General Zhou Zhi-Rou, 1st Commander-in-Chief (term of office:June 1, 1946 to March 14, 1952)
General Zhou was born in Linhai, Zhejiang, in October 1898. He was brought up by his widow mother, as his father died when he was little. He graduated from the class of the 8th Term of Baoding Military Academy.
Zhou served as a tutor of soldering at Whampoa Military Academy, and joined the Northern Expeditionary War in 1926 at the age of 15 and held the positions as commander of platoon, company, battalion and brigade. He demonstrated his talent in the wars with the warlords and was promoted to division commander in 1932. In the Battle of Ganzhou in 1933, he bravely relieved the friendly force for the siege and received citation by then Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek. He was promoted to deputy commander-commander-in chief of the 18th Army, and was sent abroad to further his studies on aviation and air force education. He returned to the country in 1934 and assumed office as the Principal of the National Aviation Academy. In 1936, he was assigned to the position of Director-General of the Aviation Committee. The field command was established in response to the decision of resisting the invasion of Japanese forces.
General Zhou was appointed as the commander-in-chief. The “August 14” air battle unfolded a glorious page of the history for the air force. In this battle, the pilots of the country demonstrated their gallantry and determination to its entirety in defending against the attack of the invaders. Indeed, most of these pilots were the students of General Zhou. The entire military force of the Republic of China during the 8 years of the war of resistance against Japanese invasion was outnumbered in manpower and hampered in its military hardware. Yet, we still won many air battles regardless of these disadvantages under the leadership and sound planning of General Zhou.
In 1946, following the reorganization of the Aeronautical Board into the Air Force Command Headquarters, General Chou Chih-jou was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief. In 1950, he was further appointed as both the Chief of the General Staff and the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force. General Chou remained true to his consistent principles, demonstrating loyalty and dedication to the nation, and a firm commitment to strengthening the Air Force. He was known for his strict military discipline as well as his warm and approachable demeanor. He also authored several works, including Ten Years of the Air Force. He was highly decorated, including the ROC State Medal, Cauldron Medal, Sky Command Medal, Loyalty Medal, Great Harmony Medal, Auspicious Star Medal; Rejuvenation Medal; Victory Medal, and Northern Expedition Medal. General Zhou was also conferred a number of commemorative medals such as the City Defense Medal, Chinese Descendant Medal, and War of Resistance Medal. General Zhou was also decorated by the USA with the Silver Palm Medal, Presidential Medal of Freedom, Medal of Joy, Military Achievement Award, by the UK with the COBF, and France with the Light of Glory of France.