Commemoration to be held in US Bay Area to honor WWII Flying Tigers
Category: History & Sociology
Via: buzz-of-the-orient • 5 years ago • 5 commentsBy: Xinhua. No Author Indicated
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Commemoration to be held in US Bay Area to honor WWII Flying Tigers
Members of the 1st American Volunteer Group, better known as the Flying Tigers, gather for a group photo at Zhijiang airport in Hunan province during World War II. [Photo/Xinhua]
SAN FRANCISCO - The city of Dublin in US San Francisco Bay Area will host a commemorative event later this week to honor the American Flying Tigers who fought invading Japanese troops in China during World War II (WWII), organizers said Thursday.
The event, which will be co-hosted by the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation, will commemorate the battle of the Flying Tigers in China on Dec. 20, 1941, following Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on Dec. 7 that year.
The organizers said a short documentary about the war, a symposium, a photo exhibition, and art performances will be held to pay tribute to the WWII veterans and Flying Tigers airmen.
A pilot will stage a historic flight of a restored WWII P-40N aircraft as part of the commemoration at the Livermore Municipal Airport in East Bay, the organizers said.
"This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States, and the foundation has for the past 24 years been committed to promoting the common heritage that was forged in China during the Second World War," said Jeffrey Greene, chairman of the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation.
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The Flying Tigers were based in Chongqing, the city where I live. About 12 years ago I visited the Chongqing home of the American in charge of those American airmen, General Stilwell, which was made into a commemorative museum for the Flying Tigers - it is located on a mountainside. In this photo I am standing beside one of the remaining live Chinese Flying Tiger pilots. He is standing in front of poster that shows him with his family back in those days, and on the left, General Stilwell in a meeting. He used to fly cargo planes carrying supplies "over the hump" (mountains) to Burma (now called Myanmar). It was a dangerous journey, and not many survived it. It was fascinating to hear his stories.
Good stuff Buzz. It really was a World War wasn't it? I am confident that we won't be seeing first world powers going at each other ever again.
Well, yes, it was back in the days when America tried to defend China, rather than now trying to damage it.
Back in those days there was a lot going on in China. We had to choose which China.
This was posted as a follow-up article of the event:
SAN FRANCISCO - The city of Dublin in the US San Francisco Bay Area on Saturday honored the historical contributions of the American Flying Tigers who fought invading Japanese troops in China during World War II (WWII).
The commemorative event, co-hosted by the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation, paid tribute to members of the First American Volunteer Group, better known as the Flying Tigers, especially for their first victorious battle in China on Dec 20, 1941, when they shot down six of 10 Japanese bombers over Kunming, Yunnan province in Southwest China without losing any of their own.
The Flying Tigers' first triumph in China came 13 days after Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, which was also commemorated at Saturday's event.
Chinese Consul General in San Francisco Wang Donghua said the Chinese people will not forget the members of the Flying Tigers who fought together with them to resist the invasion of China by Japanese troops.
"Their heroic combats made important contributions to the Chinese people's war of resistance against Japan and to the world's anti-fascist war at large," Wang said.
Dublin Mayor David Haubert told Xinhua that the event happened on "a great day" to celebrate the legend of the Flying Tigers at the Livermore Airport in California, and that people are remembering them for how they saved the world and helped China defeat the Japanese invaders.
"When we remember the past and how closely we fought together as brothers side by side, that helps us remember how we can be like that again today," Haubert added.
Windsor Buzza, commanding general of the 91st Training Division of the US Army Reserve, said the first triumphant combat of the Flying Tigers in China dealt a far earlier and quicker blow than the Japanese had thought the US and Chinese troops were capable of.
He stressed that what the US and Chinese forces were able to achieve by cooperating together is a very good lesson for the two countries today.
"There's much more that can be gained together by cooperation and a cooperative spirit than there can be through competition or conflict," he said.
Harry Moyer, a 99-year-old veteran Flying Tigers member, recalled his war career including his bombing missions against Japan during WWII, saying it is "rewarding" to think the spirit of the Flying Tigers still continues as an inspiration.
"The spirit of the Flying Tigers bolstered the connection between the people of America and China and also between the two countries," he said.