Former 'Flying Tigers' pilots visit China's Chongqing

Xinhua

Two elderly gentlemen, Harry Moyer and Melvin McMullen, on Wednesday walked toward the statue of general Joseph Stilwell. The statue is located in a courtyard of the Chongqing Stilwell Museum in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

With smiles on their faces, they posed for photos to commemorate the Allied Forces who fought alongside the Chinese people in the Chinese fight against Japanese invaders in World War II (WWII).

Moyer, 103, and McMullen, 98, are two veterans of the US 14th Air Force, known as "Flying Tigers" pilots.

On Wednesday, a 36-member delegation, including Jeffrey Greene, chairman of the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation, and the Flying Tigers veterans, visited the museum in Chongqing, China's temporary capital during WWII.

Xinhua

The museum, named after Joseph Stilwell, houses abundant exhibits that serve as a reminder of the history and friendship between Chinese and American people during the war.

Nell Chennault Calloway, granddaughter of US General Claire Lee Chennault, who led the wartime Flying Tigers pilots to fight Japanese invaders in China during WWII, was among the members in the delegation.

During the visit, she was particularly interested in a Willys Jeep used by the US army during the war and rode on it. She was touched by exhibits that conveyed information about her grandfather General Chennault in the exhibition.

"When I came here, I heard the stories of the sacrifices, and what happened during the war and what they were able to do to defeat the Japanese. It's always an inspiration to me," she said.

The delegation members signed their names on a friendship wall in the museum after the visit.