Flying Tigers

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This article concerns the 1st American Volunteer Group, a World War II unit known as “The Flying Tigers.” For follow-on units, see the AVG main heading; for other uses of the name, see Flying Tigers (disambiguation).

American Volunteer Group
Curtiss P-40 fighter aircraft of the American Volunteer Group, painted with the shark-face emblem and the 12-point sun of the Chinese Air Force.
Active	20 December 1941–14 July 1942
Country	Republic of China
Allegiance	Volunteers
Branch	Air force
Type	Fighter group
Size	3 squadrons; Approx. 90 aircraft
Nickname	“The Flying Tigers”
Commanders
Notable commanders	Claire Chennault

Flying Tigers was the nickname of the 1st American Volunteer Group (AVG) that operated within the Chinese Air Force in 1941 and 1942. In essence, the group was a private military contractor, although they have also been called mercenaries. Its members were former United States Army (USAAF), Navy (USN), and Marine Corps (USMC) pilots and ground crew, recruited under Presidential approval and commanded by Claire Chennault. The group consisted of three fighter squadrons that trained in Burma before the American entry into World War II with the intention of defending China against Japanese forces.

The Tigers' shark-faced fighters remain among the most recognizable of any individual combat aircraft of World War II, and they demonstrated innovative tactical victories when the news in the U.S. was filled with little more than stories of defeat at the hands of the Japanese forces.

The group first saw combat on 20 December 1941, 12 days after Pearl Harbor (local time). It achieved notable success during the lowest period of the war for U.S. and Allied Forces, giving hope to Americans that they would eventually succeed against the Japanese. The Tigers were credited with destroying almost 300 aircraft while losing only 14 pilots on combat missions. In July 1942, the AVG replaced by the U.S. Army 23rd Fighter Group, which was later absorbed into the U.S. 14th Air Force with General Chennault as commander. The 23rd Group went on to achieve similar combat success, while retaining the nose art and nickname of the volunteer unit.

[edit] History

The Flying Tigers

The AVG was largely the creation of Claire L. Chennault, a retired U.S. Army Air Corps officer who became military aviation advisor to Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek in the Sino-Japanese War. Chennault's retirement from the U.S. Army, ostensibly for physical disability, probably owed much to the unpopularity of his advocacy of "pursuit" aviation over bombardment, contrary to the beliefs of the upper echelons of the USAAC, and to his hope that he could implement his theories in China.^[1] Even before he retired, Chennault had been approached by Chinese Air Force (CAF) officials and offered the opportunity to undertake the training and organization of the CAF. He also saw it as a "chance to put his ideas into effect" in China.^[2][1]

The Soviet Union supplied fighter and bomber squadrons to China, starting at the end of 1937, but the Russian units were mostly withdrawn from China in 1940. Chiang then asked for American combat aircraft and U.S. pilots to fly them. Since the U.S. was not at war, this could not happen openly, but the request was approved by President Franklin D. Roosevelt himself. The resulting clandestine operation was organized in large part by Lauchlin Currie, a young economist in the White House, and by Roosevelt intimate Thomas G. Corcoran. (Currie's assistant was John King Fairbank, who later became America's preeminent Asian scholar.) Financing was handled by China Defense Supplies – primarily Tommy Corcoran's creation – with money loaned by the U.S. government. Purchases were then made by the Chinese under the "Cash and Carry" provision of the Neutrality Act of 1939. ^[3]

A “blood chit” issued to the American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers) pilots. The Chinese characters read: “This foreign person has come to China to help in the war effort. Soldiers and civilians, one and all, should rescue, protect, and provide him medical care.” (R.E. Baldwin Collection)

[edit] Formation of the AVG

Chennault spent the winter of 1940–1941 in Washington, supervising the purchase of 100 Curtiss P-40 fighters (diverted from a Royal Air Force order) and the recruiting of 100 pilots and about 200 ground crewmen. Forty pilots came from the Army Air Corps, although one was refused a passport because he had earlier flown as a mercenary in Spain. (Ten more army flight instructors were hired as check pilots for Chinese cadets, and some of these would ultimately join the AVG’s combat squadrons.) Sixty pilots came from the Navy and Marine Corps.

The volunteer pilots were discharged from the American armed services, to be employed for "training and instruction" by a private military contractor, the Central Aircraft Manufacturing Company, which paid them $600 a month for pilot officer, $675 a month for flight leader, and $750 for squadron leader, although no pilot was recruited at this level.^[4] (A USAAF captain in 1942, with flight and overseas pay, earned $347 a month.)^[5] The pilots were also orally promised a bounty of $500 for each enemy aircraft shot down.

Although sometimes regarded as a mercenary unit, the AVG had government funding and approval. Most histories of the Flying Tigers indicate that on 15 April 1941, President Roosevelt signed a "secret executive order" authorizing servicemen on active duty to resign from the U.S. military in order to sign up for the AVG. However, Flying Tigers historian Daniel Ford could find no evidence that such an order ever existed, and he argued that "a wink and a nod" was more the president's style.^[6] In any event, the AVG was organized and in part directed out of the White House until the unit was disbanded.

The 1st American Volunteer Group (AVG) was formed with plans for a follow-on bomber group and second fighter group that were aborted after the Pearl Harbor attack. During the summer and fall 1941, some 300 men carrying civilian passports that boarded ships destined for Burma. They were initially based at a British airfield in Toungoo for training while their aircraft were assembled and test flown. Chennault set up schoolhouse type conditions which was made all the more necessary because many pilots had "lied about their flying experience, claiming pursuit experience when they had flown only bombers and sometimes much less powerful airplanes."^[4] They called Chennault, "the Old Man" due to his much older age and leathery exterior obtained from years flying open cockpit pursuit aircraft in the Army Air Corps. Most believed that Chennault had flown as a fighter pilot in China, although stories that he was a combat ace are probably apocryphal.^[2]

[edit] Curtiss P-40

Main article: Curtiss P-40

American P-40E Warhawk decorated with the famous sharkmouth nose art that had identified the AVG.

AVG fighter aircraft came from a Curtiss assembly line producing Tomahawk IIB models for the Royal Air Force in North Africa. The Tomahawk IIB was essentially the same variant as the U.S. Army's earlier P-40B model. (The major difference was that the fuel tanks on the P-40B/Tomahawk IIA were protected by an exterior rubber membrane, while those on the IIB had an interior membrane, believed by the RAF to be more effective at sealing leaks.) The fighters were purchased without "government-furnished equipment" such as reflector gunsights, radios and wing guns; the lack of these items caused continual difficulties for the AVG in Burma and China.

The 100 P-40 aircraft were crated and sent to Burma on third country freighters during spring 1941. At Rangoon, they were unloaded, assembled and test flown by personnel of Central Aircraft Manufacturing Company (CAMCO) before being delivered to the AVG training unit at Toungoo. One crate was dropped into the water and a wing assembly was ruined by salt water immersion, so CAMCO was able to deliver only 99 Tomahawks before war broke out. (Many of those were destroyed in training accidents.) The 100th fuselage was trucked to a CAMCO plant in Loiwing, China, and later made whole with parts from damaged aircraft. Shortages in equipment with spare parts almost impossible to obtain in Burma along with the slow introduction of replacement fighter aircraft were continual impediments although the AVG did receive 50 replacement P-40E fighters from USAAF stocks toward the end of its combat tour.

[edit] Chennault fighter doctrine

Chennault preached a radically different approach to air combat based on his study of Japanese tactics and equipment, his observation of the tactics used by Russian pilots in China, and his judgment of the strengths and weaknesses of his own aircraft and pilots. The actual average strength of the AVG was never more than 62 combat-ready pilots and fighters. Although he faced serious obstacles since many AVG pilots were inexperienced and a few quit at the first opportunity, however, Chennault made a virtue out of these disadvantages, shifting unsuitable pilots to staff jobs and always ensuring that he had a squadron or two in reserve.

His doctrine called for pilots to take on enemy aircraft in teams from an altitude advantage, since their aircraft were not as maneuverable or as numerous as the Japanese fighters they would encounter. He prohibited his pilots from entering into a turning fight with the nimble Japanese fighters, telling them to execute a diving or slashing attack and to dive away to set up for another attack. This "dive-and-zoom" technique was contrary to what the men had learned in U.S. service as well as what the Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots in Burma had been taught; it had been used successfully, however, by Russian units serving with the Chinese Air Force.^[7]

The P-40's good qualities included pilot armor, self-sealing fuel tanks, sturdy construction, heavy armament (two 50-cal. and four 30-cal. machine guns), and a higher diving speed than most Japanese aircraft – qualities that could be used to advantage in accordance with Chennault's combat tactics. Chennault created an early warning network of spotters that would give his fighters time to take off and climb to a superior altitude where this tactic could be executed.^[8]

AVG fighter aircraft were painted with a large shark face on the front of the aircraft. This was done after pilots saw a photograph of No. 112 Squadron RAF in North Africa sporting a fierce shark mouth, which in turn had adopted the shark motif from German pilots flying Messerschmitt Bf-110 fighters in Crete. About the same time, the AVG was dubbed "The Flying Tigers" by their Washington support group, called China Defense Supplies.

[edit] Combat history

The port of Rangoon in Burma and the Burma Road leading from there to China were of crucial importance for the Republic of China, as the eastern regions of China were under Japanese occupation so virtually all of the foreign matériel destined for the armed forces of the Republic arrived via that port. By November 1941, when the pilots were trained and most of the P-40s had arrived in Asia, the Flying Tigers were divided into three squadrons: 1st Squadron (“Adam & Eves”); 2nd Squadron (“Panda Bears”) and 3rd Squadron (“Hell’s Angels”).^[4] They were assigned to opposite ends of the Burma Road to protect this vital line of communications. Two squadrons were based at Kunming in China and a third at Mingaladon Airport near Rangoon. When the United States officially entered the war, the AVG had 82 pilots and 79 aircraft, although not all were combat-ready.

The AVG had its first combat on 20 December 1941, when aircraft of the 1st and 2nd squadrons intercepted 10 unescorted Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily" bombers of the 21st Hikotai raiding Kunming. Three of the Japanese bombers were shot down near Kunming and a fourth was damaged so severely that it crashed before returning to its airfield at Hanoi. No P-40s were lost through enemy action, and the bombers jettisoned their loads before reaching their target. Furthermore, the Japanese discontinued their raids on Kunming while the AVG was based there.

[edit] Defense of Rangoon

At this time, the focus of Japan's offensive efforts in the AVG's coverage area was southern Burma. The 3rd Squadron — 18 aircraft strong — defended Rangoon from 23 December-25. On 23 December, Mitsubishi Ki-21 "Sally" heavy bombers of the 60th, 62nd and 98th Sentais, along with single-engined Mitsubishi Ki-30 "Ann" attack bombers of the 31st Sentai, sortied against Rangoon. They were escorted by Nakajima Ki-27 "Nate" fighters of the 77th Sentai. The JAAF formation was intercepted by the AVG and RAF Brewster Buffalos of 67 Squadron. Eight Ki-21s were shot down for the loss of three AVG P-40s. The 60th Sentai was particularly hard hit — it lost five out of the 15 bombers it had dispatched. But Rangoon and Mingaladon airfield were successfully bombed, with the city suffering more than a thousand dead. Two Buffalos and two P-40s were destroyed on the ground, and one P-40 crashed when it attempted to land on a bomb-damaged runway.

On 25 December, the JAAF returned, reinforced by Ki-21s of the 12th Sentai and Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusas of the 64th Sentai. Hayabusa, Japanese for "Peregrine Falcon", was code named "Oscar" by Allied pilots. A total of 63 bombers escorted by 25 fighters were committed. These were intercepted by 12 P-40s of the AVG's 3rd Squadron and 15 Buffalos of 67 Squadron. Ten Japanese aircraft were lost in the resulting battle: two Ki-43s, four Ki-27s and four Ki-21s. The Allies lost five Buffalos and three P-40s. Mingaladon airfield was once again damaged, and eight Buffalos were destroyed on the ground.

After its losses in the 23-25 December battles, the 3rd Squadron was relieved by the 2nd Squadron "Panda Bears", which carried out a series of raids on JAAF airbases in Thailand. The Japanese had moved aircraft to Malaya to finish off Singapore, and its remaining aircraft in the area (the 77th, 31st and 62nd Sentais) launched fighter sweeps and counter raids on the Allied airfields at Mingaladon.

On 12 January, the Japanese launched their Burma Campaign. Significantly outnumbered, the AVG was gradually reduced through attrition, but often exacted a disproportionate toll of their attackers. On 24 January, six Ki-21s of the 14th Sentai escorted by Ki-27s attacked Mingaladon. All the Ki-21s were shot down by the AVG and RAF defenders. On 28 January, a fighter sweep of 37 Ki-27s was engaged by 16 AVG P-40s and two RAF fighters. Three "Nates" were shot down for the loss of two P-40s. The next day, another sweep of 20 Ki-27s of the 70th Sentai was met by 10 Allied fighters (eight P-40s and two Hawker Hurricanes). Four were shot down for the loss of no Allied aircraft.

Despite these minor victories and Chennault's reinforcement of the "Panda Bears" with pilots from the "Adam and Eves", by mid-February, only 10 P-40s were still operational at Mingaladon. Commonwealth troops retreated before the Japanese onslaught, and the AVG was pressed into the ground attack role to support them. One unfortunate result of these missions was a prolonged air attack on a suspected Japanese column on 21 February that turned out to consist of Commonwealth troops. More than 100 Allied lives were lost in this friendly fire incident. On 27 February, after hearing that the RAF was retreating and pulling out its radar equipment, the AVG withdrew to bases in northern Burma.

It is estimated that while defending Rangoon, the AVG destroyed 50 Japanese aircraft while losing 20 P-40s. Ten AVG pilots were either killed or listed as missing. This was a very credible performance, especially when considering that the AVG was outnumbered and faced experienced and fully trained Japanese pilots. The main disadvantage of JAAF fighter pilots of this period was the near-obsolescence of their predominant fighter type in the theater, the Ki-27. Although it was more maneuverable than the P-40, its armament and performance was inferior. In fact, its cruising speed was less than that of the Ki-21 bombers it was intended to escort.

[edit] Retreat into China

After Rangoon was lost to the Japanese at the end of February, the AVG relocated to Magwe, a small British airfield more than 300 miles north of Rangoon. Chennault started moving elements of the now reconstituted 3rd Squadron to Magwe as reinforcement to his worn down 1st and 2nd squadrons. Aircraft attrition became so high that at this point, individual squadron distinctions became meaningless, and all three squadrons had elements based there, along with a number of RAF aircraft. In total, the Allies had 38 aircraft, including eight P-40s and 15 Hawker Hurricanes. Opposing them were 271 Japanese aircraft, including 115 fighters. Although the AVG and the RAF scored some successes against the JAAF, Magwe was continuously bombed, including a very heavy raid on 21 March by 151 bombers and fighters. On 23 March with only four aircraft left, the AVG was forced to relocate to Loiwing, just across the Chinese border.

Reinforced by new P-40E "Kittyhawks" and by repaired aircraft from the AVG's excellent maintenance group, 12 P-40s were based at Loiwing on 8 April. Despite the long retreats, their losses and incessant air combat, the AVG still retained their abilities. That day, 12 Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusas from the 64th Sentai raided the base. In the ensuing series of dogfights, four Ki-43s were downed in exchange for one P-40E destroyed on the ground. During this period, Chinese and American commanders pressured Chennault to order his pilots to undertake so-called "morale missions". These were overflights and ground attacks intended to raise the morale of hard-pressed Chinese soldiers by showing they were getting air support. The AVG's pilots seethed with resentment at these dangerous missions (which some considered useless), a feeling which culminated in the so-called "Pilot's Revolt" of mid-April. Chennault suppressed the "revolt" and ordered the ground attack missions to continue. But despite their efforts, the Allied situation in Burma continued to deteriorate. On 29 April the AVG was ordered to evacuate Loiwing and relocate to Baoshan in China.

Like the AVG's other bases, Baoshan was repeatedly bombed by the Japanese Army Air Force. Still, the AVG scored against their JAAF tormentors, bringing down four "Nates" of the 11th Sentai and two "Anns" on 5 May. By 4 May, the successful Japanese Burma offensive was winding down, except for mopping up actions. One of these was an attempt by a regiment of the Japanese 56th division to drive for Kunming, an effort that was stopped by the Chinese army operating with strong air support from the AVG. Despite being on the defensive, the AVG continued to harass the JAAF with raids on their Vietnamese bases.

[edit] Last combats

With the Burma campaign over, Chennault redeployed his squadrons to provide air protection for China. The Doolittle Raid had prompted the Japanese to launch an offensive to seize AVG air bases that could be used as launching points for attacks on the Japanese homeland. By 1 June, personnel that would form the nucleus of the new USAAF 23rd Fighter Group (the AVG's replacement) were beginning to trickle into the theater. Some of the last missions the AVG flew were defending Guilin against raids conducted by JAAF Nates, Lilies and new Kawasaki Ki-45 Toryu "Nick" heavy fighters. The AVG's last combat was over Hengyang on the day it was disbanded, 4 July. In this final action, four Ki-27s were shot down for no loss.

[edit] Assessment of the AVG

The AVG was officially credited with 297 enemy aircraft destroyed, including 229 in the air, based on the Chennault papers, combat reports, and CAMCO records.^[9] Another researcher interviewed Japanese veterans that were engaged with the AVG and came up with a much lower number of victories (115) based on Japanese accounts.^[10]

Flight leader and fighter ace Robert "R.T." Smith stands next to his P-40 fighter at Kunming, China. The “Flying Tiger” insignia was created by the Walt Disney Company.

Fourteen pilots were killed in action, captured, or disappeared on combat missions, two died of wounds sustained in bombing raids and six were killed in accidents during the Flying Tigers' existence as a combat force.

Even when using the lower figure of Japanese aircraft downed, the AVG's kill ratio was still superior to that achieved by contemporary Allied air groups in Malaya, the Philippines and elsewhere. The AVG's success is all the more remarkable since they were outnumbered by Japanese fighters in almost all of their engagements. While it is true that the AVG's P-40s were arguably superior to the JAAF's Ki-27s, the AVG's kill ratio against modern Ki-43s was still in its favor. In Flying Tigers: Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942, Daniel Ford attributes the AVG's success to morale and group esprit. He notes that its pilots were "triple volunteers" who had volunteered for service with the U.S. military, the AVG, and brutal fighting in Burma. The result was a corps of experienced and skilled volunteer pilots who wanted to fight.

However success with the P-40 in this theater of war was not at all unique to the AVG. Other P-40 equipped squadrons operating in the CBI (China / Burma / India theater) notably, the 10th and 14th air forces, did extremely well against the Japanese Air Force. P-40s shot down 973 enemy aircraft in theater, 64.8 percent of all the enemy aircraft lost.^[11] Aviation historian Carl Molesworth stated that "...the P-40 simply dominated the skies over Burma and China. They were able to establish air superiority over free China, northern Burma and the Assam valley of India in 1942, and they never relinquished it." The postwar reputation of the P-40 may have been undeserved. With suitable tactics the P-40 did well in many theaters, and numerous aces and double aces flew the aircraft from Australia, the UK, New Zealand, South Africa, the United States and the Soviet Union.

[edit] Notable AVG personalities

One of the more famous pilots was Gregory “Pappy” Boyington, who was discharged from the AVG in April 1942 and returned to active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps. He went on to command the successful “Black Sheep” Squadron in the Solomon Islands, an outfit with many similarities to the Flying Tigers, and was one of two AVG veterans (the other being James Howard of the USAAF) to be awarded the Medal of Honor. Other notable AVG veterans were David Lee "Tex" Hill, later commander of the USAAF 23rd Fighter Group; Charles Older, who postwar earned a law degree, became a California Superior Court judge, and presided at the murder trial of Charles Manson; and Kenneth Jernstedt, long-time Oregon legislator and mayor of his home town of Hood River. Robert Prescott founded Flying Tiger Line as a cargo carrier, along with other AVG pilots. Allen "Bert" Christman, killed at Rangoon in January 1942, had early scripted and drawn the Scorchy Smith and Sandman comic strips. The journalist Joseph Alsop served as Chennault's "staff secretary" while the AVG trained at Rangoon; he was interned at Hong Kong on Christmas Day 1941.

[edit] Transition into the USAAF

The success of the AVG led to negotiations in spring 1942 to induct the unit into the USAAF with Chennault as the commander. Chennault was reinstated into the USAAF as a colonel and immediately promoted to brigadier general as commander of tactical U.S. Army Air Forces units in China, (initially designated the "China Air Task Force" and later redesignated the 14th Air Force), while continuing to command the AVG by virtue of his position in the Chinese Air Force. On 4 July 1942, the AVG was replaced by the 23rd Fighter Group. Not all of the AVG pilots decided to remain with the unit as a result of the strong arm tactics by the USAAF general sent to negotiate with them. However, five pilots accepted commissions in China including "Tex" Hill, one of Chennault's most loyal devotees, with others remaining for a two-week transition period. (U.S. airmen and the press continued to use the “Flying Tiger” name to refer to USAAF units in China to the end of the war, and the name continues to be applied to certain air force and army aviation squadrons.) Most AVG pilots became transport pilots in China, went back to America into civilian jobs, or rejoined the military services and fought elsewhere in the war.

One of the pilots drawn to the success of the AVG was Robert Lee Scott, Jr. who was flying supplies into Kunming over the Hump from India. He convinced Chennault to loan him a P-40 which he began flying as a one man air force to protect the supply route. His aggressiveness and success led to Chennault recruiting him as commander of the 23rd Fighter Group. Scott brought recognition to his exploits and the Flying Tigers with his best selling book God is My Co-pilot that was also made into a popular movie.

[edit] Recognition of the AVG

Just before their 50th reunion in 1992, the AVG veterans were retroactively recognized as members of the U.S. military services during the seven months the group was in combat against the Japanese. The AVG was then awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for "professionalism, dedication to duty, and extraordinary heroism." In 1996, the U.S. Air Force awarded the pilots the Distinguished Flying Cross and the ground crew were all awarded the Bronze Star.

Thirty-three AVG pilots and three ground crew received the Nationalist Chinese Order of the Cloud Banner, and many AVG pilots received the Nationalist Chinese Air Force Medal. Each AVG ace and double ace was awarded the Nationalist Chinese Five Star or Ten Star Wing Medal.

[edit] AVG Aces

As with all air forces, there was overclaiming by the AVG due to the confusion and speed of air combat. For example, in the big Christmas Day battle over Rangoon, AVG and RAF pilots claimed 28 Japanese aircraft while 10 were actually lost. In the same combat, Japanese Army Air Force pilots and gunners claimed 36 Allied aircraft while eight were actually shot down. It would only be after the war that true combat losses could be determined by comparing the after action and loss reports of the combatants.

Nineteen pilots were credited by the AVG with five or more air-to-air victories:^[9]

• Robert Neale: 13 victories
• David Lee "Tex" Hill: 10.25 victories
• George Burgard: 10 victories
• Robert Little: 10 victories
• Charles Older: 10 victories
• Robert T. Smith: 8.9 victories
• William McGarry: 8 victories
• Charles Bond: 7 victories
• Frank Lawlor: 7 victories
• John Newkirk: 7 victories
• Robert Hedman: 6 victories
• C. Joseph Rosbert: 6 victories
• J. Richard Rossi: 6 victories
• Robert Prescott: 5.5 victories
• Percy Bartelt: 5 victories
• William Bartling: 5 victories
• Edmund Overend: 5 victories
• Robert Sandell: 5 victories
• Robert H. Smith: 5 victories

[edit] Legacy

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[edit] Tributes and memorials

The National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, has an extensive display dedicated to the AVG. The museum's wall and glass cases contain a description of the AVG's history as well as many artifacts, including an A-2 jacket worn by an AVG pilot while flying in China, and the Flying Tigers banner presented to the AAF by the Chinese government during WWII. The museum's P-40E is displayed nearby.

The National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola, Florida also features a Flying Tiger display reflecting the fact that so many Navy and Marine Corps aviators were part of the AVG.

The AVG monument in the National Museum of the United States Air Force Memorial Garden features a large marble sculpture of a pagoda crowned with a brass model of a P-40. Below the aircraft are three balls representing the balls hoisted upon a pole used to alert the AVG of a Japanese air attack. On the pagoda's sides are etched the emblems of the AVG and 14th AF. On the sides of the memorial's base are etchings of paddy fields, the Himalayan Mountains, and scenes of daily life in China during the war. The monument stands nearly 14 feet tall.

A memorial to the AVG and the 14th AF is located at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. It depicts a P-40 in AVG markings with a bronze plaque describing the history of the AVG, and Vandenberg's role as headquarters for the 14th AF.

A memorial to the AVG in Chiang Mai, Thailand, was dedicated on 11 November 2003. The marble obelisk is inscribed on four sides with dedications to Chennault, Jack Van Kuren Newkirk, who was killed in North Thailand on 24 March 1942, Charles Mott and William McGarry, who were shot down and became Japanese POWs in Thailand.

In Taiwan, Madame Chiang Kai-Shek requested a statue of Claire Lee Chennault in the New Park of Taipei to commemorate this wartime friend after his death. Today, the statue is relocated at Hualian AFB of the ROCAF.

The Flying Tigers Memorial is located in the village of Zhijiang, Hunan Province, China and is the only museum in the world dedicated exclusively to the Flying Tigers. Zhijiang had formerly been one of Chennault's headquarters for the 14th AF. The memorial originally opened in 2003 in the former headquarters building. In 2005 the memorial was rebuilt, with displays incorporating artifacts obtained from the AVG veterans who had attended the first dedication. The memorial reopened in September 2005, with several AVG pilots and their families present at the dedication. The new memorial building is a steel and marble structure, with wide sweeping steps leading up to a platform with columns holding up the memorial's sweeping roof. Inside is a replica G-1 jacket donated by AVG pilot Richard "Dick" Rossi. On the memorial's back wall, etched in black marble, are the names of all members of the Flying Tigers (AVG, 75th Fighter Squadron, 14th Air Force) who died in China. Photos of AVG pilots and staff are displayed throughout the museum, as well as illuminated paintings of AVG scenes by artists John Shaw and Roy Grinnell. On one wall, a 1/4 scale model of the nose of a P-40 protrudes with its propellers spinning and engine puffing smoke, while below a diorama depicts the village of Zhijiang being attacked by Japanese bombers.

In 2005, the city of Kunming held a ceremony memorializing the history of the Flying Tigers in China. Many pilots of that time or their generation came to Kunming to commemorate that period in history.

[edit] Flying Tigers wrecks

The wreckage of a P-40 with CAF serial number P-8115 is on display in Chiang Mai,Thailand. The aircraft is believed to be that flown by William “Mac” McGarry when he was hit by anti-aircraft fire while flying top cover over Chiang Mai on 24 March 1942. The aircraft crashed into the rain forest in northern Thailand. McGarry was captured and interrogated, and spent most of the war in a Thai prison. Toward the end of the war the OSS arranged for the Free Thai Movement to spirit him out of the prison to a PBY Catalina in the Gulf of Thailand. The wreck of his P-40 was discovered in 1991, and consists of the P-40's Allison engine, Hamilton Standard propeller and parts of the airframe. Today the wreckage is displayed at the Tango Squadron Wing 41 Museum in Chiang Mai, Thailand.^[12]

The wreck of another AVG P-40 is believed to be in Lake Dianchi (Lake Kunming). The fighter is believed to be a P-40E piloted by John Blackburn when it crashed into the lake on a gunnery training flight on 28 April 1942, killing the pilot. His body was recovered from the aircraft, which was submerged in 20 feet of water. In 1997 a U.S.-Chinese group called the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation was formed to locate the aircraft and possibly raise and restore it. In March 1998, they contacted the China Expedition Association about conducting the recovery operation. Over 300 aircraft are believed to have crashed into Lake Dianchi (including a second AVG P-40) so locating the aircraft proved difficult. In 2003, an aircraft believed to be Blackburn's was found embedded in nine feet of bottom silt. An effort was made in September 2005 to raise the aircraft, but the recovery was plagued with difficulties and it remains deep under the lake bottom. Since the aircraft was complete and relatively undamaged when John Blackburn's body was removed from it in 1942, it is hoped that the aircraft will be in good condition and capable of being restored, possibly to flying condition.

[edit] See also

• Development of Chinese Nationalist air force (1937-1945)
• Eagle Squadron—American volunteers in the RAF during World War II
• Kościuszko Squadron—American volunteers fighting for Poland in the Polish-Soviet War (1919-1921).
• Lafayette Escadrille—American volunteers in the French Air Service during World War I
• Second Sino-Japanese War
• History of the Republic of China
• Military of the Republic of China
• Chiang Kai-shek
• Madame Chiang Kai-shek
• Kuomintang
• Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign
• James H. Howard—Flying Tigers pilot later awarded the Medal of Honor
• Soviet Volunteer Group
• Curtiss P-40 Warhawk

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Flying Tigers

• Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation
• Annals of the Flying Tigers
• Flying Tigers Association veterans' group