The original Flying Tigers was founded by American flight instructor claire lee chennault.
Chennault
Chennault was born in Texas on September 6th, 1893. 1937 In early July, Chennault arrived in China to inspect the air force. A few days later, the Sino-Japanese war broke out in an all-round way. Chennault accepted Song Meiling's suggestion, established an aviation school in the suburb of Kunming, and trained the China Air Force according to US military standards. He also actively assisted the Japanese Air Force to fight and personally flew the plane to fight. Due to Japan's diplomatic pressure, Chennault's activities gradually turned to private. 194 1 year, with the secret support of Roosevelt's government, Chennault recruited American pilots and mechanics in the name of private institutions and participated in the war as civilians. In July and 10, more than 200 people came in two batches, most of whom were brave, adventurous and informal young people. Because they are not regular troops in form, on the contrary, their tactical research and training are free. Soon after, they tried their hand in Kunming and beat the Japanese fighter plane out of the water in the first battle. Since then, they have repeatedly achieved good results in shooting down Japanese fighters. In the 3 1 air combat, members of the Flying Tigers of the Volunteers destroyed 2 17 enemy planes with 5 to 20 available P-40 fighters, and only lost 14. The emblem of the Flying Tigers and the shark-headed fighter of the American Volunteer Air Force of China are the first in the world, and their nickname "Flying Tigers" is also a household name. At that time, the Japanese controlled the port and transportation system in China, which almost isolated the Kuomintang government from the outside world. This small group of air combat personnel are flying shabby old planes. Although fuel, spare parts and pilots are often in short supply, they continue to defeat the Japanese Air Force, which is much larger and better equipped than them. They airlifted supplies, provided air cover on the Yunnan-Myanmar highway, and fought the Japanese in most parts of China. 1On July 4th, 942, the Flying Tigers were incorporated into the US Air Force 10, and became the backbone of the US Air Force's task force in China. Chennault was reorganized into 14 air force in March, 1943, and Chennault was later promoted to major general. From the end of 194 1 to July of 1942, the Flying Tigers * * shot down nearly 300 Japanese planes during their operations in China, of which 24 were killed or missing in battle. From May 1942 to September 1945, the American Volunteer Air Force took three flights. The air defense in Kunming and Yangon, the hubs at the southern end, also helped China transport materials during this period. 1943, the Volunteer Air Force was changed to the No.1 14 Air Force, which not only helped to set up the Japanese Air Force to fight against China, but also helped to fly over the Himalayas and pick up strategic materials from India to China, breaking through the Japanese blockade. At that time, it was called the "Hump Route", with a total length of more than 800 kilometers, crossing the Himalayas and walking along the mountain. 500-5500m up and down, with the highest elevation of 7000m, from Tingjiang in Assam, India, to Kunming and Chongqing in China via Myanmar. When the transport plane flies over the peaks of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, it cannot reach the necessary height and can only walk through the canyon. The flight route is wavy, like a hump, hence the name hump route. Aircraft often have strong airflow changes, and it is difficult to find a forced landing in case of an accident. It will also fall into the uninhabited jungle and it will be difficult to survive. The air interception of Japanese aircraft also poses a great threat to the escort team. On this route, China and the United States have transported 800,000 tons of urgently needed materials to the battlefield in China for more than three years, with 33,477 personnel, 563 aircraft lost by the Air Force and more than 500 people sacrificed/kloc-0. The No.1 14 Air Force also cooperated with the fighting of China Army until the end of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. The 14 air force * * * shot down 2,600 Japanese enemy planes, sank or seriously damaged 2.23 million tons of enemy merchant ships, 44 warships, inland river vessels with tonnage less than 1000 tons13,000 ships, and killed 66,700 Japanese officers and men. Due to differences with some politicians, when War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression was about to win, Chennault was forced to resign, and most of the Flying Tigers were awarded by the China government.
Awards, more than a dozen pilots were awarded the Flying Cross by the American and British governments. In the past two decades, Sino-US relations have improved, and the historical facts of the Anti-Japanese War have been revealed one after another. Chennault and the Flying Tigers were highly praised for their contributions in War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. Many surviving former Flying Tigers members returned to China to look for the wreckage and the remains of their comrades. The P-40 aircraft was founded by Liu Hongping, which was the main equipment of the Flying Tigers and the main fighter of the US military in the early Pacific War. This fighter is equipped with 1 water-cooled piston engine, streamlined fuselage and huge radiator under the nose, which constitutes the beautiful shape of the fighter. The lower wing of the trapezoid is equipped with weapons, which can put away the rear three-point landing gear. Its maximum speed is 552 km/h. During World War II, the main opponent of the P-40 was the Japanese Zero fighter. Comparatively speaking, the P-40 is not as maneuverable as the Japanese Zero fighter, but its dive speed is higher. Therefore, the Flying Tigers often use high-speed dive and hit-and-run tactics to avoid entanglement with Zero fighters. The flying tigers' P-40 plane is painted with scary shark mouths and winged flying tigers' logo to demoralize the Japanese. In the 3 1 air combat before the Flying Tigers merged into the No.4/kloc-0 air force, 5 to 20 combat troops * * * destroyed more than 200 enemy planes, only losing more than 10. P-40 series aircraft have participated in the major battlefields of World War II and are important collections in the field of aviation natural history. During World War II, * * * produced 13738 such planes, and now more than 70 of them are in the hands of museums and collectors. On July 4th, 1942, the American Volunteer Team (Flying Tigers-the explanation will not be repeated below) received the order at midnight that day.
P-40 equipped by the Flying Tigers
It was dissolved at 00. Ironically, the American Volunteers are still fighting in the air this day! All day, Chennault was issuing orders and drafting official documents. After work, Chennault attended the farewell banquet, the closing ceremony of the American Volunteer Team, and informed all the volunteer team members who could attend the dinner that they had to go. Politicians and military representatives from all walks of life attended the dinner, and Chongqing citizens blessed the volunteer team like a festival. The dinner was hosted by Huang. At the beginning of the dinner, the band played "Ah, Little Bethlehem", and some volunteers sang along with the music. The host of the evening party read out the results of the American Volunteer Team: "Since its establishment, the American Volunteer Team has fought in Myanmar, Indian zhina, Thailand and China for seven months, shooting down 299 Japanese planes and injuring 153 people. Four pilots of the American Volunteers died in air combat, six died in anti-aircraft guns, three died in enemy bombs, three were captured, and 10 died in an air crash. American Volunteer Team * * lost 12 planes in air combat and 6 1 plane on the ground (including 22 fighters that were self-destructed when retreating) ... "When the Flying Tigers were founded, Chennault organized the Flying Tigers into three squadrons according to the signs on the players' planes (the flying tigers were painted on the planes). The first squadron consists of former army pilots, and the captain is Robert. The second squadron, nicknamed "Panda Team", was commanded by Jack newkirk. The third squadron consists of pilots from the army, navy and marine corps, named "Hell Angel", with Awit Olson as the squadron commander.