Willows Korean Aviation School Fueled
Independence Movement
Independence Movement
The Willows Korean Aviation School/Corps was established sometime between March 1 and March 19, 1920, and
officially closed in the summer of 1921. Korean Provisional Government Defense Minister/General Roh Paik-lin
helped establish the school after he learned of the Korean American community’s desire to open a combat-pilot
training facility.
Kim Chong-lim, the first Korean American millionaire (known as the “Rice King”), provided major financial support for
the school until a disastrous flood destroyed his rice fields and erased his fortune in early October 1920. “His
contributions were previously known, but underappreciated,” Chang said.
Two of the school’s pilots – Park Hee-sung and Lee Yong-keun – were appointed by the Korean Provisional
Government as its first aviation officers. Both were cadets at the Willows school, directly linking Korean aviation history
with American aviation history.
At the time the Willows Korean Aviation School/Corps operated, the aviation industry was in its infancy.
“Just jumping on an aircraft was a major risk,” Chang noted, adding that he and Han decided to call the cadets
Willows Airmen, with a nod to the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II. “It was unsafe to fly in many aircraft. That risk
shows the willingness and dedication of these cadets to sacrifice themselves for the independence of their
homeland.”
“Korean American Pioneer Aviators” is a revised version of a book published previously in Korea. It places the Willows
school in the context of racism and segregation that targeted Asian immigrants in the U.S. early in the 20th century,
and the uncertain status of Korean immigrants in relation to Japan’s occupation of their homeland.
The latter was decided by U.S. Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan in 1913 after a trainload of farmworkers left
Riverside, Calif., to pick apricots in Hemet 35 miles to the east.
“The Koreans were mistaken for Japanese, and people in Hemet threw them out of town,” Chang explained. “Japan
claimed the Korean workers were Japanese subjects, and it caused an international incident. The Korean National
Association, founded by Ahn Chang Ho, sent a letter to Bryan saying they were Korean, not Japanese. Bryan
announced that Koreans living in the U.S. were not Japanese subjects and would be represented by the Korean
National Association. Without that decision, the Korean American independence movement would not have been
possible.”
Many participants in the Willows school were members of the Korean National Association, which was founded by
Ahn Chang Ho and continues to connect people of Korean descent around the world. The organization held a national
convention in Riverside in 1911. A statue honoring Ahn as a patriot in the independence movement stands in
downtown Riverside, which housed the largest Korean immigrant community in the U.S. at the beginning of the 20th
century.
officially closed in the summer of 1921. Korean Provisional Government Defense Minister/General Roh Paik-lin
helped establish the school after he learned of the Korean American community’s desire to open a combat-pilot
training facility.
Kim Chong-lim, the first Korean American millionaire (known as the “Rice King”), provided major financial support for
the school until a disastrous flood destroyed his rice fields and erased his fortune in early October 1920. “His
contributions were previously known, but underappreciated,” Chang said.
Two of the school’s pilots – Park Hee-sung and Lee Yong-keun – were appointed by the Korean Provisional
Government as its first aviation officers. Both were cadets at the Willows school, directly linking Korean aviation history
with American aviation history.
At the time the Willows Korean Aviation School/Corps operated, the aviation industry was in its infancy.
“Just jumping on an aircraft was a major risk,” Chang noted, adding that he and Han decided to call the cadets
Willows Airmen, with a nod to the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II. “It was unsafe to fly in many aircraft. That risk
shows the willingness and dedication of these cadets to sacrifice themselves for the independence of their
homeland.”
“Korean American Pioneer Aviators” is a revised version of a book published previously in Korea. It places the Willows
school in the context of racism and segregation that targeted Asian immigrants in the U.S. early in the 20th century,
and the uncertain status of Korean immigrants in relation to Japan’s occupation of their homeland.
The latter was decided by U.S. Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan in 1913 after a trainload of farmworkers left
Riverside, Calif., to pick apricots in Hemet 35 miles to the east.
“The Koreans were mistaken for Japanese, and people in Hemet threw them out of town,” Chang explained. “Japan
claimed the Korean workers were Japanese subjects, and it caused an international incident. The Korean National
Association, founded by Ahn Chang Ho, sent a letter to Bryan saying they were Korean, not Japanese. Bryan
announced that Koreans living in the U.S. were not Japanese subjects and would be represented by the Korean
National Association. Without that decision, the Korean American independence movement would not have been
possible.”
Many participants in the Willows school were members of the Korean National Association, which was founded by
Ahn Chang Ho and continues to connect people of Korean descent around the world. The organization held a national
convention in Riverside in 1911. A statue honoring Ahn as a patriot in the independence movement stands in
downtown Riverside, which housed the largest Korean immigrant community in the U.S. at the beginning of the 20th
century.
| Pilots training for combat in the Korean independence movement pose for a photo at the Willows Korean Aviation School/Corps. |
From Univ of California-Riverside
UC Riverside scholar’s new book details role of post-
WWI pilot-training program and Korean Americans in
fight to free Korea
By Bettye Miller
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – The Willows Korean Aviation
School/Corps survived barely a year. But the California
school that trained fighter pilots in the Korean
independence movement a century ago left a significant
legacy: The birth of the modern Korea Air Force.
A new book by Edward T. Chang, professor of ethnic
studies at the University of California, Riverside, and Woo
Sung Han, advisor to the Republic of Korea Air Force Chief
of Staff, examines the little-known history of the school that
trained more than 30 combat pilots, its place in the fight to
free Korea from Japanese rule (Japan occupied Korea
UC Riverside scholar’s new book details role of post-
WWI pilot-training program and Korean Americans in
fight to free Korea
By Bettye Miller
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – The Willows Korean Aviation
School/Corps survived barely a year. But the California
school that trained fighter pilots in the Korean
independence movement a century ago left a significant
legacy: The birth of the modern Korea Air Force.
A new book by Edward T. Chang, professor of ethnic
studies at the University of California, Riverside, and Woo
Sung Han, advisor to the Republic of Korea Air Force Chief
of Staff, examines the little-known history of the school that
trained more than 30 combat pilots, its place in the fight to
free Korea from Japanese rule (Japan occupied Korea
from 1910 to 1945), and its significance in Korean American history.
“Korean American Pioneer Aviators: The Willows Airmen” (Lexington Books) details the development and operation of
the aviation school in rural Glenn County, located 85 miles northwest of Sacramento, Calif., its key players, and its
establishment by the Korean American community with the blessing of the Korean Provisional Government in
Shanghai.
The 164-page book also correctly identifies the first Korean pilot as World War I combat veteran George Lee.
“Until now, people believed the first Korean aviator was Ahn Chang Nam ,” explained Chang, who is the founding
director of the Young Oak Kim Center for Korean American Studies at UCR. “He obtained a pilot’s license in Japan in
1921. We found that George Lee enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1918 and flew 156 missions during World War I. The
Korea Air Force is rewriting its history because of these findings and wants to create a historical monument in Korea.”
“Korean American Pioneer Aviators: The Willows Airmen” (Lexington Books) details the development and operation of
the aviation school in rural Glenn County, located 85 miles northwest of Sacramento, Calif., its key players, and its
establishment by the Korean American community with the blessing of the Korean Provisional Government in
Shanghai.
The 164-page book also correctly identifies the first Korean pilot as World War I combat veteran George Lee.
“Until now, people believed the first Korean aviator was Ahn Chang Nam ,” explained Chang, who is the founding
director of the Young Oak Kim Center for Korean American Studies at UCR. “He obtained a pilot’s license in Japan in
1921. We found that George Lee enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1918 and flew 156 missions during World War I. The
Korea Air Force is rewriting its history because of these findings and wants to create a historical monument in Korea.”
Edward T. Chang co-authored “Korean American Pioneer
Aviators,” which details the little-known history of a combat-
pilot training school in Willows, Calif.
Aviators,” which details the little-known history of a combat-
pilot training school in Willows, Calif.
Scouring century-old newspaper articles and
historical documents, and conducting numerous
interviews in Korea and the United States, Chang
and Han discovered that the Korean American
community did far more than raise money to support
the Korea independence movement. It also trained
pilots for combat.
“This fact is very little known among Korean
Americans and Koreans everywhere,” Chang said. “It
sheds new light on an important chapter of Korean
American history and highlights the sacrifice and
dedication of early Korean Americans. The Willows
aviation school was not simply a civilian-run aviation
school. It was established by the Korean Provisional
Government in Shanghai and became the
foundation of the Korea Air Force. Though some
researchers have known of the school’s existence,
its role has been marginalized in Korean American
history.”
historical documents, and conducting numerous
interviews in Korea and the United States, Chang
and Han discovered that the Korean American
community did far more than raise money to support
the Korea independence movement. It also trained
pilots for combat.
“This fact is very little known among Korean
Americans and Koreans everywhere,” Chang said. “It
sheds new light on an important chapter of Korean
American history and highlights the sacrifice and
dedication of early Korean Americans. The Willows
aviation school was not simply a civilian-run aviation
school. It was established by the Korean Provisional
Government in Shanghai and became the
foundation of the Korea Air Force. Though some
researchers have known of the school’s existence,
its role has been marginalized in Korean American
history.”