Chapter 30 God of Anti-Japanese War——Record of Martyr Gao Zhihang

All the people who had been baptized by the flames of anti-Japanese war, when they mentioned Gao Zhihang, they all stretched out their thumbs and praised this "God" who was once feared by the Japanese invading army.Whenever we commemorate the combat history of the Chinese Air Force, no matter the mainland or the other side of the strait, we must pay a silent tribute to the national hero Gao Zhihang who has died.It has been more than fifty years since he left us, but his name will live on forever. Gao Zhihang was born in Liaoning Province on May 14, 1907, in a peasant family.His father, Gao Jingwen, styled Huanzhang, his mother, Li Shi, had six brothers and two sisters, Sheng Zhihang, and Mingjiu was the elder brother.

Gao Zhihang worked as a farmer at home since he was a child. Although his family was not poor, he was aggrieved by the hunger and cold of the farmers around him. His father was loyal and often used some of his savings to help the poor and rescue the poor, giving Gao Zhihang a good education for his young heart. , he set up the ambition to strive for the prosperity of the country since he was a child. Gao Zhihang entered school at the age of nine, and his academic performance was always at the top of his classmates.The imperialist aggression made life miserable in his hometown and the countryside was barren. Seeing all this, he was very indignant. Whenever he talked with his classmates, he always expressed his determination to fight the foreign invaders.

In 1924, Gao Zhihang graduated from Fengtian (Shenyang) Sino-French Middle School with honors.During his school days, he often thought about it, especially in Shenyang where the Japanese army raped and looted and ran amok, while the Chinese side let it go and was busy fighting with warlords all day long. Seeing this, he was filled with grief and indignation, and often threw books on the ground, Shouting: "How can a man endure the rampant imperialism in China!" to vent his indignation. After finally graduating from middle school, he was determined not to go to university for further studies. In order to realize his wish to serve the country, he was admitted to the Northeast Army Military Academy.From then on, Gao Zhihang began his military career.

Looking for the road to serve the country After Gao Zhihang was admitted to the Army Officer Academy, he studied in the Artillery Department. Being an artilleryman was not enough for him to fulfill his aspirations. Zhang Xueliang's decision to form the Air Force brought him an opportunity.He signed up excitedly, but Guo Songling, the dean of education of the military officer school, poured cold water on him, because as a pilot, he needs to go to France to study, and Guo Songling thought he was too small, and said in front of him: "You You can’t embarrass the Chinese!” Gao Zhihang blushed with anger, and it took him a while to say: “The French are not all tall!” He expressed his determination and said: “I have studied French, and I went abroad to study aviation. , in order to kill the enemy and serve the country, I will never embarrass the Chinese! Being bullied by foreigners like this is the embarrassment of the Chinese!" Guo Songling was silent, and Mrs. Guo spoke for Gao Zhihang: "You He should be happy to have such a good student, and he must be sent abroad for further studies, maybe he will become a hero in the future!" Gao Zhihang was finally selected.

Before going abroad, General Zhang Xueliang met him.He excitedly said to General Zhang: "Defending the motherland, the hero of the air is my goal." He gave a military salute to General Zhang and firmly said: "In order to achieve my goal, from now on, I will change Ziheng to For Zhihang, please approve by the commander-in-chief!" General Zhang happily patted him on the shoulder, "Okay!" and encouraged him. In August 1924, Gao Zhihang went to France and studied at the Morano Higher Aviation School, and later at the East Army Aviation Combat School to learn flying.During this period, except for eating and sleeping, he spent almost all his time on the training ground.He not only mastered the general flying subjects in the tutorial, but also secretly studied his flying essentials from the instructor's aerobatic performance, and finally practiced the ability to fly difficult maneuvers.

In 1926, Gao Zhihang graduated from the French aviation school and returned to China. He continued his training in Shenyang and was appointed as a major (army rank) pilot of the Northeast Aviation Department.He kept improving his technique and was rewarded for every exercise.Unfortunately, during a flight training, due to a mechanical failure, his right leg was broken when he landed. After two surgeries, the leg was a point shorter than before. Technology is still improving, and colleagues affectionately call him "the lame pilot". On the evening of September 18, 1931, when Gao Zhihang was discussing with his comrades about the ambitious Japanese imperialism and how to defend the airspace of the motherland, the Japanese machine guns and cannons rang out.He jumped up and shouted loudly: "The gunshots of the Japanese invaders have sounded. Let's go to the headquarters to ask for instructions to take off and kill the enemy!" A group of young soldiers came to the headquarters of the Northeast Army. "Resist" order, Gao Zhihang and others could only get the answer "No resistance".They returned to the station dejectedly, watching hundreds of planes lying quietly on the airport, all of them silent, Gao Zhihang, who always loves to talk, also lowered his head at this time, and shed tears in pain.

The whole night, Gao Zhihang didn't sleep, he was thinking about the road ahead.The next day, without any luggage, he secretly boarded the train to Peiping, preparing to challenge Zhang Huanxiang, acting commander of the Air Force.The answer was still "no resistance". "Are you watching the Japanese invaders occupy the Northeast?" Gao Zhihang asked. "This is an order, and there is nothing I can do about it," Zhang replied. Gao Zhihang finally despaired of the Northeast Army. He saluted Zhang Huanxiang, turned his head and left in a hurry. In the afternoon, he boarded the train going south again, determined to find a way to serve the country.This time going south finally made him find the door to serve the country.

After the September 18th Incident, the Nanjing government retreated step by step, ceding the healthy Northeast China to the Japanese invaders.But the Chinese nation cannot be humiliated. There was a wave of "national salvation" all over the country, and popular movements were surging. When Gao Zhihang came to Shanghai, there were rallies everywhere, and groups of parades shouted "Down with Japanese imperialism" slogans appeared On the street, exiled students from the Northeast sang "On the Songhua River" to tears. Gao Zhihang saw the dawn of the nation from here. He was very excited and actively participated in the parade and donation campaign. He used what he heard and witnessed to accuse the Japanese invaders. crimes, in order to arouse the fighting spirit of the people.

At the gathering of exiled students in Northeast China, he sang "On the Songhua River" together with everyone in tears.Gao Zhihang excitedly jumped onto the podium, waved his fists and said to everyone: "Compatriots! Tears cannot keep our Chinese nation alive. We must fight, take up arms, fight back to our hometown, and drive out the Japanese devils!" Immediately, " Fight back to your hometown!" The slogan "Don't be a subjugated slave" resounded through the venue. In 1932, introduced by his classmates, Gao Zhihang reported to the Aviation Committee of the Nanjing Government and was assigned to Hangzhou Lanqiao Air Force Headquarters.When he came to Hangzhou with the joy of serving the country, a pot of cold water was poured on him again.At that time, there were conflicts among the upper echelons of the Kuomintang Air Force, and the Northeast people were also excluded within the Air Force, so after he reported for duty, he was only given the position of a captain's attache. In addition to eating, sleeping, and receiving a monthly salary, he could neither participate in flight training nor participate in flight training. There is nothing else to do, let alone take part in the air show, "he is from the Northeast, and he is here to cause damage" rumors spread to his ears from time to time.He once felt pain and wanted to leave, but the righteousness of the nation and the call of the elders in his fallen hometown made him endure the humiliation and finally did not leave.

He poured water for the soldiers in training and did some odd things. Gradually, he and his comrades became more and more emotional. When they listened to his narration of their experiences, many people felt aggrieved for him.But his superior, Air Force Captain Mao Bangchu, kept pressing him, preventing him from being able to bring out his talents. Fortunately, there is still "Bole" in the Aviation Committee of the Nanjing Government. Huang Guangrui, the director of the Aviation Committee, kept hearing about his situation. After seeing his flight in person, he was promoted to be the team leader.Since then, he has had the opportunity to train. In addition to daily training, he often squats in the plane to ponder, sometimes for several hours, no matter the cold winter or hot summer, he has a clear grasp of the performance of the plane. It can take off, it can fly upside down in the sky, it can fly alone, it can also roll, and it can be said that it can be said to be a hundred shots in the air...

An accidental opportunity brought good luck to Gao Zhihang. Britain, Germany, Italy and other countries sent pilots to perform in Nanjing. One was to sell the aircraft, and the other was to show off their prestige. Representatives from these countries attended the ceremony.The foreign pilots gave wonderful performances, and it was the turn of the Chinese pilots. Although they were fully prepared and performed with all their strength, their skills were not as good as those of the pilots from those countries. However, Mao Bangchu did not let the highly skilled Gao Zhihang Participating in the performance, Gao Zhihang was very angry when he saw the complacent appearance of foreigners. After repeated requests, he was allowed to participate in the name of a student.Gao Zhihang only wanted to win glory for the country, and he didn't care about all this.I saw him entering the cabin full of energy. With a roar, the fighter plane rushed to the blue sky like a silver swallow. His stunt performance of rolling forward and backward, up and down, stunned foreigners, and accompanied the Chinese officials who watched They were also amazed. They didn't believe it was a student's skill. Chiang Kai-shek also happily asked who was performing. Mao Bangchu couldn't hide it anymore, so he had to say Gao Zhihang's name. Chiang Kai-shek was so excited that he summoned him immediately and praised him, saying: "Your technology is superb, surpassing the world level!" Immediately, he gave Gao Zhihang his "Chuangtian" landline as a reward. From then on, Gao Zhihang's name became famous, and soon he was promoted to be the captain of the destroyer fleet of the aviation school, and later promoted to the captain of the sixth aviation team. In September 1935, Gao Zhihang accepted the order of the Nanjing government to go to Italy to inspect the Air Force and to purchase aircraft from Italy.Italian Prime Minister Mussolini received him, and the two sides made an air show. When Gao Zhihang performed superb stunts in the blue sky, Mussolini was stunned and praised him for being great, saying: "Pilots like Gao Zhihang , and there are only one or two in Italy". In order to promote the outdated aircraft, the Italian aircraft manufacturer sent Gao Zhihang a large sum of money in an attempt to bribe him.Gao Zhihang angrily threw the coin on the ground and walked away.Then, he bid farewell to Mussolini and said: "Your country's aircraft is too backward. Your country wants to bribe us to buy it. We Chinese will never accept it. Please forgive me. We will go to the United States, goodbye!" Fascist The leader Mussolini was speechless, he just praised him and gave him the pen and pistol he carried with him as a souvenir. Gao Zhihang went to the United States and bought back one hundred Hawker destroyers.After returning to China, Gao Zhihang was promoted to the captain of the Fourth Aviation Group and led three destroyer groups. 1937. Under the advocacy and efforts of the Communist Party of China, the anti-Japanese national united front based on the cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party was finally formed. The July 7 Marco Polo Bridge Incident marked the beginning of the all-out war of resistance, and the Japanese imperialist war of aggression against China also kicked off.Gao Zhihang, who took it as his mission to serve the country faithfully, trained his team day and night. The August 13th Songhu Anti-Japanese War broke out.More than a hundred bombers from the ace Kisarazu Air Force of the Japanese Air Force bombed Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces continuously.Chairman Chiang Kai-shek mobilized the war against Japan and personally commanded the air force. On the afternoon of August 14th, Hangzhou Jianqiao Airport was cloudy and rainy. This is where the Kuomintang Aviation Headquarters is located. However, the conditions at the airport were very simple. The runway was narrow and short, and there was no radio communication, let alone a control tower.The take-off and landing of the plane can only be indicated by the red and white "T" cloth.On this day, the 4th Battalion of the Kuomintang Air Force stationed in Zhoujiakou, Henan Province had received an order from the Air Force Command to gather at Miqiao Airport in Hangzhou, preparing to fight against Japan, and was on its way at this time. "Alert! There is an alert! The enemy plane will arrive in 20 minutes!" Yin Chanfei, the station chief of the airport, waved the flag on the apron and shouted "Alert" repeatedly.The planes of the Fourth Battalion had already arrived, and one after another, Yin Chanfei sent them to the sky with a tearing voice.During the long-distance flight from Zhoujiakou to Lanqiao, there was not much fuel left in the fuel tank, so I had to come down to refuel just after going up. Fortunately, Gao Zhihang had taught every pilot to refuel by himself during the usual training, and finally did not waste much time. , but the up and down of the plane is really a little nervous, and the airport is also a little chaotic. Gao Zhihang also arrived by air from Nanchang at this time, but he has not yet received the order from the Air Navigation Commission to fight.Gao Zhihang stomped his feet and said, "The general is away, and the king's orders are not given. I finally waited until today and fought with the devils." After speaking, he boarded a team member's plane and flew into the sky. The blood boils in every warrior, the hatred of the nation, the expectations of the elders, and the accumulated anger of many years, so that they only have one thought: "Avenge the dead compatriots, revenge for the perilous nation!" The weather is getting worse and worse, the rain It got bigger and bigger, and Gao Zhihang led all Hawker fighter jets, with only half of the windshield, which couldn't stop the rain, and the water poured directly into the cabin.But the excitement made them forget everything, and they looked for enemy planes in the clouds to fight. The Kisarazu Air Force came to attack again, but the heavy rain made them lose their positions and quickly lost their formation. An enemy plane finally aimed at Jianqiao Airport and was about to drop bombs, but was spotted by Gao Zhihang and others, and angry bullets rained down on the enemy plane!The air invaders, who had never encountered resistance before, panicked, dropped their bombs blindly, turned around and tried to slip away.How could Gao Zhihang and the other warriors let go?Regardless of the enemy's dense fire net, they rushed forward desperately, biting the enemy plane tightly.Suddenly, the machine gun of the enemy plane went silent. Obviously the enemy shooter had been injured or died. Gao Zhihang took the opportunity to fire a burst of rapid fire. The enemy plane fell down sadly with a long black smoke and an explosion. After Gao Zhihang shot down the first enemy plane, the rest of the enemy planes scurry around like headless chickens, looking for opportunities to escape.But our Air Force athletes are flying up and down in the clouds, staring at the target when they see it.After a while, Le Yiqin, Li Guidan, Zheng Keyu and others also reported success! The short thirty-minute air battle was over.Except for one enemy plane that escaped and went back to report the death to its master, the other six were all shot down by Gao Zhihang's fleet, but Gao Zhihang and the others did not lose any of them. Triumphant Warhawks landed on the tarmac roaring. Gao Zhihang's plane had just landed when the engine stopped. It turned out that his plane had been shot in five or six places, and it was a blessing to be able to come back safely. Under the leadership of Gao Zhihang, the warriors walked out of the airport excitedly, and people rushed up shouting Gao Zhihang's name.Gao Zhihang shouted excitedly: "It wasn't me, everyone shot down together!" Joy and joy, Gao Zhihang was lifted up high by the people and carried forward. The Zhihang Brigade shot down six Japanese planes in one fell swoop. This may not be considered an astonishing miracle in a protracted national war of aggression and anti-aggression. However, in the history of the Chinese people's war against the Japanese aggressors, there is a special significance.This was the first air battle, and the first battle was successful. It broke the myth that the Japanese Air Force was invincible, hit the arrogance of the Japanese invaders, and strengthened the ambition of the Chinese nation. What an unusual battle! Gao Zhihang lived up to his oath. The victory in the "August 14th" air battle made him famous all over the world. He was called "God", and his fleet was also famous in the world. In order to commemorate the "August 14th" victory, the Kuomintang designated this day as Air Force Day and composed a song: Carrying forward the strength of the nation and cherishing the glory of history This song is generous and tragic, swallowing mountains and rivers, and soaking in the patriotic essence of the Chinese nation.But she is closely linked with Gao Zhihang's name. The Japanese invaders had many aircrafts with good performance, and the myth of "invincibility" once frightened some cowards, but Gao Zhihang often used my advantages to encourage the fighting spirit of his subordinates.He often said to his subordinates: "You are all players with excellent combat effectiveness. In the future, you must shoot down more enemy planes and eliminate the enemy. Otherwise, you will not be loyal fighters, or you will be afraid of the enemy. Then you are not Chinese... I am the same Ask yourself! Everyone must remember to win glory for the country, contribute to the people, bravely kill the enemy, and set an example of fighting heroes, so that my fourth brigade can be famous internationally." He did this, and his subordinates did the same. After the "August 14th" victory, Gao Zhihang was promoted from a major to a lieutenant colonel and transferred to the Nanjing University Campus to cooperate with the Jurong Third Battalion to jointly defend Nanjing's airspace. The Japanese planes repeatedly attacked, and Gao Zhihang was alerted, and immediately took off to fight. He often shot down several enemy planes within a few tens of minutes, and never returned them empty-handed.Soon, the Kisarazu Air Force's aircraft were completely lost.The Japanese army had no choice but to transfer the Sasebo Air Force to join the battle. Although there were 200 aircraft, the situation was also not good. Our country has few fighter jets, so it is obviously at a disadvantage, but Gao Zhihang often wins with his wits. Once, enemy planes attacked Nanjing University Field at night.After receiving the alarm, Gao Zhihang immediately turned off all the lights of the airport and Nanjing, and turned on the lights of the fake airport prepared in advance (like a university field), and the enemy planes dropped bombs and strafed without any doubt.When the enemy plane returned to Tangshan near Nanjing, it was attacked by the Zhihang Battalion ambushing at high altitude, which caught the Japanese plane by surprise and suffered a devastating blow. Once again, the enemy plane attacked Nanjing at night, but all the lights in Nanjing City and the Dajiao Field were extinguished. The enemy plane arrived in Nanjing and circled for a circle. Seeing the ground was pitch black, it thought it was flying on the wrong route, and feared that it would run out of fuel, so it had to return.At this time, the fourth brigade led by Gao Zhihang and the second bombing brigade led by Sun Zhonghua suddenly appeared over Tangshan.First, Gao Zhihang's brigade intercepted the enemy planes and destroyed most of them, while the rest of the enemy planes fled in panic. At this time, Sun Zhonghua led a team to track to Shanghai Hongqiao Airport. The enemy at the airport mistakenly thought it was their own plane returning, so they turned on the lights to guide the landing.Sun Zhonghua took the opportunity to drop bombs at low altitude. Suddenly, there were flames and explosions, and the enemy airport was in chaos and suffered heavy losses. Victory after victory, good news after good news, Gao Zhihang's name appeared almost every day in newspapers and periodicals at that time, Nanjing, Shanghai... Men, women and children were all telling the story of Gao Zhihang's deeds, and he won the respect of the people. Once, he went to a store to buy something, paid the money, took the item home and opened it, only to find that the money was wrapped in it, with a note on it, which read: "Captain Gao, I hope you will pay more money." A few Japanese planes, this is my condolence to you!" After looking at it, he excitedly said to his family: "This is not a matter of money, it is the heart of the Chinese people, which shows that the Chinese nation cannot be humiliated, and the Chinese territory Invasion is not allowed!" Gao Zhihang was promoted to Colonel of the Air Force and Commander of Expulsion due to his repeated achievements.In recognition of his military exploits, the Fourth Brigade was changed to the Zhihang Brigade. The unfortunate thing finally happened. In October 1937, Gao Zhihang was ordered to go to Lanzhou to receive a batch of planes aided by the Soviet Union.Before taking off from Lanzhou, it was originally planned to fly directly to Hankou and then transfer to Nanjing to join the war immediately.However, Mao Bangchu, deputy commander of the Air Force at that time, ordered him to lead the team to fly to Luoyang to stand by. Although Gao Zhihang suspected that his colleagues were obstructing him, he still obeyed the order with the overall situation in mind, and led the team to Luoyang.As soon as he arrived in Luoyang, Mao Bangchu ordered him to fly to Zhoujiakou Airport to garrison. Zhoujiakou was known for its ineffective alarms, so letting Gao Zhihang lead his troops here would definitely affect his combat effectiveness. Mao Bangchu's arrangement must have his own intentions. After Gao Zhihang arrived in Zhoujiakou, it was cloudy and rainy for seven consecutive days, and the sun began to clear on the morning of the eighth day.In the morning, Gao Zhihang and his subordinates were having breakfast, when they suddenly heard the roar of the Japanese "87" bombers in the sky above their heads.Gao Zhihang immediately stood up and gave an order: "Everyone, board the plane and take off to kill the enemy quickly. Hurry up and don't disobey the order!" "I will kill anyone who is afraid of death!" He roared angrily.He himself immediately rushed into the engine room and ordered Feng Yuqing, chief of ordnance, to adjust the machine gun. Before the engine started, enemy bombs had already poured down. A bomb landed right next to Gao Zhihang's plane. Gao Zhihang's head and limbs were blown up, leaving only his torso burning. In the side ditch two or three meters away. A shining star in the blue sky of the motherland has fallen! The Chinese nation has lost a son who fought bravely for her independence and liberation. Gao Zhihang was only thirty years old when he died.His coffin was sent to Yichang for burial. The anti-Japanese hero Gao Zhihang died for the country, but his name and his patriotic spirit will live on forever. The Kuomintang soldiers who had shed blood for the war of resistance will not forget him, and the Communists who persisted in the war of resistance to the end will not forget him. In March 1946, the former Kuomintang Air Force personnel who had already held senior positions in the PLA Aviation Academy made a special trip to Gao Zhihang's hometown to visit Gao's mother, and sent a red silk banner with "Mother of Aviation" written on it.Soon, Comrade Huang Naiyi, the deputy political commissar of the aviation school, sent a special trip to condolences to Gao's mother, and arranged work for her family members; Once commended the heroic deeds of Gao Zhihang and his comrades-in-arms; on the afternoon of August 14, 1980, the leadership of the People's Liberation Army invited the former Kuomintang Air Force personnel who held important positions in the Air Force Forces and academies in Beijing to have a discussion to express their memory of the heroes .