Happy Lunar New Year from the USC US-China Institute!
Video: Andrew Morris on the Defection of PLA Air Force Commander Fan Yuanyan to Taiwan
Andrew Morris discussed the defection of squadron commander Fan Yuanyan to Taiwan.
October 26, 2016
Squadron commander Fan Yuanyan 范園焱 was one of the eighteen prominent defectors 反共義士 from China during the period 1960-1989. He was 41 and flew a Shenyang F-6, the Chinese version of the Soviet MIG-19, to Taiwan. He was made a lieutenant colonel in Taiwan’s air force and received $600,000 in gold as a reward for his defection. Fan, though, came to feel uneasy about life in Taiwan.
This video is also available on the USCI YouTube Channel.
Andrew Morris is Professor of History at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. He is author of Marrow of the Nation: A History of Sport and Physical Culture in Republican China (2004) and Colonial Project, National Game: A History of Baseball in Taiwan (2010), and editor of Japanese Taiwan: Colonial Rule and Its Contested Legacy (2015).
This event was co-sponsored by the East Asia Studies Center and the Department of History.
Featured Articles
January 4, 2024
We note the passing of many prominent individuals who played some role in U.S.-China affairs, whether in politics, economics or in helping people in one place understand the other.
Events
Thursday, March 21, 2024 - 4:00pm PST
Ying Zhu looks at new developments for Chinese and global streaming services.
Tuesday, March 19, 2024 - 4:00pm
David Zweig examines China's talent recruitment efforts, particularly towards those scientists and engineers who left China for further study. U.S. universities, labs and companies have long brought in talent from China. Are such people still welcome?