The ship test that took place on the last day of Commonwealth Year 832 officially ended at five in the afternoon.
The nimble warship, provisionally designated R33-1, had demonstrated truly astonishing performance in front of senior officials from the shipbuilders and the military.
Lieutenant General Carter found it hard to imagine what sort of effect these ultra-high-speed light warships might have on the battlefield. But at the very least, he was sure the new ship was already good enough to replace all assault ships and strike ships.
If the price was reasonable, he was even prepared to lobby the old men on the Defense Committee to buy them in bulk, at least to replace the old light warships serving with the two mainstays of the fleet: the Solar System Fleet and the Outer Ring Fleet.
However, the seasoned senior officer soon realized that if everything that ought to be done could actually be done, the entire universe would have been at peace long ago. In the real world, right and wrong had always been relative terms.
As they had discussed earlier, New Jade Gate Shipyard and Tulong Machinery Works had been established barely a year ago. They had no foothold on Earth and were not some big shot's private piggy bank. A factory like that, being close to the front lines, might get repair and ship-material contracts, but how could it possibly win an order to replace the fleet's ships?
Or, put another way, winning such an order might actually bring them trouble.
Even so, Lieutenant General Carter still thought it was a shame. Lowering his voice, he said, "...Actually, you could try looking for a breakthrough with the local fleets in the star districts."
The two veteran factory directors exchanged a glance. Only then did they realize that, as