Zhouhuang Deng (C. H. Tang) was born in 5/26/1915 in Guangzhou, China, the fourth of seven children. He earned a BS in agriculture from Lingnan University of Guangzhou, China. Deng was accepted into the 12th class of the Chinese Air Force Academy in 1937, and entered after graduating from the 15th class of the Whampoa Military Academy. In November 1943 he joined the China National Aviation Corporation (CNAC) as a co-pilot. A month later, he began flying the Hump missions until the end of WWII. He completed about 600 Hump flights and was ranked in the top 3 among the Chinese pilots. In this “Air Lifeline” of China during WWII, the US Air Force lost almost 600 airplanes and more than 1500 airmen. The casualty rate was almost 90%.
It was during his time that he met his wife, Huiru Deng, in 1946, when she was an English typist with the US Air Force 14. They were married on February 21, 1949 in Guangzhou, China.
On November 9, 1949 he was in the captain’s seat of a C-47, code XT-129, to join 11 other aircraft heading north from Hong Kong Kai Tak Airport. About 7 hours later, they all landed in Beijing and Tianjin. This was the famous “Uprising” or “Defection” (however it was referred to is irrelevant at this point) of the CNAC and the CATC (Central Air Transport Corporation).
During his first 11 years after returning to China, he served as a captain in the CAAC (Civil Aviation Administration of China) primarily flying passenger and cargo airplanes. He and other former CNAC employees helped grow and build the CAAC through establishing new airlines and training many new pilots. The CAAC grew from those 12 airplanes to the modern day Air China, Eastern China Airlines, and Southern China Airlines, totaling over 1000 aircraft. He stopped flying in June 1961 and later became the Assistant Director of Training of CAAC in Chengdu. During the “Cultural Revolution”, he was unjustly jailed for seven and a half years. He survived the harsh life in prison and was released in July 1975. His political rights and name were reinstated in 1980 and he returned to his job at the CAAC. He retired from the CAAC in November 1984 and was elected as the People's Representative of Sichuan Province in 1985.
In 1988, he gave up his People's Representative post to move to US to be closer with his children and grandchildren. He spent his retirement reading, raising his grandsons, and gardening – finally able to put his college degree to use.
He was always generous and willing to help others. His mother passed away when he was a teenager and he began taking care of his younger siblings, even providing financial support for higher education. During the Hump missions, he was in constant danger, but he and his airplane emerged unscathed after every mission. In addition, throughout his entire flying career, he did not have any accidents at all. Owed surely, in no small part, to the blessings and protection from God, even if he didn’t know it yet as it wasn’t until last year that he accepted Christ, which was a great source of joy and hope to him.
Deng was in strong health throughout his life. In his nearly 100 years, he never had any major illnesses until recently when he was diagnosed with lung cancer. After two months of hospice care, he left this world peacefully on August 14, 2014 to be with God.
Although he is no longer with us, his legendary life and stories will remain among us forever.
先父鄧重煌於1915年5月26日出生於廣東省 廣州市。 兄弟姊妹共有
七人,排行第四。畢業於廣州嶺南大學農科糸,1937年時逢抗日戰爭爆
發,青年報國, 考入了空軍官校12期,先進入黃埔軍校15期,畢業後,
隨即進入空軍官校學習飛行。 1943年, 先父進入中國航空公司,任飛
行副駕駛直到抗戰勝利, 他一直擔負昆明至印度丁江航線上抗戰物資和
人員運輸的軍事任務. 在這人類航空史上最危險的航線,也被稱為“駝峰
航線”的空中禁區飛行了1800多小時(約600次)。 中国飛行員中是前三
名。在這條中國抗戰的生命线上美軍損失了约600架飛機, 損失率高達
90%, 並犧牲優秀飛行員1500 多人。
抗戰勝利後他繼續在中國航空公司飛行,1949年11月9日參加了當時
震驚中外的"兩航起義" (十二架飛機由香港飛到北京和天津) 擔任北飛正
駕驶,是中航公司北飛空勤人員的組织者之一,為中國民航的建立和發
展做出巨大貢献, 培養了大量飛行员,中國民航由當時十二架飛機發展到
今天的國航, 東航和南航。 他是當時民航飛行的前三位技術權威。
先父曾擔任中國民航机长,成都管理局訓練科副科长,科委办公室副主任.
在文革中被政治迫害被无辜關押在軍區看守所達七年4個月之久. 1975
年重新恢复自由, 随後擔任中國民航成都管理局訓練處副處长,於1984
年11月離休,於1985年被“選”為四川省第七屆人民代表員。
先父於1946年與在美軍14航空隊的英文打字員之家母鄧慧儒結識,并
在1949年2月21日在廣州結為連理,肓養2女1子. 1988年放棄了人
大代表的權利移居美國休斯敦與子女團聚,照顧孫子享受天倫之樂,平
時喜歡閱讀,蒔花,種菜自娱。
先父慷慨樂於助人,因年少喪母,十多歲就開始幫助照顧弟妹直到他們
完成大學教育,也在經濟上助其兄弟姊妹和親朋. 於飛行駝峰航線期間,
經歷了多次驚險,險象環生,但都安然渡過。 在其一生飛行任務中沒有
擦傷一片機皮,這實在是神的保守恩待. 先父以往常感嘆希望達到便是失
望,於2013年接受了主,終於是真正希望達到了,再也沒有遺憾。
先父身體一向健朗,在他近百年歲月中,沒生過重病,在美二十六中,
沒住過醫院,但在近兩年來被診斷為老年失憶,今年初,身體漸失去平
衡,行動不便,於今年6月被診斷為肺癌末期擴散到腦癌. 在安寧療護
中,安詳度過他人生中最後的兩個多月。
先父於2014年8月14日零晨12:02分歸回天家,雖然我們不能再承歡膝
下,但他傳奇的一生永遠活在我們的心中!
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