U.S. General Claire Lee Chennault, founder of the American Volunteer Group (AVG), was on his way back to the United States on Aug. 15 when the Japanese surrendered. The AVG, also known as the Flying Tigers, was a legendary air corps that fought alongside the Chinese against Japan during WWII.
"He was of course extremely relieved, after eight years of combat, that we were victorious. He had served both countries to the best of his ability and now they were at peace," Chennault's granddaughter, Nell Calloway, told Xinhua.
"The sign of the Flying Tiger during WWII was a symbol of victory for people of both the United States and China. When the war ended, this symbol never faded from the minds of people who were liberated and it remains a symbol of fascination for people in both countries," Calloway said.
"People may not remember the history that it represents, but they remember that it represents a historic moment."
"We have a responsibility to all who sacrificed so much to put aside our differences in a time of peace and make the world a better place," she said.
Frank Losonsky, now 96 and one of only two surviving AVG members, was a crew chief with the Flying Tigers.
Losonsky was back in the United States training to be a B-29 flight engineer when he heard the news of the Japanese surrender.
"Today, Aug. 15 means remembering those who died in hope of peaceful times," he said.
CHINESE CONTRIBUTION UNDERVALUED
While WWII concluded 72 years ago, a few diehards in Japan still avoid to acknowledge the suffering inflicted.
In Whitaker's opinion, "old-school" Japanese leaders remain uncomfortable with their mistakes and eventual defeat.
"They lost face and are attempting to restore that old respect they once had," he said.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Pearl Harbor in December 2016 to "pray for the souls of victims."
"I say, 'stay home,'" Whitaker said when asked about his reaction to the gesture. "We will never forgive Japan for its sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, and nothing they could ever do will ever alter the events of Dec. 7, 1941, a 'day of infamy.'"
Jan Thompson, a professor at Southern Illinois University, was angry at the abuse her late father received at the hands of the Japanese during the three years he spent as a POW.
"The POWs I knew did not buy Japanese products, like Japanese cars and TVs," she said.
The Japanese government has apologized to American POWs and their families as a gesture of reconciliation. Thompson believes that Japan could apply this model to other countries as well.
"There is still so much tension in East Asia, and it is all because of WWII," Thompson said.
"WWII is so important for what is going on in Asia now. We have to be accurate and embrace the truth, no matter how painful," she said.
China fought shoulder to shoulder with the other Allies, including the United States, and made major contributions to the victory.
Perry Dahl enlisted in 1940 and fought in the Pacific. He was a flying ace who shot down nine Japanese fighter jets.
"I was 17 years old when I joined the National Guard," said Dahl. "Everyone then was rather patriotic."
Dahl recalled that "my colleagues and I wanted to do the best we could for China as an ally."
"China's contributions to WWII are undervalued," Dahl said.
Throughout WWII, China was a major battlefield in the fight against the Japanese fascist invasion and the major Asian battlefield in the war against fascists worldwide. By the time of the Japanese surrender in 1945, around 35 million Chinese military personnel and civilians had lost their lives or got wounded.
"As we approach the 72nd anniversary of the end of the war, the symbolic value of the Flying Tigers is as important today as it was then. It represents a time when two great peoples put aside their differences and defeated an enemy that sought to conquer the world," Calloway said.
