Zhang Jihui

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Zhang Jihui
Zhang Jihui after four victories
Native name
张积慧
Born(1927-02-10)10 February 1927
Rongcheng, Shandong, China
Died26 April 2023(2023-04-26) (aged 96)
Allegiance China
Service/branch
Years of service1945–1978
Commands held
  • 27th Aviation Division
  • 1st Aviation Corps
  • Deputy Commander, People's Liberation Army Air Force
Battles/warsKorean War
Awards
  • Combat Hero
    (1st Class)
  • Meritorious Service (Special Class)
  • Meritorious Service (1st Class)
  • Meritorious Service (2nd Class)
  • Freedom and Independence Medal (2nd Class)
In this Chinese name, the family name is Zhang.

Zhang Jihui (

Combat Hero, 1st Class during his service. After the Korean War, Zhang held various commands and became the Deputy Commander of PLAAF in 1973. Outside of his military career, Zhang was also the Deputy Mayor of Yantai
.

Early life and military career

Zhang Jihui was born at Rongcheng, Shandong in January 1927.[1] He was born into a poor peasant family of seven that lived off 2 km2 (490 acres) of land. His father, Zhang Benzhou, was a farmer and a member of the Chinese Communist Party. Zhang entered elementary school at the age of 10, and he became a school teacher after finishing elementary school at Ningjin County in 1943.[1]

Zhang soon abandoned his job in order to pursue higher education. While studying at university in 1945, he joined the Chinese Communist Eighth Route Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War.[1] After the Japanese surrendered, his unit was moved into Manchuria, where the Chinese Communist People's Liberation Army (PLA) had set up its first pilot school.[2][3] Zhang was sent to study at the school and graduated in 1948. He was among the first group of pilots trained for the fledgling People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).[2] In 1950, Zhang became a group leader at the 4th Aviation Division.[2][4]

Combat in Korea

When the PLAAF officially entered the air war over Korea in September 1951, Zhang's 4th Aviation Division was the first PLAAF unit sent into combat, and it was under the command of the Soviet

F-86 Sabre to crash.[2] For this action he was awarded the Meritorious Service, 1st Class.[2] On 4 February 1952, Zhang claimed his third victory against a F-86 and received the Meritorious Service, 2nd Class.[2]

Death of Major Davis

On 10 February 1952, US F-86 Sabre

Kunu-ri.[7][8] Davis was the highest-ranking Korean War ace at the time, and he was posthumously celebrated as a hero and received the Medal of Honor.[9] About 36 MiG-15s from the 4th Aviation Division were involved in the engagement in which Davis was killed, and Zhang was among the group.[10] According to Zhang's own report after the battle, while the MiGs were en route to intercept Davis' group, he and his wingman became separated from the main element.[10] As Zhang was trying to rejoin his formation, he spotted a group of eight F-86s in the area between Taechon and Chongye at 0740.[10] Zhang and his wingman then swung down onto the tails of two Sabres and opened fire. Zhang claimed that he shot down both Sabres, but enemy reinforcements soon destroyed his MiG while killing his wingman.[11]

The publicity of Davis' death soon caught the Chinese attention.

dog tag is currently on display at the Memorial of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea in Dandong.[12]

Although Zhang was credited by the PLAAF with shooting down Davis' F-86, doubts about the claim were raised due to US Air Force's recollection of the event was inconsistent with Zhang's own account of the battle,[13] and that Davis had claimed to have shot down two Chinese MiGs moments before being killed.[14] The lack of gun camera footage from the Chinese side meant Zhang's victory claim also hinged on his own recollection of the event.[10] After declassifying their involvement in the Korean War 40 years later, Russian sources disputed Zhang's claim by raising the possibility that 1st Lieutenant Mikhail Akimovich Averin was the MiG pilot that had shot down Davis' plane.[11] According to the recollections from the pilots of the Soviet 64th Aviation Corps, both Zhang and his wingman were probably shot down by Davis, who was in turn surprised and shot down by Mikhail A. Averin scrambling to save the Chinese MiGs.[15] Lieutenant General Georgy Lobov, commander of the 64th Aviation Corps, also noted in his memoir that Davis was killed by a Soviet pilot.[12] Currently, both China and Russia have taken credit for Davis' death with no conclusive evidence to confirm either side of the story.[15][16][13]

Regardless of the controversy surrounding Davis' death, Zhang became a household name in China.

Combat Hero, 1st Class for this action.[2]

According to official records, Zhang had participated in 10 aerial engagements with a total of four victories during his service in Korea, and for his service, Zhang received the Meritorious Service, Special Class.[1] The North Korean government also awarded Zhang the Freedom and Independence Medal, 2nd Class.[2]

Later life and death

Immediately after the war, Zhang was sent to study at the Red Banner Air Force Academy in the Soviet Union and returned to China in 1957 after graduation. He steadily climbed the ranks by assuming the command of the 27th Aviation Division in 1964 and later took command of the 1st Aviation Corps in 1970. In 1973, he was named the Deputy Commander of the PLAAF.[1][18]

In July 1978, Zhang was stripped of his ranks and imprisoned, but after his release in 1980, he became the Deputy Mayor of

Central Military Commission restored Zhang's position and allowed him to retire with a state pension.[2]

Zhang died on 26 April 2023, at the age of 96.[19]

Claims

Number Date Type note
1 1951.10.16 F-86
3 1952.2.10 F-86 two aircraft common achievement
4 unknown F-86
5 1953.5.26[20] F-86 common achievement

Notes

  1. ^
    Rongcheng, China: Rongcheng People's Government, archived from the original
    on April 7, 2014, retrieved Aug 9, 2012.
  2. ^
    Xinhua, archived from the original
    on May 17, 2011, retrieved July 12, 2010.
  3. ^ Zhang 2004, p. 25.
  4. ^ Zhang 2004, p. 163.
  5. ^ Zhang 2004, pp. 145–146.
  6. ^ Zhang 2004, p. 146.
  7. ^ Zhang 2004, p. 164.
  8. ^ Werrell 2005, p. 156.
  9. ^ Werrell 2005, p. 157.
  10. ^ a b c d e f Zhang 2004, p. 166.
  11. ^ a b c d e Zhang 2004, p. 167.
  12. ^ a b United States-Russia Joint Commission on POWs and MIAs 1996, p. 38.
  13. ^ a b Werrell 2005, p. 158.
  14. ^ Zhang 2004, pp. 164–165, 168.
  15. ^ a b Zhang 2004, p. 168.
  16. ^ United States-Russia Joint Commission on POWs and MIAs 1996, p. 39.
  17. ^ Wei & Liu 2001, p. 184.
  18. ^ Appendix A, Air Force Leaders 1949-1990, Alexandria, VA: GlobalSecurity.org, April 27, 2005, retrieved July 13, 2010
  19. ^ "痛悼！张积慧逝世". Sohu. 28 April 2023. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  20. ^ "如何击落美军王牌？_澎湃号·政务_澎湃新闻-The Paper". www.thepaper.cn. Retrieved 2023-10-15.

References

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