Fangyuan Group shipyard in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Fang Lang was leading a team to inspect the shipyard owned by his family. With the strong support of Global Shipbuilding of the United States, this relatively new shipbuilding company directly became the largest shipyard in Brazil and even in South America.
It has nearly 30,000 professional shipbuilding workers, most of whom are skilled immigrants of German and Italian descent from Europe and the United States, as well as a large number of Chinese immigrants and native Brazilians.
The company mainly produces 10,000-ton container ships, and there are currently 10 container ships being built on the slipway at the same time. The production orders have been scheduled for five years in the future.
Due to the advancement of welding technology, Fangyuan Group adopted the most common segmented shipbuilding method in later generations, so the shipbuilding speed was very fast. Although it could not be compared with the Victory ship during the American war, it only took about two months to launch a ship.
This has reached the world's advanced level in this era. Today, Fang Lang brought a group of officers and soldiers from the aircraft carrier formation to visit, of course, they were not here to visit these 10,000-ton container ships.
"Boss, this is the 500-ton inland patrol boat we designed and built according to your requirements. It is 56 meters long, 9 meters wide, has a draft of 1.5 meters, and an armor thickness of 35 mm.
It is equipped with three Mercedes-Benz diesel engines with 3,900 horsepower and a maximum speed of 22 knots.
The front and rear are equipped with a 105mm gun, a 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft gun, and four 12.7mm heavy machine guns.
...
...
The shipyard's general manager, Osman Aragon, pointed to an armed inland patrol boat that looked very small next to the many 10,000-ton cargo ships on the slipway and introduced it to Fang Lang.
Fang Lang carefully looked at the brand new inland patrol boat in the dock, and asked the general manager of the shipyard with interest:
"Oh! Mercedes diesel engine? Is it produced by the Mercedes factory in Brazil?"
As the general manager of the shipyard, Osman Aragon knew very well that the Mercedes-Benz factory in Brazil was originally introduced by the boss in front of him, so he certainly knew what the other party was concerned about. He nodded and replied:
"Yes, it comes from the Mercedes-Benz plant in Brazil, which is a joint venture between our group and Mercedes-Benz. Each engine has a horsepower of 1,300. There are three engines installed, and a three-axle layout is adopted."
Fang Lang nodded with satisfaction after hearing this, and said to De La Torre and other officers around him:
"Everyone, go up and take a look. This can be regarded as the first modern warship built independently by Brazil."
Then he turned to Uthman Aragorn and asked:
"By the way, how far can this ship cruise? Don't let this turn out to be a short-legged general."
Osman Aragorn, who was standing by, smiled and said:
"Please rest assured, Boss. This ship was designed and built completely according to your requirements. It has a cruising range of 2,000 nautical miles. Although it is less than half of the entire Amazon River, it is enough to be used as a standing patrol force."
Those who came with Fang Lang were all naval officers from the aircraft carrier fleet. Of course, they looked down on this small boat that could not even be called a warship.
But this is the first armed patrol boat produced independently by Brazil! Looking at the surrounding 10,000-ton ships, with the experience of designing and manufacturing patrol boats, can we start producing and building larger tonnage warships soon?
Although building patrol boats and building warships are two different things, it cannot stop everyone's inner expectations!
Therefore, everyone showed great enthusiasm for visiting this small patrol boat, climbing up and down, in and out, pointing and talking, it was very lively.
Seeing that everyone was watching excitedly, Fang Lang also walked over to take a closer look before asking Ousmane Aragorn:
“When can we launch the voyage?”
"Of course it can be used at any time. In fact, we have already done tests. It is very stable when firing while moving, and it definitely meets the design requirements."
Uthman Aragorn answered immediately without hesitation.
Hearing this, Fang Lang nodded and said to him:
"Then let's give it a try. This afternoon, General Leta from the Defense Forces Logistics Department will come to our factory to inspect this inland patrol boat. Make sure nothing goes wrong then.
If the boat performs well, we may receive a firm order soon.”
Osman Aragon looked at Fang Lang in surprise and said:
"Boss, is that true? But the military didn't commission us to develop it! Can the inland patrol boat we designed according to our own ideas meet the military's requirements?"
Fang Lang smiled and patted the other person's arm and said:
"Haha... Don't worry! It doesn't matter whether the military has approved the project or not. The key is that the military is in urgent need of such a weapon, and we happen to have one. Isn't this a perfect match?
As for whether it is suitable, there is no need to worry, because I personally participated in the design and I have confidence in it. "
In fact, as early as when the Eddie brothers declared rebellion in the town of Bittencourt, Fang Lang had already determined that the Brazilian military must be in urgent need of an inland patrol boat that could maintain stability in the Amazon River and strike the enemy.
Otherwise, the few rusty old antiques from pre-World War I that the Brazilian Navy currently has on the Amazon River would simply not be able to meet the needs of the Brazilian military.
If things go wrong, the next time they want to launch an attack, the sailors responsible for the security of the Amazon River basin may rebel, because asking them to drive such warships to fight the enemy will definitely cause strong dissatisfaction.
In addition, with Fang Lang's current influence in the Brazilian military and his relationship with General Letta, Fang Lang is not worried at all that the Brazilian military will not buy into it.
With his boss's guarantee, Osman Aragon smiled happily and patted his chest to assure:
"Haha...Boss, don't worry! I'll have someone go in right away and make sure nothing goes wrong."
After saying this, he gave instructions to a staff member who was following him.
At the same time, Fang Lang said to his Chief of Staff De La Torre:
"How does it feel?"
De La Torre, who was studying the stern engine, looked up at Fang Lang and said with a smile:
"Boss, I can't see any problem now. We still have to try it in the water to know, but I think this guy is good."
As he said this, he patted the Mercedes diesel engine next to him.
Fang Lang knew that the other party was a veteran navy man and had his own criteria for judging the quality of ships. However, this type of inland patrol boat was obviously the first time he had come into contact with it and he was unable to give an accurate evaluation.
But he was very satisfied with the three 1,300-horsepower engines on the boat.
"Then you will take people up there to test it and see if it can meet the design standards. The inspection standards can be set higher, after all, this is the first warship produced in Brazil.
If this inland patrol boat can meet our requirements, I will ask them to start trial-producing a destroyer as the Brazilian Navy still has a huge shortage of destroyers.
De La Torre nodded when he heard this, stroked the cold hull of the patrol boat with his hand, and said seriously:
"No problem, boss, please rest assured, we are professionals."
Hearing this, Fang Lang smiled and nodded, then continued to ask Ousmane Aragorn:
"What about a small fast patrol boat?"
If you want to move freely in the complex Amazon jungle, it is obviously not enough to rely on a patrol boat of about 500 tons. After all, many small waterways are obviously not suitable for the entry of such ships. If you are not careful, they will run aground, or lose maneuverability and be pinned to the ground.
Therefore, when designing patrol boats, Fang Lang designed two types of patrol boats. One is a 500-ton inland patrol boat, which is mainly used on the main channel of the Amazon River and can attack local ships remotely through artillery.
Or provide fire support to the army through 105mm artillery. After all, it is basically an impossible task to transport a 105mm howitzer into the jungle.
There is obviously no problem in installing it on a ship to provide long-range fire support.
However, if the patrol boat cannot enter the jungle, it will certainly not be able to effectively kill the enemy hiding in the jungle. Then this 500-ton patrol boat may only be able to patrol the main river channel and limit the range of activities of enemy ships. In the end, it will become a useless product that is tasteless to eat and a pity to throw away.
In this case, the emergence of small and fast patrol boats becomes an inevitable option. If they cooperate with the 500-ton patrol boats, the enemy will have nowhere to hide.
Osman Aragon, who was excited about the chance to win the Brazilian military order, felt a flash of embarrassment on his face after hearing Fang Lang's words. He spoke slowly with a little hesitation:
"Boss, this... We don't have much experience in manufacturing this kind of small speedboat, although we have built a prototype.
However, the pump-jet engine you requested cannot meet your requirements for the time being. Therefore, in order to complete the trial production task within the time you required, we still use propeller technology.
Please rest assured that we have organized manpower to tackle the pump-jet engine technology you requested! We expect to produce qualified products within two months. "
Hearing this, Fang Lang frowned tightly. No matter in his previous life or this life, Fang Lang had an indissoluble bond with ships, so he had some understanding of the pump-jet technology of ships.
The so-called pump-jet is also called water jet propulsion. Different from the common propeller propulsion method, the thrust of water jet propulsion is obtained by the reaction force of the water flow ejected by the propulsion pump, and the ship is manipulated by distributing and changing the direction of the jet through the control of the rudder and reverse rudder equipment.
This propulsion method is generally used in high-performance, high-speed ships, enabling the ship to have excellent high-speed maneuverability, a smaller turning radius when turning, and a shallower draft.
Of course, it is not without disadvantages. For example, in waters with a lot of aquatic plants or debris, the inlet is prone to blockage, affecting the speed of the ship.
As far as Fang Lang knows, this technology was invented as early as 1661, 19 years earlier than propeller technology.
He didn't expect that at this time, the fast patrol boat he wanted would be stuck on this technology.
Seeing his boss frown, Osman Aragon quickly explained:
"Boss, I'm really sorry. Please listen to my explanation. Although pump-jet technology appeared very early, the superiority of propellers and the shortcomings of water jet propulsion have been basically recognized by everyone in recent decades.
Most countries in the world have given up the research on pump-jet technology. We lack the necessary technical reserves for this technology, so the current situation has occurred.
Please rest assured that after receiving your commission, we have hired more than 20 relevant experts from Europe and the United States to conduct research in our shipyard.
Although we were unable to produce a pump-jet engine that meets your requirements in a timely manner, we have found some technical solutions after this period of research and have applied for more than 20 related patents. We expect that within two months, its performance will meet your requirements."
Fang Lang, who was originally somewhat dissatisfied, felt much more relieved when he heard Ousmane Aragon say that he had organized European and American experts to conduct research and had applied for more than 20 patents.
He stepped forward and patted the other person on the shoulder and said:
"Oh! You have developed more than 20 patents. Not bad, not bad. You don't wait or rely on others, but do your own research. This spirit is worthy of praise.
However, our army really needs this kind of high-speed patrol boat now. Let us see where our trial-made sample boat is. If it doesn’t work, we can use it first. After the pump-jet technology is broken through, we will modify it. "
This made Ousmane Aragon, who was feeling a little uneasy, breathe a sigh of relief. He quickly walked in front of Fang Lang, made a gesture of invitation and said:
“Boss, please follow me. Our prototype high-speed patrol boat is now being tested by the river.
Although the speed did not reach the 28 knots you requested, it reached 24 knots, which can be regarded as a fast patrol boat. "
Hearing that the propeller could reach a speed of 23 knots, Fang Lang relaxed a little. While following Osman Aragon, he asked:
"24 knots is still acceptable for now. What kind of engine do you use?"
Seeing that the boss commented that the speed was acceptable, Osman Aragon breathed a sigh of relief. While leading the way, he turned back and said to Fang Lang who was following behind him:
"We use two Porsche diesel engines to power the boat, with an output of 325 kilowatts. According to our calculations, if we use this engine to power the water jet propulsion, we can fully achieve a speed of 28 knots for our high-speed patrol boat."
Unexpectedly, the speedboat actually uses Porsche's car engine technology. This made Fang Lang sigh that his decision was really wise. If he had not introduced Mercedes-Benz and Porsche from Germany, he probably wouldn't have any domestic engines to provide if he wanted to produce a boat now!
But he soon thought of a problem. The car engines could be used on these small boats, but what about the 10,000-ton giant ships?
"Oh! So both of our patrol boats use our domestically produced diesel engines!"
"Yes, boss!"
"So where do the engines used in these 10,000-ton container ships we are currently producing come from?"
"Uh! Currently, our 10,000-ton cargo ships are still using low-speed diesel engines imported from General Motors in the United States. Brazil currently does not have the production capacity for such heavy-duty low-speed diesel engines."
Hearing this, Fang Lang frowned and said unsatisfactorily:
"Does Global Shipbuilding also have relevant production capabilities?"
It’s not Fang Lang’s fault that he doesn’t even know the situation of his own company. It’s just that his work is too busy and it’s difficult for him to take care of everything.
Hearing the boss's question, Osman Aragon shook his head helplessly and said:
"As far as I know, Universal Shipbuilding currently uses low-speed diesel engines manufactured by General Dynamics. It does not have its own engine production capabilities."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
