been regarded as a classic and compiled into a textbook and sent to the Saint-Cyr Military Academy, requiring every student to read and discuss it.
"Is that a new submachine gun?" Charles turned his eyes to the gun box that Dominic brought.
"Yes, yes, General." Dominic stuffed the remaining bread into his mouth, took the gun box and pushed it in front of Charles, hesitating for a few seconds.
Under Charles's puzzled gaze, he finally mustered up the courage to open it.
When Charles saw the submachine gun, he exclaimed "Huh" and looked surprised.
He thought he would see MP18, but what he saw was the Soviet PPD, which was developed around 1934. He didn't expect that Dominica would develop it now, nearly 20 years ahead of schedule.
(The above pictures show the PPD, PPSH, and PPS submachine guns, which are translated into Chinese as Popo De, Popo Sha, and Popo Si, respectively. They were equipped by the Soviet Army before, during, and in the late stages of World War II. The first two are very similar, and the biggest difference in appearance is the handguard. The Popo De handguard is divided into two sections, and the parts need to be milled, which does not allow for mass production. The PPS gun body and handguard are integrated, and the parts are stamped, which can be mass-produced in a short time.)
"I, I know, General." Dominic looked at Charles nervously, speaking incoherently:
"You mentioned earlier about moving the magazine to the side, but that would be a problem combined with its large capacity drum."
"You said that the ammunition capacity of a submachine gun is important, so I increased the ammunition capacity as much as possible."
"But after loading 71 rounds, the drum weighs 3.6 kilograms, and it doesn't seem appropriate to install it on the side."
"So I..."
Dominic's words were incoherent, but Charles understood.
The drum magazine was too heavy after being loaded with 71 rounds of bullets, and designing it on the side would make the gun body unbalanced, so it had to be changed to be directly below.
Charles picked up the drum and weighed it. It was indeed quite heavy.
"That's good, Colonel." Charles praised. "Better than I thought."
This is the truth. PPD is benchmarked against the German MP38 and is of course more advanced than MP18.
"Yes, is that so?" Dominic finally relaxed, looking relieved. "I was also worried that the battlefield might require the magazine to be placed on the side because of the high rifling."
"Although this is indeed a problem, it can be tolerated if the ammunition capacity is 71 rounds." Charles took the gun and took a look. Without testing the gun or asking for specific data, he directly ordered: "Mass production immediately. I may need 200 guns next month."
"Yes, General." Dominic spoke fluently again.
After a pause, Dominic asked hesitantly, "General, there is something I should not ask, but my father is deeply disturbed by this."
"Steed?" Charles looked at Dominic in confusion: "Uneasy?"
"Yes."
"Why?" Charles asked, and the next second he understood: "Is it because I cooperate with FN?"
"Yes." Dominic nodded. "We know that this is your freedom, General. But after all, FN is also an arsenal that produces light weapons, and its strength is quite impressive."
Steed was worried that if Charles had FN, would it no longer need "Saint-Etienne"?
Charles laughed: "Tell him to rest assured. The most trustworthy people in the military industry are always our own people."
The military industry has a strong national nature. Although private enterprises have considerable freedom, just as Albert I easily controls FN, governments of various countries will have varying degrees of control over military-industrial enterprises.
One day when France and Belgium go to war, Charles and FN will certainly become opponents, there is no doubt that this cannot be changed.
Dominic thought so too: "He actually thought so, but he still wanted to confirm it with you. With your words, he can rest assured."
This is because of concern.
Charles didn't say much about this. He told the orderly outside the door, and soon two shotguns were delivered to the conference room.
"These are two shotguns produced by FN." Charles raised his head towards them: "The one with a long barrel is the Browning A5, and the one with a short barrel is the Winchester 1897."
"I know." Dominic picked up one of them and tried it out: "Our company has studied this kind of gun, but..."
Dominic looked up at Charles, his eyes somewhat puzzled: "We all agree that this kind of gun has a short range and is only suitable for hunting. What the general means is..."
"Combine the advantages of these two guns," said Charles. "Shorten the barrel of the Browning A5 and add a bayonet mount."
Dominic said nothing.
These two improvements are not difficult, and can even be said to be simple.
However, it is obviously converted into a military version to be equipped to the army. Is it really suitable for equipping the army?
(End of this chapter)
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