Munitions Empire

Chapter 632: Technology 591 is developing

“Sooner or later, you have to pay for your actions; the girls you flirt with, sooner or later you have to sleep with them. The thing is, being slept with counts as sleeping too… which just proves again, you have to pay for your actions sooner or later…”

By the time Tang Mo realized he might be drained again, he had in fact already been drained. After enthusiastically expressing his longing, Alice rested her chin on her hands and, separated by the drafting table, watched Tang Mo contently.

This man was handsome in every way; at least in her eyes, he was perfect without any flaws, truly a gift from heaven to her.

It wasn’t in vain that she had given up her father’s hard-earned Northern Ridge, bringing so many of her people from thousands of miles away to join him— it all seemed so worth it!

“I really like the new job you found for me, Minister of Finance… Mmm, this job really suits me.” Alice felt extremely happy, for a woman, isn’t it right to keep a close eye on her man’s purse strings?

As for those surplus gaudy vixens… forget it, who made her man so outstanding? If he doesn’t attract bees and butterflies, wouldn’t that mean there’s something wrong with her taste?

...

Tang Mo had already wasted nearly an hour, so he was in a hurry, making corrections to the drawings in front of him.

An MP5 submachine gun was still too advanced for Great Tang Group, as many of the materials actually needed substitutes.

For example, high-strength plastic was something Great Tang Group couldn’t produce—so Tang Mo had no choice but to use wood to replace the better-performing polymers.

No choice, although it increased the weight, but sometimes if you can’t keep up with materials science, you just can’t keep up. If Tang Mo could immediately mass-produce all the materials, then why not go high-end with a mix of HK416 and UMP45?

So, the forend of the alternative world version of the MP5 submachine gun was made of wood, with metal embedded inside to ensure strength.

At the same time, Tang Mo believed that most of the mass-produced MP5 submachine guns would have collapsible folding stocks, which meets the troops’ needs.

For the soldiers who expected to be issued these weapons—armor troops, Navy sailors, motorized troops, artillery, logistical personnel, and policemen—these people all care about the size of the weapon.

As for the few versions with a fixed stock, Tang Mo also planned to use wooden stocks! No choice, since plastic wasn’t that widespread yet.

As for the AK47 whose drawings had already been released, of course, it was a later, improved version, with added muzzle devices, and a more reasonable stock, basically the AKM version.

Or rather, this creation was already the third generation of AKM improvements. To further modify it would be to develop the smaller caliber assault rifle AK74.

However, Tang Mo hadn’t released a more advanced small caliber assault rifle, as he still had a long way to go in terms of gunpowder, precision machining, and materials science, and thus couldn’t achieve mass production yet.

“I’m talking to you.” Having not seen Tang Mo for a long time, Alice still missed her beloved dearly. As she spoke, she nudged Tang Mo’s calves with her foot.

Ha! Woman! You underestimate me! Tang Mo remembered what they had done in the office just before, and at this moment, he felt an unparalleled sense of calm. This level of flirting was nothing, after all, he had already entered sage mode.

“Hmm.” After giving a noncommittal response, he continued his work, with full concentration. Alice, understanding, teased Tang Mo a bit and then toned it down, just quietly watching him correct his drawings.

Beyond changing the individual soldier weapon systems, Tang Mo was continuously introducing new weapons and equipment to transform the face of warfare.

The technical department deployed on Dragon Island had, under Tang Mo’s theories and drawings, already begun developing the first generation of radar.

Radar, put simply, was an application of radio technology and having it meant possessing eyes that could watch the sky at any moment.@@novelbin@@

Radar technology was a vital support for future weapon technologies. Only with more advanced radar could the potential of future weaponry be fully realized.

Yet at present, it still seemed very primitive, and even the screen for feedback signals could only be produced in laboratories.

Another laboratory of the Great Tang Group was experimenting with a more reliable communication system, which would provide more secure radio communications for tanks, airplanes, ships, and even infantry.

Thanks to Tang Mo’s support, the Great Tang Group had always been at the forefront of the world in the field of radio, and indeed, Great Tang Group’s communication system was the most advanced in the world.

The Tongcheng factories had already begun manufacturing diesel engines based on the designs, which would provide more robust power for the future tanks.

German tanks in World War II had all used gasoline engines, which, like the interleaved road wheels, became a design flaw criticized in hindsight.

Of course, Tang Mo knew that subsequent tank power development would be dominated by diesel engines with greater torque and strength, so naturally, he had to pave the way early on.

Actually, it wasn’t just tanks; many subsequent heavy trucks also adopted diesel engines, which is a major trend that cannot be reversed.

Understanding this trend and knowing that this direction was the most correct development path, Tang Mo certainly wouldn’t go against the grain. Equipping the next generation of Tang Army tanks with diesel engines was something Tang Mo had been contemplating.

With continuous technological advancements, Tang Country’s cutting-edge technology had reached World War I, and even World War II levels. In this era, due to the demands of war, various technologies began to advance by leaps and bounds, entering a phase of explosive growth.

Wireless radio technology, rocket technology, engine technology, infrared technology, sonar technology, and so on were all maturing and played an important role in their respective fields.

Ships began to abandon riveting and massively adopt welding processes. The power systems of large ships were also completely transformed—fewer burned coal, more burned oil.

With the updating of power systems, the speed of naval vessels further increased. Destroyers reached peak speeds, easily cruising at 66 kilometers per hour, a speed that would not change much in the next hundred years.

In fact, the development of diesel engines benefited not surface ships the most. After the technology of large marine diesel engines matured, coupled with the development of battery technology, submarine technologies were also pretty much at their peak.

Since everything was ready, Tang Mo didn’t mind equipping the Great Tang Group’s Navy with some submarines and training some corresponding specialized personnel in advance.

So, the shipyard on Dragon Island was already building the world’s first submarine, and its starting point was the mature U-boat design of World War II.

Although submarines of that time were merely “submersible vessels,” they did integrate the most advanced technologies of the current stage, incredibly advanced.

Large marine diesel engine technology, snorkeling technology, sealing technology, hydroacoustic sonar technology, high-power wireless communication technology, battery technology…

Of course, that included the most classic torpedo technology! Aboard the small submarines, the most cutting-edge technologies of the stage were almost entirely employed.

Actually, Tang Mo was reluctant to develop torpedoes because his Navy still had absolute advantage, and he didn’t want such technology to accidentally spread and give the opposing side a chance to turn the tables.

You see, Tang Mo’s fleet could almost be described as invincible, but if Tang Mo’s opponents acquired submarines, the situation could become really tricky.

To maintain maritime order and ensure the safety of shipping routes is far more difficult than disrupting routes and sinking transport ships. If the enemy had submarines, it would mean they had hope for the weaker to overcome the stronger.

Tang Mo didn’t want to give these bastards any hope!

But Tang Mo had to develop torpedo weapons because he had carrier-borne aircraft technology to research. Besides, torpedoes could also endow his destroyers and cruisers with the potential to punch above their weight.

Only with such technologies could carrier-borne aircraft inflict greater damage on surface vessels. Although aerial bombs were effective, if the method of attack was too one-dimensional, it was easy for the enemy to defend against.

Therefore, Tang Mo brought out torpedo weapon technology and was ready to train some Navy-exclusive pilots on Dragon Island.

He could readily produce the technology as long as there were no bottlenecks in production. However, training pilots, a technical task, still required time to accumulate; he did not possess a magic ball capable of stuffing knowledge and experience directly into someone’s brain…

As more specialized weapons and equipment developed, the requirements for soldiers became increasingly higher. Just like how Tang Mo initially lacked Navy sailors, he now needed tank operators, pilots, submariners, and paratroopers…

Training these technical military specialties took time, and accumulating more such talents required accumulation. There was no other way; everything had to be done step by step.

Imagine, in the future, tank gunners might need to operate infrared equipment, adjust more advanced and precise targeting devices, operate fire control computers, and even repair crosswind sensors… College graduation might just be the minimum requirement.

That is to say, the technical talents Tang Mo was currently training, who were highly sought after by various countries, might only qualify as gunners or commanders in the future!

What does this imply? Tang Mo probably would have to improve the current educational quality of schools by tenfold before he could have the potential to produce commanders at the battalion or regimental level.

The soldiers were no longer recruited from a group of farmers given basic bayonet training, a couple of days of marching drills, and then handed a rifle to shoot targets for a few days.

Artillerymen had to learn indirect fire aiming, be able to identify shooting tables, set fuses, and understand how to maintain and calibrate artillery!

Officers had to calculate logistical support distances, compile ammunition reports, read the latest precise maps, and even study wireless radio knowledge.

In such circumstances, the quality gap between troops was vast as the sky is from the earth, and mere bravery was no longer sufficient to determine the outcome of a war.

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