"Any time, we as Americans and Chinese come together to celebrate our common history. That's a special time. In today's world, that's more important than ever. It's very important that we study and learn from that period 80 years ago," says Jeffrey Greene, chairman of the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation.

In August 1941, at a time when China's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression was in a most difficult stage, U.S. General Claire Lee Chennault formed the "American Volunteer Group of the Chinese Air Force" to help China fight invading Japanese forces.

With their winged tiger emblem and the shark-mouth painted on their planes, locals nicknamed them the "Flying Tigers." The story of the Flying Tigers lives on.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service■