On August 13, a fierce "dogfight'' of more than 60 years ago appeared at the China Aviation Museum at the foot of Beijing's Mount Yanshan. Among the audience there were pilots from China and the United States flying the "Hump Airway'' for many times, in addition to former members of the American Volunteer Group, commonly known among the Chinese as the Flying Tigers, who were transport and bomber units from the United States. World War II heroes met with each other once again in Beijing and talked of their life-and-death friendship, expressing their desire for world peace, reports the overseas edition of People's Daily.

Shake hands from across the Pacific Ocean

At 8:30am, August 13, Chinese WWII veterans, all over 80 years of age, greeted their American old comrades on the square of China Aviation Museum. They came from California, Florida and Chicago. Sixty years have passed before they came across the Pacific Ocean and shook hands again.

88-year-old Lu Yuanbin, once a pilot of "Hump Airway'', was very excited. He stretched out his hand slowly, greeting his friends from afar in English. He was not in high voice, however, what he said could be heard clearly. As workers persuaded him to sit down, he chose a middle seat a row ahead of those kept for American veterans. Sometimes, he turned his head back to look for his old comrades, nodding and smiling to them. The reporter went to him and proposed to have an interview. He was sorry to say he had no time, as he was having a careful look at every American fighter he once fought side by side with, and will remember them.

The ceremony for conferring commemorative medals started when veterans were on their seats. That was the first time since the founding of new China that medals were conferred to Sino-foreign WWII veterans in memory of the contributions they made during the Chinese war against Japanese aggression and those contributions they made to international friendship and peace after the war. Representatives of the Sino-foreign WWII heroes got on the rostrum one after another amid admiration of audience and flashing cameras, receiving the lofty honors rendered by the Chinese people.

"We once fought side by side''

Availing of the time before the simulation start, the writer interviewed two US veterans sitting near him. One of them came from California and was named as Ao. The WWII hero flew "Hump" for numerous times. Though 85 years old, he is in good health. Another one was Dick, a technician of the American Volunteer Group. The writher noticed that they watched the simulation preparations every now and then. From their eyes, the writher could see they were disquiet, as they are veterans experiencing the WWII history. So the writer whispered to Ao, "What do you want most to tell the Chinese people when recalling the past happened more than 60 years ago?''

He said, "What he most want to say to the Chinese people is that they should double their efforts to build China with industrious hands without relaxation''. He added, "As one who came through that war, I still want to say that people, including Chinese, Americans, Japanese, ROK Koreans, Russians, DPRK Koreans in all countries, should live in peace, and mankind could not afford another war''.

"I feel very happy that the people of our two countries are full of mutual favors, as we once fought side by side'', Dick said. Dick's wife sitting near told the writer that she often sent clothes, parcels and letters to Dick who was in China during the war. When his wife spoke of their three children, Dick suddenly asked the writher's age. When the writher told him his age, he said, "You are as old as my second grandson. If he were here today, you would chat and become good friends''.

Dogfight battle simulated against Japan

At about 9:50am, presenter announced the start of a World War II simulation dogfight. According to the sponsor, the performance was the largest of its kind ever held in the history of new China. More than 600 people, including 262 American veterans who fought in China and their family members as well as Chinese veterans, watched the air combat.

"Our army's airplanes happened to encounter the enemy ones being outnumbered and there was a dogfight in the sky''. Upon hearing this from the explainer on the rostrum, there came a fierce fight in the sky''. A Mustang fighter model rushed to the sky and did stunt movements, ushering in a simulation fight codenamed "China soul''. The fight is simulated in a day of early 1945 in the later stage of the WWII. The Japanese bombers accompanied by Zero fighters carried out air raids targeting our army. In their return, they encountered our army's cruising fighters and a dogfight started.

After stunt performances, models consisted of many bomb-dropping Kawasaki flew over the square and dropped bombers on the ground, and then there came flames with thick smokes over the sky. In seconds, 16 Zero fighters from Japan and eight P-51s from our army joined the battle. In the encounter, our brave air fighters fought with the enemy's. On the reviewing stands, veterans watched the fight attentively and talked about the dogfight now and then.

In the thick-smoke sky, a Japanese Zero fighter dived and rolled over continuously. A P-51 from our army followed the Zero fighter closely. Finally, the Japanese aircraft was shot down. Jimmy beside the writer shouted at Ao, "Hi! We had shot down many of them." Soon after that, many more enemy planes were either "shot down'' or "seriously damaged with fires or blasted in the air". The eight Japanese support airplanes were mostly shot down, and the planes from our army won the victory in the air encounter.

More than 40 models planes took part in the simulation fight. After 20 minutes of fierce fighting in the air, more than 20 model aircraft were either "shot down'' or crashed. Being shot, the enemy's fighters were rolled down with fires in the sky and dropped down to detonate bombs on the ground pre-set by professionals. On the spot, when each Japanese aircraft was shot down, there came warm applauses from veteran members of "Flying Tigers'' or "Hump''.

On the spot of WWII simulation fight show, there opened a show entitled "Exhibition of the Air Forces' History Against Japanese Aggression in China Battlefield during the WWII" in memory of the 60th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese war against Japanese aggression. The veterans from China and the United States entered the exhibition hall, and some times they stopped in front of some of the exhibits, pictures and plane models and told people around them about their war experiences. Veterans wrote down their words on the banner of "Remember the history by heart, never forget the past, cherish peace and create the future'', expressing their common desire for world peace.

By People's Daily Online