At the end of August 1956, he had a meeting with the American journalist Anna Louise Strong. Since Anna and our party have always maintained a close relationship, and they have met many times, the atmosphere was very pleasant.
However, the atmosphere outside the venue was not so relaxed.
A few days before the Strong interview, the Chinese Air Force shot down a U.S. military reconnaissance plane in the Huangze Mountain area east of Shanghai, causing tensions between China and the United States.
The White House has used the international community to smear our country and put our country at a disadvantage. Therefore, the international community is very concerned about the dialogue between *** and Anna, on the one hand, to understand the attitude of the Chinese side, and on the other hand, to understand the strength of the Chinese side.
During the conversation, **mentioned that *** personally sent a telegram about what happened to the plane, and they only learned a lot about the plane later.
US imperialism wants to provoke with three aircraft carriers and more than 30 ships, and sends more than 200 planes to show off its force in the East China Sea every day, which has brought a tense atmosphere to the situation in the East China Sea.
In the face of such provocations, China has always adhered to the attitude of peaceful opposition to war. However, if US imperialism insists on starting a war, China will not be afraid,** stressing: "US imperialism is strong, but we can also deal with it." ”
Facts have proved that in the early morning of 23 August 1956, our air force successfully shot down a US fighter plane that invaded our country's interior, which was the first time that a Chinese fighter plane shot down an enemy plane at night.
This incident fully demonstrates China's determination and strength in the face of US provocations.
There are two different views within the party on this issue. Some fear that the escalation could threaten the hard-won peace of the international community and even trigger a war between the two countries, but there are many more who support it.
Nie Fengzhi, commander of the Southern Air Force, was very supportive of China's counterattack, and he praised our pilots for "fighting well." General Xu Shiyou, commander of the Nanjing Military Region at that time, also did not shy away from saying: "If we can defeat it, then what else is there to say!" ”
The Xu Shiyou incident led to sudden tensions between China and the United States, and war in the East China Sea was on the verge of breaking out. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the United States has been taking hostile actions against China, waging war, inciting **, imposing blockades and sanctions, and even plotting invasions.
Although New China urgently needs peaceful development and the people yearn for peace, we have not chosen to break with the United States. However, our forbearance has not been respected by the United States, but has been seen as weak and bullied, and its attitude has become even worse.
Relying on the advantages of more advanced equipment and higher quality pilots, they have frequently violated China's territorial waters and airspace, causing great trouble to China's coastal areas. Therefore, the action of shooting down the US reconnaissance plane was supported by many generals, who believed that it could not only "vent their anger" but also sound the alarm for the "world hegemon" who had no one in sight.
Although this can soothe people's emotions, the follow-up problem is very tricky. In order to prevent further escalation of the situation, the CCP held several meetings to discuss solutions.
Soon after, the editorial department of Xinhua News Agency drew up a first draft of a statement on the incident and submitted it to *** for review. ** Several revisions were made to the first draft, changing the "violation of China's airspace" by enemy planes to "encountering our troops", which was not only to leave room for things to turn around, but also because there were indeed many details that had not been clarified at that time, and it was impossible to clearly indicate whether it was a US plane or a Chiang plane.
During their visit to the United States, the US side expressed dissatisfaction with China's response, and in order to save face, they assembled a reconnaissance plane to invade China's airspace and search for the wreckage of the reconnaissance plane and the remains of the pilot.
Although the Chinese side only found two bodies and handed them over, and out of humanitarianism, China was ready to return the remains to the United States, but the United States arrogantly believed that the Chinese side had imprisoned their personnel without permission, and its hatred for the Chinese side was even greater.
Prior to the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States, the Chinese side tried to transfer a body to the American side through the British Embassy, but the British side refused. In desperation, the Chinese side had no choice but to transport the bodies to the United States via a Hong Kong freighter.
After the incident, the Chinese side fully discussed and prepared for the possible response of the US side, and at the same time as the US side arrived in the East China Sea, the Military Commission upgraded its strategic level and sent the East China Sea Fleet on standby to meet the battle.
At the same time, the Chinese side has also resolutely counterattacked the US side's behavior of leading the international community and smearing China, and successfully made it admit that its reconnaissance plane had indeed violated China's airspace by using the loopholes in the US logic as a breakthrough.
The confrontation in the East China Sea has escalated the contradictions between the two sides. In mid-September, the U.S. side was forced to leave the East China Sea in desperation, and Sino-US relations took a dramatic turn. Although the crisis has come to an end for the time being, the Central Military Commission still commended the relevant personnel who shot down the US reconnaissance plane, among them, pilot Zhang Wenyi received the highest commendation for successfully shooting down the "Mole" and was promoted to the rank of flight squadron leader.
Zhang Wenyi's family was closely linked to the revolution, and his father and elder brother were both famous revolutionaries. Against the backdrop of China's weak air force and scarce talents, he chose to join the air force and receive professional training at the Air Force Aviation Academy.
After graduating, he was assigned to the 2nd Air Force Aviation Division of Shanghai Hongqiao Airport and participated in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. At this time, Zhang Wenyi was in charge of territorial air defense operations in the air defense forces in East China.
At around 11 p.m. on August 22, 1956, he was on duty, monitoring the air defense situation. Suddenly, a reconnaissance aircraft appeared on the air defense early warning radar. As a matter of fact, he was no stranger to the enemy reconnaissance plane that suddenly intruded in the middle of the night, and almost every few days an enemy reconnaissance plane would violate China's territorial airspace and carry out reconnaissance and patrol missions.
Therefore, the commander of the duty room did not immediately send a pilot on duty to take off to intercept it, but closely monitored the situation of the enemy plane and instructed Zhang Wenyi to make preparations for takeoff.
Zhang Wenyi (right) The enemy reconnaissance plane flew straight into China's airspace, then changed course and flew along the coastline. Soon after, the enemy plane suddenly changed course and flew in the direction of Shanghai and Ningbo.
This took everyone in the duty room by surprise, since the air bases in the Shanghai, Ningbo areas were on the route of enemy aircraft. In that direction, did the enemy planes fly to find out the situation at the airbase, or were they intended to be detrimental to the airbase?
The commander immediately ordered Zhang Wenyi to take off, and at 23:56, Zhang Wenyi flew a fighter plane from Hongqiao Airport to intercept the enemy plane. At this time, the enemy plane had already intruded nearly 25 kilometers into China's airspace, and Zhang Wenyi flew to the interception theater at full speed, and gradually approached the right rear of the enemy plane with the cooperation of the ground commander.
The enemy and our planes launched a chase battle at high altitude, but I don't know whether the enemy plane was too confident or too careless, and they never found Zhang Wenyi following behind, and kept approaching the Chinese mainland.
This made the ground commander even more convinced that the enemy plane's intention was to disadvantage the air base, so he ordered Zhang Wenyi to temporarily slow down and maintain the same speed as the enemy plane. In order to better observe the dynamics of the enemy plane, Zhang Wenyi took the initiative to reduce the altitude of the fighter plane and kept it flying at a low altitude of 950 meters.
In the intense air battle, Zhang Wenyi encountered the dilemma of radar failure and was unable to obtain effective tracking instructions. However, with his own experience and eyesight, he succeeded in judging the distance and height of the enemy army.
At 0:11:50, the figure of the enemy plane finally reappeared on the radar of our army, only 5 kilometers in front of Zhang Wenyi. With the help of the ground command, he launched the pursuit again.
However, the sudden rise of enemy aircraft made the pursuit work more difficult. Fortunately, at 0:16:42, the enemy aircraft reappeared on the radar, two kilometers ahead.
Zhang Wenyi quickly adjusted the direction and expanded the search area at the same time. Finally, at 0:17, he spotted the enemy plane over Qushan Island and successfully completed the mission.
Emergency! Zhang Wenyi reported to the ground commander that the enemy plane had intruded into the radar detection range. The ground commander immediately instructed him to shoot down the enemy aircraft. Zhang Wenyi did not hesitate to switch to the attack aiming state and accelerated to approach the enemy plane.
At a distance of 700 meters from the enemy plane, he fired an artillery shell that almost grazed the flank of the enemy plane. The enemy plane hurriedly dodged, but Zhang Wenyi's plane was in hot pursuit. Although the enemy plane fled with all its might, because the reconnaissance plane could not be compared with the fighter plane, it could only watch Zhang Wenyi's plane get closer and closer.
Relying on his skill, Zhang Wenyi successfully fired a second shell 400 meters behind the enemy plane and 100 meters below. This distance has a greater grasp on him, and he is more decisive when he presses the launch button.
As expected, soon he saw small flames rising from the root of the left wing of the enemy aircraft. The fuselage trembled slightly after the enemy plane was shot, but due to the large wingspan of the aircraft, the fuselage stability was good, and the normal flight was not affected.
Seeing that the enemy plane had been shot and wanted to escape, Zhang Wenyi immediately went around to the enemy plane and fired three salvos. In an instant, the flames enveloped the entire reconnaissance plane. Then, unhurriedly, avoiding enemy aircraft, he rose to a high altitude.
The enemy aircraft struggled for a while and finally crashed into the sea.
1.Zhang Wenyi triumphed, and the 2nd Air Division was jubilant. It is an exciting moment for the entire Chinese air force. The long period of forbearance made everyone hold their breath.
This time the downing of the enemy plane also won honor for China. The US Secretary of Defense's visit to China faded into oblivion as time went on, until it was brought up again more than 40 years later.
In October 2005, US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld led a delegation to visit China, which was warmly welcomed by the Chinese side. 2.Zhang Wenyi triumphed, and the 2nd Air Division was jubilant.
The entire Chinese Air Force was excited by this exciting event. The long period of forbearance made everyone hold their breath. This time the downing of the enemy plane also won honor for China.
The incident of US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's visit to China was gradually forgotten by people over time, until it was brought up again more than 40 years later. In October 2005, US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld led a delegation to visit China, which was warmly welcomed by the Chinese side.
3.Zhang Wenyi triumphed, and the 2nd Air Division was jubilant. The entire Chinese Air Force was excited by this exciting event. The long period of forbearance made everyone hold their breath.
This time the downing of the enemy plane also won honor for China. The incident of US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's visit to China was gradually forgotten by people over time, until it was brought up again more than 40 years later.
In October 2005, US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld led a delegation to visit China, which was warmly welcomed by the Chinese side. 4.Zhang Wenyi triumphed, and the 2nd Air Division was jubilant.
The entire Chinese Air Force was excited by this exciting event. The long period of forbearance made everyone hold their breath. This time the downing of the enemy plane also won honor for China.
The incident of US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's visit to China was gradually forgotten by people over time, until it was brought up again more than 40 years later. In October 2005, US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld led a delegation to visit China, which was warmly welcomed by the Chinese side.
After a brief meeting, Rumsfeld and the others returned to their hotel. He refused to be accompanied by his companions, went to the reception staff of our country on his own, and offered to meet with the head of the Chinese side.
We thought he had something important to discuss, but we didn't expect him to ask for just to know James Dean's whereabouts. James Dean was a close friend of Rumsfeld and one of the pilots killed on a US reconnaissance plane shot down by China.
He has been looking for the whereabouts of his friend, but we don't know why he asked for someone from China.
James Dean's life and death were once a mystery, as he survived a plane accident but fell into the sea after a crash, leaving people feeling very slim about his chances of survival.
Therefore, when the accident occurred, except for the pilot, who was found, all other personnel were listed as missing. Most people believe that the chances of those twelve people still alive are almost zero.
However, the families of the American soldiers who were killed did not want to accept this fact, and they firmly believed that the Chinese had hidden them, including James Dean's wife, Frey Shaffer, and his close friend Rumsfeld.
James Dean and his wife, Rumsfeld, met in the U.S. University Navy Reserve Corps, and the two had a very close relationship. After graduating, they participated in flight training together and were sent to Japan together.
Unfortunately, Dean went missing from the reconnaissance plane during the accident, and although salvage was carried out, his remains were not found. However, this slightly uncertain status of personnel led to a misunderstanding of Dean by Rumsfeld and others, who mistakenly believed that he was being detained by the Chinese side.
Although the Chinese side had reached a consensus with the US side at that time that it would not detain any US personnel without reason, Rumsfeld did not believe this fact. He tried all kinds of means to find his missing friend, and even reported it directly to ***, but the result was nothing.
Despite China's repeated attempts to find him, James Dean's family has never received any news. Despite China's repeated explanations, Rumsfeld always firmly believed that Dean was not dead, and he believed that he must still be living in some corner of China.
In order to find Dean, Rumsfeld found Richard High, a senior American intelligence expert, and gave him the task of investigating Dean's hiding place, demanding that "people be seen alive and corpses must be seen when they die."
Richard Hevert has been investigating in China for a long time, but still has found nothing. In the end, Richard Hayver investigated the relevant information, restored the process and circumstances of the accident that year, and came to the conclusion that James Dean was indeed dead, because the nose of the plane entered the water first, and there were few survivors in this situation.
Although this news hit Rumsfeld, he did not give up, but took the opportunity of the visit to China to personally conduct an investigation.
Although the Chinese side did not immediately refuse Rumsfeld's request for an archive, it still failed to achieve results after many investigations, so it could only regretfully explain the situation to him and seek forgiveness.
It may be that Rumsfeld is too old to investigate, or it may be that he chooses to trust the Chinese side, or he realizes that there is no need for the Chinese side to detain his friend.
He has not asked a similar question since. What happened to James Dean is regrettable, but war is unforgiving, and sacrifice is inevitable. To this end, China has always been committed to pursuing peace and avoiding war, which is the most humane approach and a true demeanor of a major country.
At the same time, China is proving to the world that it is better to focus on its own construction and development than to spy on others and hope that others will be in turmoil.
Of course, China will never sit idly by and stand idly by as countries or forces that attempt to infringe on China's sovereignty, and will take counterattacks or other means to protect its sovereignty.