Zhang Jianping

Zhang Jianping (Chinese: 张建平; born April 1956) is a lieutenant general (zhong jiang) of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) of China. He has been deputy commander of the PLAAF since 2013, and previously served as commander of the Jinan Military Region Air Force and the Guangzhou Military Region Air Force.

Zhang Jianping
张建平
Deputy Commander of the PLA Air Force
Incumbent
Assumed office April 2013 Serving with Chen Dong, Zheng Qunliang, Zhang Honghe
Commander	Ma Xiaotian
Commander of the Guangzhou Military Region Air Force
In office July 2011 – April 2013
Preceded by	Gao Shouwei
Succeeded by	Xu Anxiang
Commander of the Jinan Military Region Air Force
In office January 2011 – July 2011
Preceded by	Liu Zhongxing
Succeeded by	Zheng Qunliang
Personal details
Born	April 1956 (age 68) Sha County, Fujian, China
Political party	Chinese Communist Party
Military service
Allegiance	People's Republic of China
Branch/service	People's Liberation Army Air Force
Years of service	1974 – present
Rank	Lieutenant General

In this Chinese name, the family name is Zhang.

Biography

Zhang Jianping was born in April 1956 in Sha County, Fujian Province. He enlisted in the PLAAF in 1974.^[1][2]

Zhang was regimental commander at the age of 27 and commander of the 3rd Fighter Division a few years later (the elite of all elite divisions in the PLAAF). Being the first "fist unit" equipped with the Su-27 in the mid-1990s, he led the first team from the division to Russia to receive the Su–27 and become the first of the Su–27 pilot cadre in the PLAAF. He was promoted to be commander of the 9th Corps and deputy commander of the Beijing Military Region Air Force.^[3]

He was then transferred to the PLAAF headquarters as first deputy chief of staff. He assisted the chief of staff Yang Guohai, overseeing operations and training. In July 2009, he was the PLAAF representative in the Sino-Russian joint military exercise Peace Mission 2009 at Zhaonan Joint Tactical Training Base in the Jinan Military Region. After the exercise, he made a widely circulated speech on how the PLAAF should learn the best air force theory and practices of the foreign counterparts.^[3]

In January 2011, Zhang was promoted to commander of the Jinan Military Region Air Force and concurrently deputy commander of the Jinan MR. Six months later, he was transferred to the Guangzhou Military Region, serving the same positions. In April 2013, he was appointed deputy commander of the PLAAF.^[1][2]

Zhang attained the rank of major general in February 2003, and lieutenant general in July 2012. He was an alternate member of the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.^[1][2]

References

1. "Zhang Jianping" (in Chinese). Phoenix New Media. 28 August 2013.
2. "Zhang Jianping" (in Chinese). National Chengchi University. 5 June 2015.
3. You Ji (2012). "Meeting the Challenge of the Upcoming PLAAF Leadership Reshuffle". The Chinese Air Force: Evolving Concepts, Roles, and Capabilities (PDF). National Defense University Press. p. 221. ISBN 978-0-16-091386-0.

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Government.