Science and Technology Daily reporter Zhang Qiang
Speaking of the "Caspian Sea Monster", many military fans are probably not strangers. It looks like both a ship and an airplane, and can sail at incredible speeds against the surface of the water. Nowadays, people know that the "Caspian Sea Monster" is a ground effect flying machine.
A ground effect aerial vehicle image that combines ships and aircraft
The website of the bimonthly US "National Interest" recently published a report entitled "Russian Navy Develops Ground Effect Vehicles for Integrating Ships and Aircraft." According to reports, Russia's "Oran" class ground effect aircraft has the characteristics of both ships and aircraft. According to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov, under the latest ten-year defense plan, Russia will develop such a missile-capable ground effect vehicle by 2027.
Military commentator Zhang Haixiong told the Science and Technology Daily reporter, "The number of Russian troops stationed in the Arctic is limited, the distance is far, and it is very difficult to rely only on icebreakers and aircraft to carry out patrol and supply tasks." Because Russia has a deep technical accumulation in the study of ground effect aircraft, the development of such a fast and efficient ground effect aircraft has become a realistic choice. ”
"Oran" will use anti-ship missiles
The reason why the ground effect aircraft is called the "Caspian Sea Monster" is actually due to its excellent performance.
Physics knowledge tells us that when flying close to the ground (or water surface), the air flow between the aircraft and the ground is compressed, and the pressure at the bottom increases, resulting in an additional lift, which is the ground effect, referred to as the ground effect. A carrier platform made of the principle of ground effects and can sail close to the ground or the surface of the water is a ground effect aircraft.
"Ground effect vehicles are equipment between ships and aircraft, and according to the International Maritime Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization, ground effect aircraft belong to ships and not aircraft, because its flight altitude is mostly within 150 meters. If the altitude of the flight exceeds 150 meters, it is recognized as an aircraft and is subject to international aviation regulations. Zhang Haixiong said.
"Ground effect aircraft take into account the characteristics of ships and aircraft, and also complement each other's shortcomings." Zhang Haixiong introduced, first of all, its speed is much faster than the ship, can be quick response; second, fuel-saving, heavy load, good economy, more suitable than helicopters and aircraft to quickly carry troops and materials; third, the flight altitude is low, generally about 10 meters, it is difficult to be detected by radar; fourth, the take-off and landing requirements are low, there is no need to build a special take-off and landing site; fifth, it is relatively safe, because there are more large and medium-sized ground effect aircraft engines, even if one or two fail, you can also use the ground effect to safely land.
Russia's National Armament Plan for 2018-2027 has formulated a plan for the procurement and development of weapons and equipment of the armed forces in the next decade to ensure the balanced development of all services, including the research and development of the "Oran" class ground effect aircraft.
Zhang Haixiong analyzed, "Judging from the news released by Russia, the most important characteristics of the 'Oran' class ground effect aircraft can be summarized into three words: large size, expected to be similar to the size of the 'Caspian Sea Monster'; heavy load, can carry hundreds of tons of load; fierce firepower, is the world's only ground effect aircraft using anti-ship missiles." ”
Ground effect aircraft is no longer "Wuxia Amun"
"The Soviet Union/Russia is a veritable ground effect vehicle power, and has developed large, medium and small ground effect aircraft, the more famous of which are the 'Caspian Sea Monster', 'Harrier' and 'Kitty Hawk'." Zhang Haixiong said.
According to the data, the "Caspian Sea Monster" has a load of up to 200 tons, a speed of more than 400 kilometers per hour, and a range of 7500 kilometers; the "Harrier" class "Flowertail Pigeon" ground effect aircraft, with a speed of 550 kilometers per hour and a range of 3000 kilometers, was in short service in the Black Sea Fleet in 1987; the "Kitty Hawk" ground effect aircraft, with a speed of 350 kilometers per hour and a range of 1500 kilometers.
However, due to a variety of reasons, the development of ground effect aircraft has stagnated, and the "Caspian Sea Monster" has once disappeared from people's vision.
"The ground effect aircraft has its own limitations, first of all, its control is not very good, the response is relatively slow, and secondly, its flight altitude is low, the undulating terrain and the waves at sea will affect its flight, and the riding comfort is not good; again, the large ground effect aircraft to achieve high-speed flight, must be equipped with multiple high-power engines, the cost is not cheap." Zhang Haixiong told reporters.
"In particular, there is a lack of high-level support for ground effect aircraft in the later stages. During the Cold War, the United States and Europe were not very enthusiastic about the research of ground effect aircraft, which made some leaders of the Soviet Union not cold to ground effect aircraft. Coupled with the economic difficulties of Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union, it is impossible to come up with money to support the follow-up research and development of ground effect aircraft. Zhang Haixiong said.
Of course, with the advancement of technology and the actual needs of Russia, the research on ground effect vehicles has begun to heat up again in recent years.
Zhang Haixiong introduced, "The application of military ground effect vehicles is very extensive, and it can rely on the anti-ship missiles carried on to perform anti-ship combat tasks, and can also use the advantages of low-altitude and high-speed flight to perform amphibious landing, submarine search and anti-submarine operations." At the same time, it can also play a role in maritime lifesaving, maritime patrols, maritime transportation and other tasks. The most typical is the Soviet Union's 'Caspian Sea Monster', which carries anti-ship missiles as a weapon against aircraft carriers. ”
In addition to Russia, other countries have also invested in research and development on ground effect vehicles.
Although the United States started late, it has a tendency to catch up with and surpass Russia. It is said that the "Pelican" giant ground effect vehicle developed by Boeing Company has a speed of 490 kilometers per hour and a range of tens of thousands of kilometers when performing transportation tasks. It can carry 17 main battle tanks, or 3,000 heavily armed soldiers, at a time, far more capable than the existing transport aircraft in the United States.
China has also developed ground effect boats of "Swan", "Albatross" and "Xiangzhou No. 1", and carried out certain border patrols, tourism and scientific research experiments.
Has an efficient anti-ship anti-submarine capability
In 2017, there were media reports that Russia might install the Brah Mos supersonic cruise missile on the new A-050 Seagull ground effect vehicle. This time, Borisov's statement further confirmed that Russia will install missiles on ground effect vehicles.
This is not the first time a ground effect vehicle has decided to install a missile. As early as the Soviet period, the Harrier-class "Flowertail Pigeon" ground effect vehicle carried three twin "Sun hot" anti-ship missiles, which could carry out sea attacks.
"Ground effect aircraft can fly at low altitude and high speed, close to the sea, not only faster than the speed of the destroyer, but also can effectively reduce the detection distance of the ship's radar, enhance the suddenness and concealment of the attack." In the Russian design, the ground effect vehicle carrying the "BrahMos" missile mainly performs anti-ship combat and land attack tasks, which is also the "Brah Mos" missile. "In the future, ground effect vehicles may also be equipped with sonar buoys, anti-submarine torpedoes and mines, which can perform aerial submarine search and rapid mine laying tasks." ”
"If Russia rebuilds its ground effect aircraft fleet, it will have very efficient maritime anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare capabilities," Akihio said. And relatively expensive warships, ground effect aircraft is relatively cheap, suitable for a large number of construction, can effectively make up for Russia's lack of large surface warships, become Russia's new weapon against the navies of Western countries, in the seizure of theater sea supremacy and anti-aircraft carrier operations to obtain new power growth points. Of course, it is also possible to promote the export of ground effect aircraft and obtain funds to promote military research and development. ”