"Boom~"

As the engine roared louder, before Xie Kai could study what was displayed on the display device in front of the commander of the 359 tank, the tank had started slowly for a while.

Mr. Zhu, who was in the commander's position, also didn't have the heart to communicate anything with Xie Kai, but was studying the monitor in front of him and some devices next to the commander's position.

As the chief engineer of the latest generation of tank design in China, he entered the interior of the 359 tank and subverted some of Mr. Zhu's ideas.

In the previous days, he only learned about the performance indicators of the 359 tank, various technologies.

Some of the technologies of the domestic third-generation tank project, originally undertaken by the 359 tank, which technologies can be used, which technologies need to be continued to develop, or the cost geometry, are all things that Mr. Zhu needs to consider.

Such a development of tanks regardless of cost is something that Mr. Zhu has never thought of.

The tank in front of me is completely the top collection of all domestic tank technology, and the cost cannot be only 6 million.

It's no wonder that the people of 404 don't care about the battle with their friends in the 617 Type 88 main battle tank.

Xie Kai's mind was a little complicated.

Such a tank meets his psychological expectations, but it does not conform to the mainstream of domestic equipment.

If you sell it, the price is too high, and it is estimated that there will be no market, and countries that have money and can afford to be equipped will choose the United States and Germany; if you want it, you don't have the money.

A tank, what is it doing so advanced?

The domestic version of the 359 tank, various internal devices and configurations, and the export of the 359 top configuration have changed very much, this thing is called 359, in fact, it is also a little inappropriate.

Although the lower anti-stabilized image fire control system is still used, it has increased a lot of equipment compared with the original, laser sights, thermal imagers, etc., which are necessary equipment for tank night battles.

Xie Kai doesn't know what many devices are used for, he can drive tanks, he can also design tanks (in fact, he is to draw tank outline design drawings), and even all kinds of equipment can be understood and integrated, and he doesn't know what they are used for.

Zhang Deming didn't mean to explain.

Just like that, driving the tank, driving down the production line, turning away from the production workshop, and driving through the passage outside the workshop towards the tank test site of the special operations brigade.

After a while, Xie Kai felt a little bored, the engine was too noisy, and he couldn't understand some things in the position of the gun commander, so he could only observe the outside through the gun commander's scope.

Without professional artillery commander training, Xie Kai didn't even know what the artillery commander needed to do.

Mr. Zhu next to him was studying the configuration of this tank, and he didn't bother to pay attention to Xie Kai.

Boredom, Xie Kai studied Zhang Deming's driving tank.

Xie Kai can drive a tank, and he can only drive it, the tank driving time is not long, the first time is to drive back the old 404 tank that changed the fate of the entire 59 from the garrison regiment, and along the way Zheng Yucheng taught him how to drive a tank.

The second time was with Wang Hao's armored car......

Since then, Xie Kai has never driven a tank again.

He had no interest in driving a tank, the interior of the thing was too harsh, the smell was terrible, and the noise was terrible.

What's more, the previous 59 tank, whether it was the gear lever for shifting, or the steering stick used to operate the tank's walking, or even the accelerator and brake, had to work hard.

But now looking at Zhang Deming, this little old man is very easy to drive.

Whether it was steering or shifting, he didn't watch Zhang Deming put his body on the chair in the cab, kick the clutch violently, and push the gear lever or something.

From the base to the tank test site, there are almost no roads, and the tanks from the test site are driven back for maintenance or the tanks produced are driven to the test site for testing, and the road conditions that are crushed out are not good.

In such road conditions, it is even more troublesome to drive a bulky tank.

Zhang Deming is a little old man, he doesn't have much strength, and he is actually easy to drive, which makes Xie Kai interested.

"This tank is very stable...... "Zhu boss finally spoke.

"Hydraulic power assist system, with the research of hydraulic technology, in addition to the automatic stepless speed change that has not yet been successfully studied, most of them are added hydraulic auxiliary systems, and the operation is very different from other domestic tanks...... Zhang Deming said proudly.

The 359 tank is a collection of the most advanced technology in China.

Xie Kai was even more conflicted in his heart.

Everyone wants the more advanced the technology, the better, but the cost is a problem.

He was already completely sure that Zhang Deming was not telling the truth.

The special operations brigade is only equipped with one battalion of tanks that are exported to domestic sales, but now it is obvious that the country does not just want to equip one battalion.

The cost is too high, and the more you produce, the more you lose.

"There is indeed a big difference, and the price difference is several times. Mr. Zhu nodded and said.

He is also wondering in his heart, whether these technologies will be used in the third generation of tanks, and whether it will make the cost higher?

In the process of marching, the speed of the three tanks was not very fast, and the average speed was more than 10 kilometers, and it took more than an hour to drive from the base to the test site.

In the test site, there is no tank training for special operations brigades.

"Off-road testing directly in the test site?" Xie Kai asked Zhang Deming, who did not know the experimental plan.

In the test site, steep slopes, trenches, puddles and other terrain are all complete, even if Xie Kai does not understand the whole test process, he also knows that the road test is not a direct undulating road test, nor is it in such a test field.

"Even though it's a new model, the powertrain and other technologies are mature technologies that have undergone a lot of testing. The current test is equivalent to a factory test. Zhang Deming said.

Xie Kai asked Zhang Deming, "Mr. Zhang, tell me the truth, how much does this version of the 359 tank cost?" ”

It's not that Xie Kai wants to ask about the cost.

Zheng Yucheng They usually don't care about this, once these tanks are provided to the troops according to this standard, it is impossible for the troops to give money according to the requirements of 404.

Just the fire control system inside is not a million that can be solved.

Without counting the R&D costs, it is more than one million.

Zhang Deming was stunned, and looked at Xie Kai for a while without speaking.

"If the cost is too high, according to the price of 5 million troops, we don't have that much money to fill it. The troops will certainly not be just a special operations brigade equipped with a battalion. Xie Kai said solemnly, "Director Zheng, they won't agree." ”

"6 million, it's just a dollar ......" Zhang Deming was afraid that Xie Kai would ask the cost.

Zheng Yucheng They don't care about this problem, as long as the performance is advanced.

Xie Kai is different.

More often, Zhang Deming and others feel that Xie Kai is more like a businessman.

He didn't expect that Xie Kai would come to the production plant of the Armored Research Center at this time, and he didn't decide to test it this afternoon, but Xie Kai came and did it in advance.

In the end, Xie Kai still asked.

$6 million!

Xie Kai's eyebrows jumped a few times.

Converted into soft sister coins, more than 20 million!

Even Mr. Zhu, who had just gotten out of the tank with the help of the staff, was taken aback.

With so much advanced technology in it, he is wondering how 6 million is made, and he is still thinking about how to make the cost cheaper.

There are more than 20 million vehicles, and the troops simply cannot afford to use them.

"This is only an improved version of the 359, and it was not originally intended to be offered for use by the troops. We hadn't thought about competing with the Type 88 main battle tank before......," Zhang Deming explained.

Xie Kai didn't speak.

The cost of this kind of tank is unacceptable to the troops, and even the 404 cannot afford to lose so much money to provide it to the troops.

The number of a battalion is 43, and according to the cost price of 20 million vehicles, a battalion will have 860 million!

In China, a battalion is equipped with 860 million, which is almost unimaginable.

Even the strategic missile battalion of the Second Artillery Corps is estimated to be unable to reach this price.

"There is no possibility that the base will help the troops bear the cost of 15 million. Xie Kai sighed, "Some fancy, let's cancel it." It is okay to study it yourself, and it can be provided to the troops for combat tests, but no. ”

"Didn't you say before, the future war is to develop towards informatization, which is also the best technology to integrate the current base, if large-scale production, and other technologies are used in large quantities, the cost will be reduced......

Zhang Deming hopes to convince Xie Kai.

Information-based warfare was proposed by Xie Kai.

The new fire control system developed from Xie Jianguo's computer-aided system has made the base invest a lot in the field of automation research.

In any case, Xie Kai did not expect that Zhang Deming would apply all these technologies to the tank.

"Does Director Zheng know?" Xie Kai thought that Zheng Yucheng agreed.

Zhang Deming shook his head, "These three tanks, almost all of the technology, are brand new, so the cost is very high......"

Zhu Yusheng was next to him, and he didn't know what to say.

The cost of such a tank is close to the cost of the third-generation tank for which they currently do not have a complete design scheme, according to such technical standards, how much will their third-generation tank cost in the end?

Xie Kai didn't know how he got back to the base from the test site, and what he was worried about became a reality.

The base's continuous research investment in the 359 tank project is not small, but no one thought that it would eventually produce a tank that costs more than 20 million.

This is four times the cost that the military is willing to bear, and the gap in the middle reaches 15 million.

The domestic cost price of a 59 tank is about 1.2 million, and the cost of this tank in front of you is almost twenty times that of the 59 tank.

How to sell?

Outlet?

There is no possibility.

The state will not agree to sell such a tank, and even if it does, who will Xie Kai ask to buy it?

The only countries in the world that can afford to be equipped with such cost tanks are the United States and other countries, and the Soviet Union, which completely disregarded the cost and eventually bankrupted the country.

The big dogs in the Middle East, at the moment, will not be interested in such tanks at all.

$6 million a tank, and that's just the cost!

Who did this sell Xie Kai to?