Recently, at the sixth China Direct Expo, China Army Aviation brought new helicopters in active service of our army, including Z-8L, Z-20, Z-10 and Z-19, which basically covered the main combat equipment of the army aviation. Of course, the majority of military fans and friends can already be described as "treasured" for these helicopters, so they can only be said to be "happy" rather than "surprise". It was another seemingly inconspicuous aircraft that attracted everyone's attention.
At this direct expo, a new aircraft that made everyone feel "bright" appeared, which is the tiltrotor number ZN-1. Of course, this exhibition is only a one-to-one model of this aircraft, not a real aircraft, but it still makes everyone feel extremely excited. Because the appearance of this type of aircraft may well mean that another gap in aviation technology in our army will be filled.
So, what is a "tiltrotor"? This aircraft is an aircraft invented by the United States during the Cold War, which can be said to be a kind of aircraft between helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. This aircraft can use propellers for vertical takeoff and landing like a helicopter, and then after the take-off phase, its wings will become horizontal, so that it can fly horizontally like a normal fixed-wing aircraft. This design concept should be said to be very admirable, and it can be said that it effectively combines the performance advantages of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. At present, the famous V-22 Osprey tiltrotor equipped by the US Marine Corps is a product of this concept.
However, this aircraft has a very complex structure, especially its shipborne version because it is going to be on board, so its wings also have folding functions, which further increases its complexity. However, objectively speaking, the design concept of this aircraft is still worth learning and reference. And this aircraft really has a great role as well.
From the available information, the ZN-1 tiltrotor is not very large, it can only be regarded as a light two-man rotorcraft, and the crew is only two people. Its technology should be no different from the current tiltrotor in the United States, which shows that this aircraft is the system that Continental has explored in terms of tiltrotor.
Well, what does this aircraft mean for our army? The author believes that at present we do not have such a model as the MV-22 Osprey, and if this ZN-1 tiltrotor can be improved and carried on the 075 or even the future 076 amphibious assault ship, then it is likely to become another "island capture artifact" of our army!
Specifically, in the case of our military's advanced carrier-based fighters such as the J-35 and J-15, this tiltrotor can cooperate with it, carry personnel and equipment interspersed, and can transport personnel to the island in a short time and win in one fell swoop!
Compared with traditional helicopters, the benefits of this tiltrotor are obvious, not only can carry heavy equipment that ordinary helicopters cannot carry, but also because its flight process is no different from fixed-wing aircraft, so its flight speed is far higher than that of ordinary helicopters. Therefore, the author believes that in the possible cross-sea operations in the future, if we can develop a larger and stronger tiltrotor based on the ZN-1, then it will definitely play an unexpected role!