One day in mid-May, as soon as some 10 fighter planes landed successively at an airport in north China, various support vehicles and ground personnel rushed onto the runway to provide turnaround support to the aircraft.

In less than half an hour, the fighter planes taxied slowly to take-off positions and roared one by one into the sky. This was a scene of an airfield station of the air force of the Beijing Military Area Command giving support to a brother unit in a ferrying flight drill.

Since the beginning of this year, the airfield station has been proactive in exploring new methods of rapid flight support under new situation in light of real combat requirements. So far it has successfully developed 10-odd support methods focusing on the following subjects: multi-type aircraft support, all-weather rapid support, emergency airfield repairs; and emergency anti-air-raid evacuation.

In addition, the airfield station has also selected a group of capable persons from 14 units to form 9 emergency support detachments to carry out drills of accompanying support, railway transportation loading and unloading operations, emergency evacuation and concealment, and battlefield medical rescue and treatment, through which it has successfully fostered the capabilities of its troops in preflight maintenance preparation, air-ground transferring and loading, emergency call-out of troops, and emergency support.

(PLA Daily June 1, 2007)