Liu Yalou
刘亚楼
1910–1965
- Chief of Staff, Northeast Field Army
- Commander-in-Chief, PLA Air Force (1949–1965)
Biography
Early Career
Liu Yalou (1910–1965) was born in Wuping, Fujian. After joining the Communist Party and participating in the Long March, he was sent to the Soviet Union to study at the Frunze Military Academy in Moscow from 1939 to 1945. He returned to China at the end of the Second World War and was assigned to the Northeast, where he served as Chief of Staff of the Northeast Field Army under Lin Biao.
Tianjin Assault and the Pingjin Campaign
During the Pingjin Campaign, Liu Yalou commanded the assault on Tianjin. On 14 January 1949 his forces — approximately 340,000 troops — launched a coordinated attack on the city from multiple directions. Tianjin fell after 29 hours of urban combat on 15 January; over 130,000 Nationalist defenders were killed or captured, including garrison commander Chen Changjie. The swift capture of Tianjin eliminated Fu Zuoyi's last military option and made the subsequent peaceful transfer of Beiping possible.
Commander of the PLAAF
After the founding of the PRC, Liu Yalou became the first Commander-in-Chief of the People's Liberation Army Air Force in 1949, a position he held until his death. He oversaw the PLAAF's rapid expansion and modernisation during and after the Korean War. He was promoted to the rank of General (上将) in 1955. He died in Shanghai in 1965.