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Emerging from Flames of the Korean War

June 25, 1950 saw the break-out of the Korean War and, China's national security was severely threatened. At that crucial moment the CCCPC and Chairman Mao Zedong made the decision of sending Chinese people's voluntary army and air force to join the Korean War. The urgent requirement of the War greatly pushed the establishment of China's aviation industry.

The newly formed Chinese People's Voluntary Air Force in the Korean War fought bravely against the enemy's large formation of aircraft, effectively supported the friendly army. The Chinese People's Voluntary Air Force won a major victory in protecting rear important targets and transportation lines. The Chinese and Koreans also suffered certain losses for these achievements. The War not only brought urgent and heavy tasks of aircraft repairing, but also of buying new aircraft. In order to support the front line, the Chinese General Organization of Aiding Korea initiated the movement of donating aircraft and cannons for the War. People all over China economized on food and clothing, and donated their savings worth 3,152 aircraft. This action showed the desire of the people to strengthen the fighting capabilities of their Air Force. The progress of the War indicated that speeding up the establishment of aviation industry and producing aircraft by ourselves to reinforce the People's Air Force brooked no delay.

In December 1950, Premier Zhou Enlai called meetings in succession to discuss the issue of construction of the Chinese aviation industry. Meetings were taken part in by Nie Rongzhen, Acting Chief of Staff of PLA, Liu Yialou, Air Force Commander, He Changgong, Acting Minister of the Ministry of Heavy Industry, Shen Hong of Finance and Economy Commission of the Central People's Government ( hereinafter called the Central Finance and economy Commission) and Duan Zijun of the Ministry of Heavy Industry. In conclusion, Premier Zhou Enlai pointed out: Construction of China's aviation industry should be carried out according to the Chinese practical situation. China' case was that it had air force first and were fighting in Korea, which made large number of fighters need to be repaired urgently. China had a land of 9.6 million square kilometers and 5 to 6 hundred million people. China would not just rely on buying foreign aircraft and only carrying out repair.

The construction road, therefore, of China's aviation industry should be conducting repair first, manufacture afterwards and then the design. The principle was to develop it from small scale to large scale. It had to be pointed out that when a repair factory was designed certain consideration should be given to the planning and arrangement of turning it into a manufacture factory in the future. Meanwhile, negotiations should be carried out with the Soviets about their assistance for the construction of China's aviation industry. Premier Zhou's conclusion pointed out the road of China's aviation development.

According to Premier Zhou Enlai's instruction and plan, a delegation headed by He Changgong with Shen Hong and Duan Zijun as its members left China for the Soviet Union in January 1951 to negotiate for their assistance to the construction of China's aviation industry. Just before the departure of the delegation, Chen Yun, Chairman of the Central Finance and Economy Commission, said to He Changgong "When you are on the plane I'll be on horseback right away" ( i.e. to prepare the material condition for establishing aviation industry).

The Soviet Union paid great attention to this negotiation and assigned 7 people headed by the Foreign Minister Vishinsky to specially handle this matter. The negotiation was quite smooth and very soon agreements were reached on matters of the Soviet assistance to China to reconstruct its aircraft repair factories and then to gradually expand them into complete aircraft manufacture factories and of sending specialists and advicers to China. After the approval of Zhou Enlai, Premier of P.R. China and Stalin, President of the Council of Ministers of U.S.S.R., two governments, in October 1951, formally signed "Agreement of U.S.S.R. rendering technical assistance to P.R.C. in organizing repair of aircraft and engine and organizing aircraft factories." This timely assistance by the Soviet Union at the time when P.R.C. was just founded and was suffering from tight blockade by western countries played an important role in the fast establishment and development of China's aviation industry.

After tense and adequate consultations and preparation, the Military Commission of CCCPC and the Government Administration Council on 17 April 1951 promulgated "Decision on the construction of aviation industry," pointing out:

1. The present task of the construction of China's aviation industry is to fully ensure the repair of all aircraft used by the Chinese Air Force and then gradually to develop- towards manufacture;

2. The principle of unified management of aviation industry at the present stage must be adopted and, the manufacture and repair could be divided when the aviation industry developed to the stage of concentrating forces on aircraft manufacturing. It is, therefore, decided that all air force factories including personnel, equipment, finance and material, buildings and plant sites should be transfered to the Bureau of Aviation Industry;

3. After these factories taken over by the Bureau of Aviation Industry, they should begin to undertake the tasks of repairing Air Force aircraft and of providing spare parts on the basis of economic accounting;

4. The Bureau of Aviation Industry and Air Force Headquarters should set up inspection and acceptance organizations respectively in order to improve product quality;

5. In the light of strengthening the leadership of the aviation industry construction, it is decided that the Management Commission of Aviation Industry should be set up, which would be under the leadership of the Military Commission of CCCPC. It is decided that Nie Rongzhen, Li Fuchun, Liu Yialou, He Changgong, Duan Zijun and Ma Wen were members of the Management Committee with Nie Rongzhen as its Chairman and Li Fuchun as Vice Chairman.

The CCCPC on 18 April 1951 telegraphed all organizations of the Party, the government and the military in every large administrative area saying: to suit the Air Force construction, the Ministry of Heavy Industry set up the Bureau of Aviation Industry, according to the decision of the Central Committee, to be solely responsible for all kinds of repairs of aircraft; Duan Zijun was appointed Director of the Bureau. It also pointed out: Aviation industry was a kind of new work with "high technology and political nature", "great assistance should be given and timely supervision and guidence should be rendered".

The Government Administration Council, in July 1951, appointed He Changgong Acting Minister of the Ministry of Heavy Industry, concurrently Director of the Bureau and Duan Zijun, Chen Yimin and Chen Ping Deputy Directors. Handing over repair factories from the Air Force to the Ministry of Heavy Industry according to the decision of the Central Committee had been completed in September 1951, when the Bureau of Aviation Industry had taken over 16 factories from the Air Force and 2 factories from the Bureau of Weaponry Industry and had owned 18 factories in total with about ten thousands people. The aviation industry expected by the people of the whole country and the People's Army had at last come into being in the lap of new China.

The major task of the aviation industry after its forming was to meet the requirement of the Korean War and to ensure the repairing of air force aircraft. An aircraft repairing train ( mobile factory) was rented from the Soviet Union and it arrived in Shenyang in early May 1951. And the Soviet advicers, specialists and large number of aviation equipment arrived in China in succession soon after. The Aviation Bureau immediately organized Chinese technical personnel and workers to learn seriously from the Soviets to gradually master repairing technology of aircraft on one hand and, carried out adjustment and reconstruction of factories taken over from other units with the assistance of the Soviet experts on the other hand.

According to Premier Zhou Enlai's instruction " When the repair factory is designed certain considerations should be given to the arrangement and planning for transferring it to manufacture factory in the future," He Changgong and Duan Zijun accepted suggestions of the Soviet experts after their investigation and worked out a plan of realizing manufacture of complete aircraft within 3 to 5 years, which was reported to the CCCPC in August 1951. Zhu De, Commander of PLA, wrote instruction on the report saying: "go ahead as it is planned."

Nie Rongzhen and Li Fuchun also wrote a report to Chairman Mao Zedong and the Central Secretariat, proposing the construction policy of aviation industry and principle of production scale and site selection etc. The report also proposed the following work divisions: the Shenyang Aircraft Factory and the Shenyang Aero Engine Factory for repair of jet fighters; the Harbin Aircraft Factory and the Harbin Aero Engine Factory for repair of bombers and the Nanchang Aircraft Factory and the Zhuzhou Aero Engine Factory for repair of piston type trainers. The expansion of these factories was also described in the report. Having had the report checked by Liu Shaoqi, Zhou Enlai and Chen Yun, Chairman Mao Zedong wrote the instruction "Act accordingly" on August 21, 1951.

Afterwards, the aviation industry began its intensive work of adjusting factories and factory reconstruction and expansion, concentrating about 80% of personnel and 70% of equipment of the industry to the above mentioned 6 factories. Meanwhile, construction of factories, reinforcement of workers and technical personnel were carried out actively in accordance with repairing task and the requirement of gradually transferring from repair to manufacture. By the end of 1952, aviation industry was adjusted into 13 factories ( including 2 factories taken over from Civil Aviation Bureau) and set up primarily one Capital Construction Design Institute and 12 schools. The number of employees increased to 30,000; metal cutting machines increased to 2,020 and factory floor areas enlarged to 160,000 square meters. The 6 major factories were all equipped up to the standard of large scale repair factories.

Factories faced a severe shortage of process technical documents, raw materials and finished parts needed for the repair work at that time. Factories had no choice but to carry out the work according to the Soviet experts' demonstration and oral instructions. Damaged aircraft were repaired by every possible means. People were determined to accomplish the task day and night, even without having meals, as long as it was required by the Korean War. People worked very hard indeed and the numbers of aircraft and engines repaired increased rapidly. Aircraft and engines repaired were 70 and 336 in 1951, 284 and 2,027 in 1952 and 475 and 1,626 in 1953 respectively. 16 types of fighters, attack aircraft, bombers, trainers and transporters and 10 types of piston and jet engines were repaired. The newly established aviation industry actively supported the Korean War and laid a necessary foundation for the smooth carrying out of large scale construction in the First Five-year Plan.