The Flying Tigers, known as the "Chinese Air Force American Volunteer Aid Air Corps",[1] formally known as the American Volunteer Group (English: American Volunteer Group, abbreviated as AVG), was founded by American flight instructor Chennault on the eve of the Sino-Japanese War in World War II. The American Volunteer Group (AVG), founded by American flight instructor Bernard Chen, was established on the eve of the U.S.-Japanese War in World War II as a mercenary air force composed of highly paid American flight crews to fight against the Japanese in China, Burma, and elsewhere. The Flying Tigers were in China for less than a year, at a time when the Chinese air force was depleted and Soviet aid to China was largely canceled. Faced with the sky almost open to the Japanese invaders, the Flying Tigers, though unable to hold a reliable air defense umbrella for China, proved the existence of anti-invasion forces in the sky by their own strength.
In early July 1937, at the invitation of the Kuomintang government, Chennault arrived in China to inspect the air force as an adviser. Toward the end of the expedition, the Anti-Japanese War broke out in full force. Chennault accepted the suggestion of Soong Mei-ling,
and set up a flight school in the suburbs of Kunming to train the Chinese air force with the standard of the American army, and he also actively assisted the Chinese air force to fight against the Japanese. Due to Japanese diplomatic pressure, Chennault's activities gradually turned private.
In 1941, Chennault accepted a commission from the Nationalist government and traveled to the United States to recruit pilots. The Roosevelt administration, which was already preparing for war against the Axis powers, gave covert support by recruiting American pilots and mechanics as civilians in the name of a private organization with heavy pay.
By the time Chennault returned to China in mid-July 1941, 68 planes, 110 pilots, 150 mechanics and a number of other logistical personnel had arrived. It was divided into three squadrons, Adam and Eve, Bearcats and Hell's Angels.
On August 1, 1941, Chiang Kai-shek issued an order formally establishing the American Volunteer Brigade of the Chinese Air Force, appointing "Colonel Chennault as the commander of the brigade," and purchasing fighters at a high price ($45,000 for the first 100 Hawker-81's from Chennault's division) for its use. Winged Flying Tigers emblem and the shark head-shaped warplane head is known all over the world, its "Flying Tigers" nickname in the wartime need to inspire the morale of the cause of the rapid spread.