Wujiaba Airport, the second one of its kind in China's history following that of Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province.

 

In 1922, Tang Jiyao (1883-1927) the military governor of Yunnan organised to establish Yunnan Aviation School in Wujiaba.

 

The Flying Tigers and the airport

In 1941, shortly after the breakout of the Pacific War, Kunming Wujiaba Airport became the only one in China linking the outside world. So in order to meet the military demand, the airport continued to be enlarged.

 

A group photo of the American Flying Tigers in the airport.

 

In 1945 when the World War II finished, the American Flying Tigers left Kunming continuously. Pictured is a Chinese soldier guarding the airplanes of the Flying Tigers.

 

On 18 August 2005,  the delegation of Flying Tigers veterans-and their families-arrived in Kunming, seeking the traces of the Flying Tigers.

 

The local life and the airport 

The locals living around were used to the airplanes landing and taking-off at the airport.

 

Airplanes flied low over the vegetable fields of the locals after taking off and before landing. 

 

Zhou Enlai (1898-1976), the late Prime Minister of PRC, Chen Yi (1901-1972), one of the Great Ten Marshals of PRC, and Song Qingling (1893-1981), the wife of Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925) were at the airport.

 

In the 1980s, Dai ethnic members from Xishuangbanna toured Kunming by air.

 

In the 1980s, Yunnan delegation flied back to Kunming from Beijing where they attended the National  People's Congress of China.

 

The terminals in different periods

The first-generation terminal of the airport

 

The second-generation terminal of the airport

 

The second-generation terminal of the airport (in the early 1980s).

 

The third-generation terminal of the airport

 

The forth-generation terminal of the airport

 

In June 2012, Wujiaba airport was closed and replaced by a brand new airport of Kunming Changshui International Airport about 20 km from downtown.