Cuban pilots' bonds with China revived after decades

Over the past month, the story of a veteran Cuban pilot, who was trained in China about six decades ago and sought to reconnect with his Chinese instructors, has captured the hearts of many netizens.

The story of gaunt, silver-haired Alberto Alonso Sanjuan, also known as Tito by Chinese netizens, came to light in a video posted in early February by a vlogger who came across him on a street in Trinidad, a small coastal town in Cuba.

In the video, Tito proudly displays a graduation certificate issued by a pilot academy of the People's Liberation Army, notebooks filled with writing in Chinese and Spanish, and a collection of medals.

The video clip took a poignant turn when Tito said most of his friends had died, and he asked the vlogger about the cost of a flight from Cuba to Beijing. Touched by his experiences, which transcended time and geography, Chinese netizens flooded the comments section and offered clues to his possible connections in China.

The story eventually ended happily as Tito, along with more than a dozen Cuban pilots who received training in China during the 1960s, met with representatives of the PLA Air Force in Havana, the capital of Cuba, on Friday.

The representatives conveyed warm regards through videos and calligraphy works from Chinese instructors who had taught Cuban pilots, the PLA Air Force said on Saturday.

"The Chinese Air Force representatives traveled all the way to visit veteran Cuban pilots who had trained in China, bringing both sides together for a reunion of special significance," said Hua Xin, Chinese ambassador to Cuba, during the reunion event.

"This moment represents a teacher-student bond that has spanned (over) half a century, an unbreakable fellowship and enduring comradeship," Hua said, according to an online statement released by the Chinese embassy in Cuba.

According to the PLA Air Force, an aviation school of the PLA undertook the training of Cuban pilots for fighter jets or helicopters, as well as ground crew personnel, in the 1960s.

Despite language differences, Chinese instructors dedicated themselves to enhancing the knowledge and skills of Cuban trainees through meticulous curriculum design and the use of instructional models. Within a year, they had nurtured over 220 pilots, who upon their return to Cuba formed the backbone of Cuba's air force.

During the reunion, Henry Perez, one of the Cuban pilots, said, "I think the best thing that has happened to us is the thorough, selfless and united training we received from the great country of China."

China and Cuba established diplomatic ties in 1960.

Mario Rodriguez Penaranda, commander of the Cuban Revolutionary Air and Air Defense Force, said that the support provided by China for the training of Cuba's military personnel played a pivotal role in strengthening the country's defensive capabilities.

Peng Guohong, a Chinese flight instructor, recalled that he had trained three Cuban pilots in Linfen, Shanxi province, in the early 1960s.

"To overcome the language barrier, Cuban students tried their best to learn Mandarin, and I was also able to speak a little Spanish. We were nearly of the same age, so we had formed a close relationship," Peng, who is now 90, was quoted by Linfen Daily as saying.

Peng said the Cuban pilots managed to cope with freezing conditions at night.

"We teachers had been eating and living together with the students," he recalled. "Despite the harsh conditions, we had a great time together."