Chapter 330

Chapter 330: Assault Duet

The AIM-120 "Slammer," a medium-range air-to-air missile developed by America, is the first active radar-guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile. It includes a "fire-and-forget" feature, allowing fighter jets to launch without maintaining continuous targeting, making it difficult for pilots to perform evasive maneuvers once fired.

In China, only the improved PL-12 "Pillars" medium-range air-to-air missile can compete with the performance of the "Slammer."

Using the Light Mirror Technique again, Lin Mo spotted a pure white aircraft he had never seen before, descending rapidly from above the troposphere towards him. Just after, a small black dot detached from the peculiar aircraft. Almost simultaneously, the warning radar display showed a second AIM-120 medium-range air-to-air missile signal.

Damn it, they want to eliminate me completely? Lin Mo couldn’t help but curse.

What kind of strange aircraft was this? With its triangular swept-wing design and no visible tail, he couldn’t even see a cockpit. Could it be a drone?

Lin Mo furrowed his brows deeply. Don’t think that an unmanned combat aircraft would lack mobility just because there’s no pilot on board. In fact, it’s even more terrifying precisely because it’s unmanned.

Modern fighter jets use a large-field water-drop cockpit design out of necessity, not because it’s advanced. It represents a compromise to accommodate a pilot, which doesn’t really help with superior aerodynamic design.

As Lin Mo’s mentor, Professor Yan Guoqiang, often said, China can design extremely advanced fighters, with aerodynamic designs far superior to those of Americans and Russians. However, due to material costs and restrictions on pilots, China can only produce the most economically valuable and cost-effective fighter jets.

Even if money wasn’t an issue, designing the F-22 "Raptor" would still be impossible, as there are too many real-world limitations. China lacks the resources and industrial base to mass-produce such advanced fighters like the Americans can.

Even so, the Americans felt the strain of constructing such an expensive "Raptor," leading to a temporary halt in the F-22 production plan.

Quality is quality, and advanced design is advanced design, but without a solid foundation and funding, it all amounts to an air castle—unmoored and just theoretical.

Domestic aircraft manufacturers can only reach the level of producing one or two boldly designed prototype fighters to test materials and equipment performance.

Compared to manned fighters, unmanned ones do not need to consider the pilot’s overload tolerance, allowing them to execute tactical maneuvers that exceed human limits effortlessly. They can perform even more complex and varied tactics, launching unexpectedly lethal strikes.

The progress of human fighters also relates to advancements in overload tolerance.

As Lin Mo maneuvered the fighter, he activated the Light Mirror Technique to scan the pure white unmanned aircraft.

No markings, no models, no patterns—completely unmarked.

MMD, which power-hungry force is nibbling at me?

Dealing with two AIM-120 missiles was no fun at all. The enemy’s decisiveness and ruthlessness surpassed Lin Mo’s imagination.

The AIM-120 has a practical range of about 46 kilometers. Being a medium-range missile with a speed of Mach 4, it’s nearly impossible to shake it off. He could only extend the confrontation for a second; maybe he could force the missiles to exhaust their solid fuel and trigger an explosion at close range.

Active radar guidance is much harder to fool than infrared guidance; simply deploying infrared flares wouldn’t be of much help.

One missile could be dealt with, but two made Lin Mo less confident. These weren’t like the antiques from the "Lapis Lazuli" castle in Afghanistan; this was one of the most advanced air-to-air missiles in the world.

As the frequency of the defense radar alarm intensified, the first AIM-120 had already closed in on "Dark Sabre" from over ten kilometers behind, getting closer.

Lin Mo pushed the control stick, rapidly adjusting the various systems in preparation. He quickly pulled the nose up, and the aircraft began to slow down, executing a fast Pugachev Cobra maneuver.

But Lin Mo did not pull back on the control stick. He had at least twice the experience with ultra-low altitude Cobra maneuvers and had no fear of the "Dark Sabre" losing enough power to drop into the ocean.

The nose of the "Dark Sabre" exceeded 120 degrees during the Cobra maneuver without stopping. His gaze remained fixed on the Light Mirror Technique, locking onto the rapidly approaching AIM-120 missile. Just as the aircraft flipped over to a certain angle, the 30mm cannon under the belly of the J-15 "Dark Sabre" fired, launching a stream of projectiles in a sharp, conic spread.

Boom!

A massive fireball suddenly erupted less than three kilometers from the "Dark Sabre" as it executed the Cobra maneuver and slowed down.

As the "Dark Sabre" nearly flipped backward and stalled, Lin Mo immediately pushed the throttle to maximum output. The fighter jolted sharply, flipping back to level flight due to inertia, continuing forward. Thanks to Lin Mo’s precise control, the "Dark Sabre" lost less than ten meters of altitude, just skimming the ocean’s surface, with the power of the twin jet engines spraying a large splash.

This wasn’t a conventional maneuver but a combination of the Pugachev Cobra and a circular motion maneuver, officially called a "circular maneuver." Like the "clock maneuver," it was a super technique of Soviet advanced fighters.

The J-15 "Dark Sabre," also derived from Soviet fighter designs, inherited the super maneuverability characteristics of such aircraft, with every bit of performance maximized by Lin Mo.

The circular maneuver was typically an extremely effective tactic for evading pursuing enemies, allowing the chased to become the pursuer in advantageous positions, especially useful during close-range dogfights.

Compared to a tumble maneuver, the circular maneuver provided Lin Mo with a more stable environment for cannon fire.

As Lin Mo combined the tactics of two world air knights to form his unique dogfighting techniques, he became a master of maneuvers in this world. He treated the pursuing missile like an enemy fighter, transforming a slow roll into a quick flip, attacking during the maneuver, combining offense and defense, and as he turned, bringing the incoming missile into the firing angle of his cannon.

Even if the missile’s explosive head was small, it couldn’t withstand the dense barrage covering its trajectory. With the fierce power of the 30mm warheads, the AIM-120 air-to-air missile, even under high overload conditions, had no chance to react before being blasted mid-air.

"Hmph! Next!" Lin Mo said, focusing on another incoming missile. He knew very well this was just the appetizer before the main course from his opponent.

When he fought against the Texi Empire in another world, he had encountered such adversaries, who meticulously managed every aspect of the battle’s rhythm. This kind of opponent not only seized fleeting opportunities but also created them, possessing rich combat experience and considerable talent—truly a troublesome aerial knight.

Lin Mo could confirm that it was such a level of aerial knight controlling this unmanned combat aircraft from afar.

To some degree, the opponent seemed to disregard life and death, for even if the fighter crashed, he would remain unharmed. From the start, he had been indifferent to life and death, his cool demeanor rivaling Lin Mo’s.

Thus, Lin Mo couldn’t regard this enemy pilot as merely a Vietnamese. The usual tricks wouldn’t work against such a capable opponent. They could easily turn his strategies against him.

One unmarked cluster aerial bomb and two AIM-120 medium-range air-to-air missiles were merely a means for the enemy to test his abilities. If Lin Mo couldn’t withstand such attacks, he was unqualified to be the opponent’s match.

While the second AIM-120 air-to-air missile swiftly approached, that triangular pure white unmanned aircraft also dove towards him at high speed.

This was a classic duet assault tactic, designed to catch the enemy off guard.

Lin Mo had to make a choice. He lacked confidence in finding a survival angle between both threats and needed to tackle the easier target first.

Now prepared, Lin Mo calmed down from his frenzied state, gliding sideways along with the oncoming AIM-120 missile while calculating the unmanned aircraft’s flight angle to avoid exploitation.

Once he placed the opponent on the same level as himself, Lin Mo remained cautious, constantly modeling the next attack path in his mind. With only two close-range air-to-air missiles under the wings of the "Dark Sabre," he knew his offensive opportunities were limited.

He also trusted that after the consecutive probing shots, the missile count in the opponent’s weapon bay was likely low.

For a true aerial knight, being heavily armed was entirely unnecessary. A couple of effective and compact weapons sufficed, with no need for too many attacking opportunities.

Air superiority fighters resemble longbowmen—low on defense, high on attack, continually seizing advantageous positions, needing just one chance to completely take down the opponent.

Seizing the moment, Lin Mo suddenly pushed the control stick left, climbing sharply while aiming the nose at another AIM-120 “Slammer” missile. This wasn’t a counter-pursuit but a positional attack from the side. A larger strike area enhanced the probability of hitting; as long as he could hit once, it would detonate directly.