A Record of the Air Force Deploying Y-20s to Transport Newly Enrolled Flight Cadets to Report for Duty
"Kunpeng" Bears Aloft Soaring Ambitions
— A Record of the Air Force Deploying Y-20s to Transport Newly Enrolled Flight Cadets to Report for Duty
■ Yuan Shouyu, PLA Daily Special Correspondent Zhu Jianghai, Reporter Li Jianwen
Engines roared, the sound waves deafening. On the eve of Army Day on August 1st, one after another Y-20 domestically produced large transport aircraft stood ready at six boarding points established in Shenyang, Shijiazhuang, Jinan, Nanjing, Changsha, and Chengdu.
On the airport aprons, the warbirds were arrayed in formation, military flags snapping in the wind. The newly enrolled flight cadets, large red flowers pinned to their chests, stood with bright eyes and upright bearing. Today, they would board the "Kunpeng" and fly to the Air Force Aviation University to report for duty, embarking on a new journey in pursuit of their dreams in the skies and space.
This marks the fifth consecutive year the Air Force has used domestically produced large transport aircraft to transport new flight cadets to enroll and report for duty, with an added novelty this year: for the first time, the Y-20B — fitted with a new domestically produced engine — participated in carrying out this mission. This move is a vivid microcosm of the People's Air Force's equipment development and flight personnel cultivation advancing in the same direction in parallel.
Simple yet solemn welcome and departure ceremonies were held at each boarding point. The exclusive "Fenfei [Soaring Flight] No." boarding passes are tokens of military-strengthening faith (强军信物) gifted by the Air Force to each cadet, bearing hopes and expectations, and becoming a cherished memento as they step into military life. Beside the boarding ramps, more than one hundred representatives of cadets' family members — invited for the first time this year — witnessed up close the important moment of their children dedicating themselves to national defense and pursuing their dreams in the skies, and felt firsthand the rapid development and formidable strength of the People's Air Force in the new era.
"Being able to ride the 'Kunpeng' to a military academy is an honor that belongs to us flight cadets." Bian Shaojie, a cadet from the North China region, was filled with surging emotion. His dream of piloting a warbird and guarding the mountains and rivers was being steadily borne aloft by this great instrument of the nation (国之重器), filling him with a spontaneous sense of pride, and making his responsibility to guard the nation's vast skies and space ever clearer.
The "Kunpeng" soared into the sky, piercing the vault of heaven. Ten thousand meters up, the magnificent mountains and rivers lay spread out below. An immersive ideological and political education class (思政课) commenced in the clouds.
Inside the cabin, some of the mission crew officers and soldiers engaged in warm exchanges with the cadets, recounting the Y-20's experiences participating in exercises, training, and combat readiness, disaster relief operations, and international aid missions, and narrating the People's Air Force's soaring journey of advancing toward war.
"The blue sky nurtures heroes; flight carries glory." Captain Zhao conveyed his wishes over the intercom: "May you guard the skies and space with the heart of a devoted child of the nation (赤子之心), and shoulder the mission of strengthening the military with a spirit of striving forward." He encouraged the cadets to carry on the spirit of "aerial bayonet fighting (空中拼刺刀)," to forever preserve the loyal character of heeding the Party's command, and to practice the original aspiration of dedicating oneself to the skies and space and soaring in flight for the nation.
The cadets listened with rapt attention, their gazes directed toward the vast airspace beyond the portholes. "The great instrument of the nation bears aloft our dreams; I will guard the motherland's blue skies." Zhao Jun, a cadet from Yixian County, Hebei — a revolutionary old base area — spoke with firm resolve: "We must train hard and diligently, and as soon as possible become combatants defending our airspace!"
Escorting the "fledgling eagles" (雏鹰) to their departure aboard a great instrument of the nation is an important measure by the Air Force to innovate in forging the soul and cultivating talent (铸魂育才) and to deeply cultivate feelings for home and country (家国情怀). The "Kunpeng" send-off allows new cadets to feel the pulse of the Air Force's transformation from the very beginning of their enrollment; it embeds education in loyalty, mission, and honor into the "first lesson," guiding young students to integrate personal ideals into the great undertaking of military strengthening, and solidifying the ideological foundation of wholehearted devotion to the Party (铁心向党) and determined commitment to strengthening the military.
A thousand-li send-off for the "fledgling eagles," pursuing dreams toward the open skies. After a smooth taxi, one Y-20 after another came to a stop at a military airport in Changchun. As the cabin doors opened, Air Force Aviation University officers and soldiers stood in neat formation, receiving the newest cohort of aerospace talents (空天新锐) with a solemn ceremony.
As the cradle of Air Force pilots, the Air Force Aviation University continues the red lineage of the old Northeast Aviation School (东北老航校), passing on the torch through eighty years of education for war. Today, the first cohort of cadets transported to the school by Y-20 have already honed their wings and achieved success, heading off to their combat posts and growing into aerial combatants of the new era.
Harboring soaring ambitions, treading upon the hallowed ground of the military academy, and embarking on a new journey of being tempered into steel, the cadets familiarized themselves with the garrison area and visited the meritorious warbirds on display, while recalling the image of the "Kunpeng" escorting them — their sense of honor, mission, and responsibility growing ever stronger. All firmly declared that they would forge their war-winning capabilities (胜战本领) through diligent study and rigorous training, inscribe magnificent flight paths with their passionate youth, and shoulder the heavy responsibility of guarding the vast skies and space.
(PLA Daily, Shijiazhuang, August 1st dispatch)