80 Years Later, the Legacy of the Flying Tigers Endures

Monday, December 20, 2021 at 01:10 PM ET

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Captain Claire Chennault at the Air Corps Tactical School, Maxwell Field, Montgomery, AL, in 1932. [Courtesy: National Museum of the U.S. Air Force]

Key Takeaways:

The Flying Tigers (American Volunteer Group) were U.S. mercenary pilots who achieved remarkable success in their first combat mission on December 20, 1941, downing nine of ten Japanese bombers while defending China.
Led by Claire Chennault, the AVG utilized innovative "defensive pursuit" tactics, exploiting Japanese predictability and the strengths of their P-40 Warhawks to overcome technically superior Japanese Zero fighters.
Operating for only seven months, the Flying Tigers achieved a significant victory ratio (20-to-1), boosting Allied morale during a critical early phase of WWII and validating Chennault's unconventional air combat strategies.

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On December 20, 1941, an all-volunteer group of American mercenary pilots took on Japanese bombers in their first air combat mission to protect China.

By day’s end, the American Volunteer Group (AVG)—better known as the “Flying Tigers”—would go on to down nine out of 10 Japanese bombers in the first of many air battles in a seven-month campaign that helped block Japanese expansion into China.