Yu Zhenwu (; July 1931 – 29 September 2023) was a pilot and general of the Chinese

People's Liberation Army Air Force The People's Liberation Army Air Force, also referred to as the Chinese Air Force () or the People's Air Force (), is the primary aerial warfare service of the People's Liberation Army. The PLAAF controls most of the PLA's air assets, includi ...

(PLAAF). As one of China's first

test pilots A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testin ...

, he conducted the 1958 maiden flight of the

Shenyang JJ-1 The Shenyang JJ-1, also known as the Hong Zhuan-503 or ''Red Special'', was a jet trainer developed in the People's Republic of China (PRC) during the 1950s. It was the first jet aircraft designed in China, with Xu Shunshou as the chief designe ...

, China's first indigenously developed jet aircraft. He later served as commander of the

Guangzhou Military Region The Guangzhou Military Region was from 1955 to 2016 one of the People's Liberation Army PLA Military Regions, located in the south of the People's Republic of China. In May 1949, the Central China (Hua Zhong) Military Region (MR) was formed. In M ...

Air Force from 1982 to 1985, deputy commander of the PLAAF from 1985 to 1994, and commander of the PLAAF from 1994 to 1996.

Early life

Yu Zhenwu was born in July 1931 in

Kuandian Kuandian Manchu Autonomous County (; Manchu: ; Möllendorff: ''kuwandiyan manju beye dasangga siyan''), is a county of eastern Liaoning province, China, bordering North Korea to the southeast and Jilin in the northeast. It is under the administra ...

Liaoning ) , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = Clockwise: Mukden Palace in Shenyang, Xinghai Square in Dalian, Dalian coast, Yalu River at Dandong , image_map = Liaoning in China (+all claims hatched).svg , ...

, Republic of China. He enlisted in the army in December 1947 and joined the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

in August 1949. After the

(PLAAF) was established, Yu transferred to the PLAAF and trained to become a fighter pilot. He was deployed in

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

in the last few months of the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

Test pilot

In 1958,

Xu Shunshou Xu Shunshou (; 21 August 1917 – 6 January 1968) was a Chinese aircraft designer and a founder of the aircraft manufacturing industry in the People's Republic of China. He was the founding director of the PRC's first aircraft design organizatio ...

Shenyang Aircraft Corporation Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) is a Chinese aircraft manufacturer in Shenyang, Liaoning and a subsidiary of AVIC. Founded in 1951 as the classified 112 Factory, it is the oldest aircraft manufacturer in the People's Republic of China. The ...

(then known as the 112 Factory) developed the

, the first jet aircraft designed in China. After the first model crashed during a test flight, Yu, one of the top fighter pilots in the air force, was selected for the dangerous job as the

test pilot A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testin ...

for the second plane. On 26 July 1958, Yu successfully completed the maiden flight of the JJ-1, which has since been celebrated as a landmark in the history of Chinese aviation. In August 1958, Yu performed an

air show An air show (or airshow, air fair, air tattoo) is a public event where aircraft are trade fair, exhibited. They often include aerobatics demonstrations, without which they are called "static air shows" with aircraft parked on the ground. The ...

at the celebration ceremony for the successful development of the JJ-1, which was attended by Marshal

Ye Jianying Ye Jianying (; 28 April 1897 – 22 October 1986) was a Chinese Communist revolutionary leader and politician, one of the Ten Marshals of the People's Republic of China. He was the top military leader in the 1976 coup that overthrew the Gang ...

and the PLAAF Commander

Liu Yalou Liu Yalou (; April 1910 – 7 May 1965) was a general in the Chinese People's Liberation Army who served as the inaugural commander-in-chief of the PLA Air Force. During the Chinese Civil War, he was chief of staff of Lin Biao's army group, w ...

. In 2004,

China Central Television China Central Television (CCTV) is the State media, national television broadcaster of China, established in 1958. CCTV is operated by the National Radio and Television Administration which reports directly to the Publicity Department of th ...

aired the documentary ''The Secrets of China's War Eagles'' (中国战鹰探秘), which includes an interview with Yu, to commemorate the maiden flight of the JJ-1.

Commander of Guangzhou MRAF and PLAAF

Yu later served as director of the Training Department of the PLAAF headquarters. In 1982, he succeeded

Wang Hai Wang Hai (; 19 January 1926 – 2 August 2020) was a Chinese fighter pilot and general. A flying ace of the Korean War, he served as commander of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) from 1985 to 1992. He was awarded the rank of gener ...

as commander of the

Air Force (MRAF). When Wang was promoted to commander of the PLAAF in July 1985, Yu was appointed his deputy and placed in charge of schools, training, and maintenance. He subsequently served as deputy commander under Wang's successor

Cao Shuangming Cao Shuangming (; August 1929 – 23 July 2019) was a fighter pilot and general of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). He fought in the Chinese Civil War, the Korean War, and the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis, and served as comm ...

. He was the youngest but highest ranking deputy under both Wang and Cao. The other two deputy commanders, Lin Hu and Yang Zhenyu, both had served as commandant or deputy commandant of the PLAAF Command College. The choice of the three deputy commanders reflected the PLAAF's emphasis on training. In November 1994, Yu was appointed commander of the PLAAF, replacing Cao Shuangming. He was the first post-Korean War veteran to serve as commander. He visited the United States in May 1995, but it was aborted by the People's Republic of China government when

Lee Teng-hui Lee Teng-hui (; pinyin: ''Lǐ Dēnghuī''; 15 January 192330 July 2020) was a Taiwanese politician and agricultural scientist who served as the fourth president of the Republic of China, president of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan) unde ...

, the president of the Republic of China on Taiwan, visited the US in spite of Beijing's protest. Yu attained the rank of full general in January 1996, and was elected an alternate member of the

13th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party The 13th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party was in session from 1987 to 1992. It held seven plenary sessions. It was preceded by the 12th Central Committee and succeeded by the 14th Central Committee. It elected the 13th Politburo ...

. He served two years as PLAAF commander before being replaced by

Liu Shunyao Liu Shunyao (; 1939 – 30 December 2002) was a Chinese pilot and general of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). He served as commander of the Lanzhou Military Region Air Force, deputy commander of the PLAAF (1994–1996), and comman ...

in December 1996.

Death

Yu died on 29 September 2023, at the age of 92.空军原司令员于振武上将逝世，系中国首架喷气飞机歼教-1首飞试飞员

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yu, Zhenwu 1931 births 2023 deaths Chinese test pilots Commanders of the People's Liberation Army Air Force People's Liberation Army generals from Liaoning Alternates of the 12th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party Alternates of the 13th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party Members of the Standing Committee of the 9th National People's Congress People from Dandong