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DF-113 - Dong Feng / East Wind - Program

The DF-113 was a dual purpose fighter plane for air defense of the homeland and frontline combat. Began in early 1958, most of the tentative planning was done in the spring in the Harbin Military engineering Institute. The air force engineering department teachers and students proposed that the graduation project would be to completes one kind of new style fighter plane. This idea obtained the support of department Chair Chen Geng and air force Commander Liu Yalou's approval.

The lead aircraft industry Bureau Chief Wang Xiping, assistant commissioner Xu Lu Yu, Li Zhaoxiang, Shenyang Aircraft plant Manager Niu Yinguan, Chief Engineer Gao Fangqi, and aircraft design office Xu Shun Shou went to the Harbin Military engineering Institute to hold an on-the-spot meeting. At the on-the-spot meeting, the defense industry examined the DF-113 design proposals in detail, and the comrades attending the forum has carried on the discussion. Finally, the Minister of the First Ministry of Machine Building said in the speech: "The institute is good to dare the spirit which wants to dare to do, but realism has been a short point, with romanticism at many points. And we must set up the opposite."

The Minister of the First Ministry of Machine Building [Min first Miny Mach Build] directed that the DF-113 indices would achieve "the double 25" performance. Afterward the DF-113 fighter plane's "double 25" was the high index, and the DF-107 maximum velocity was improved to Mach 2. When the DF-113 fighter plane plan examining committee met, management's representative proposed working on both the DF-113 and the DF-107 was a dispersion of energy, and that their efforts should merge into research on one kind of l.8 a Mach fighter plane. This evoked the intense discussion at the meeting, finally approved both project. After the meeting, Chen Geng opposed this matter, thinking that "to do both, does inadequately. Can do only one advanced, cannot do backwardness". This opinion is accepted by Peng Dehuai, therefore they cancelled the original meeting conclusion. Therefore in October 1958 the central report mentioned only DF-113.

During this time the factory had two major research and development projecs, and the personnel obviously faced contradictions. Industry designers arrived at the factory one after another, and the technical personnel carried on the research and development work together with the factory. For this reason, the factory responsible for "East Wind 113" established the second project design office. But because the factory originally had already undertaken "East Wind 107" trial production mission, now has joined "East Wind 113", it carried on two major research and developments, and problems piled up. Therefore, the trial production leading group holds the meeting on 14 November 1958 to talk the matter over, and further clarified the guidelines under which the "East Wind 113" was given priority in development.

The DF-113 initial project objective was a maximum level speed of 2 Mach, a ceiling of more than 20,000 meters. Later, according to the science committee's opinion, this was changed to Mach 2.5 and a ceiling of 25,000 meters - namely "double 25". The operational target was the American F-104 and F-105 fighters and B-58 supersonic speed bomber. The requirement was superiority in combat with these two kind of fighters, and then interception of a bomber target.

In 1958, many national leaders arrived at the war industry to observe the DF-113 tentative plan, and the air bureau also gave the modification comment to the plan. Therefore, the bold "ultra level" project started officially from March 1958. By September the system design plan was completed, and on 13 October the "new fighter plane's trial production" report was submitted to the central government, which aimed for the test flight in January 1959. The project plan allocated 60,000,000 Yuan in funds, from the start to first flight, in only 10 months. Regardless of what angle one looked from, the DF-113 capability criteria at that time were extra-superior.

After the East Wind 107 was discontinued in late 1959, the experimental work was continued with the East Wind 113, although it met some technical questions and material problems. The two factory design offices had already merged, and the situation started to change for the better. The "814" turbojet engine structure was redesigned completed by February, 1960. The radio altimeter, the beacon rangefinder, the ultrashort wave broadcasting station were also made in prototype to carry on the test flight (in other aircraft types); over 20 kinds of electric fittings issued the design requirements in the normal temperature. The airborne electronic calculating machine may, under the room temperature condition the continuous working 3 hours. The airborne artillery research and development has also made progress.

On 06 April 1960, the trial production leading group held the fourth meeting in Beijing, with researches in the first several month reporting quick work progress and the part special-purpose material expressed satisfaction. At this time, the most difficult material problem appeared - because the aircraft maximum velocity had surpassed the thermal barrier, it was neccessary to research the new heat-resistant material. Unless the aircraft performance would drop to 1.8 Mach and 11,000 meter ceiling, it would have wait 62 months for the new material to be researched successfully.

At this time, the air bureau reported to Third Mechanical Industry Department that the DF-113 the plan had been postponed repeatedly, the most basic reason being design requirements that exceeded by a very great distance the existing technology and the craft production level of Chinese aircraft industry. This inevitably created a series of contradictions, contradictions which were not something that could be solved in the short-term.

Meanwhile, the DF-102 [J-6 Mig-19 copy program] had serious problems, with very big aircraft quality flaws. The technical personnel had tosolve these problems, and the DF-113 experimental work in fact stopped. In April 1961, the Third Mechanical Industry Department acted according to He Long's instruction, and clarified the concentration of efforts on the Mig-19, and the DF-113 trial production suspension. On 21 July 1961, the Third Mechanical Industry Department message pointed out the concentrated efforts on the Mig-19 and the Mig-21. While it noted that the Mig-21 trial could produce a successful foundation to do the DF-113, and stipulated that the work on the DF-113 may continue to carry on, in fact this was also equivlant to the announcement that the DF-113 was discontinued. Although later Lin Biao directly meddled in this design many times, and exerted pressure from time to time to let it continue to carry on, the plan stopped and was still unable to make the substantive progress.

The East Wind 113 research and development lasted for around 3 years. Although it obtained certain single items of achievement in scientific research, it created a bigger loss. This was particularly serious because of the substantial technical personnel involved in the research and development. This complicated the digestion of imported Mig-19 technology and the solution of the mimicking problem. The result was that during the entire three years which started from 1958 China was not to be able to deliver a single qualified aircraft, and delayed the prompt update to air force equippment. At the same time, as it also delayed the test flights to succeed the JJ-1 experimental work, it affected the aircraft industry development.

The East Wind 113 research and development was seriously divorced from China's reality. For example, this kind of Aircraft Design velocity requires to surpass the thermal barrier, but at that time China could not have solved the aerodynamic center heat and the thermal reaction problem. Outside the aircraft cockpit the temperature would be 190 degrees [Celcius], while inside it would need to be 20 degrees - what material would be used. The ministry of construction once arranged 16 units to carry on the research, spent more than one year of time, and yet discovered no solution. As for dynamic system aspect problem, is more complex, before "turbojet" - 6 engine's turbine wheels, temperature only then about 800 degrees, but the DF-113" used the "814" the engine, which would reaches temperatures as high as 950 degrees.

Placing hopes in researching a brand-new advanced engine in the Aircraft Design process was not very realistic. China was really arrogant to believe that it was really capable of making such an aircraft in 1961.