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Osprey Aircraft of the Aces #126
Aces of the Republic of China Air Force
The ace pilots of the Republic of China Air Force have long been shrouded in mystery and obscurity, as their retreat to Taiwan in 1949 and a blanket martial law made records of the RoCAF all but impossible to access. Now, for the first time, the colorful story of these aces can finally be told. Using the latest research based on released archival information and full-color illustrations, this book charts the history of the top scoring pilots of the RoCAF from the beginning of the gruelling, eight-year Sino-Japanese War to the conclusion of the Civil War against the Chinese Communists. Beginning as a ragged and very disparate group of planes and pilots drawn from various provincial air forces, the RoCAF gradually became standardised and was brought under American tutelage. Altogether it produced 17 aces who scored kills while flying a startling variety of aircraft, from biplanes to F-86 Sabres.
96 pages, Paperback
First published May 19, 2015
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September 25, 2020
This book has enlightened me to a great extent about the contributions of Chinese fighter pilots (along with Western fighter pilots of Chinese ancestry) during the Sino-Japanese War of 1937-45.
Prior to reading "ACES OF THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA AIR FORCE", I had been under the impression that it was mainly mercenary fighter pilots from the West who fought against the Japanese in the skies over China. Certainly, mercenary pilots (German, some French, Russian, and American) served with the Chinese Air Force (CAF). But there were also significant numbers of Chinese who were trained as fighter pilots (in China, the Soviet Union, and surprisingly in a few instances, in Japan itself - and following the U.S. entry into WWII, in the U.S. and at U.S. Army Air Force bases in India) who distinguished themselves flying a wide variety of fighters in combat -- American, Russian, British, French, and a few Fiat CR 32 biplane fighters China had received from Italy during the 1930s. Indeed, many of these Chinese fighter pilots would go on to form the nucleus of a CAF that would later fight against the Chinese Communists after 1949 from Taiwan (where the Republic of China settled following its expulsion from the Mainland by Mao Zedong).
"ACES OF THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA AIR FORCE" is also replete with lots of photos and illustrations of aircraft and CAF pilots that finally bring to light a history of the CAF that until recently had been largely kept under wraps by the Republic of China. (One fact that I loved learning from reading this book was that one of China's first fighter pilots --- Etienne Tsu --- had flown in combat during World War I with the French on the Western Front and had been credited with shooting down 3 German aircraft, as well as 'forcing down' 2 other German aircraft.)
Prior to reading "ACES OF THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA AIR FORCE", I had been under the impression that it was mainly mercenary fighter pilots from the West who fought against the Japanese in the skies over China. Certainly, mercenary pilots (German, some French, Russian, and American) served with the Chinese Air Force (CAF). But there were also significant numbers of Chinese who were trained as fighter pilots (in China, the Soviet Union, and surprisingly in a few instances, in Japan itself - and following the U.S. entry into WWII, in the U.S. and at U.S. Army Air Force bases in India) who distinguished themselves flying a wide variety of fighters in combat -- American, Russian, British, French, and a few Fiat CR 32 biplane fighters China had received from Italy during the 1930s. Indeed, many of these Chinese fighter pilots would go on to form the nucleus of a CAF that would later fight against the Chinese Communists after 1949 from Taiwan (where the Republic of China settled following its expulsion from the Mainland by Mao Zedong).
"ACES OF THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA AIR FORCE" is also replete with lots of photos and illustrations of aircraft and CAF pilots that finally bring to light a history of the CAF that until recently had been largely kept under wraps by the Republic of China. (One fact that I loved learning from reading this book was that one of China's first fighter pilots --- Etienne Tsu --- had flown in combat during World War I with the French on the Western Front and had been credited with shooting down 3 German aircraft, as well as 'forcing down' 2 other German aircraft.)
Displaying 1 of 1 review