China's Air Force presented stunt flights and parachuting at Nanyuan Airport, a military airport in the southern suburbs of the national capital of Beijing on Monday, to mark the centenary of aviation.

Among the 11,000 viewers from the units of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) stationed in Beijing and all walks of life in the capital city were Luo Gan, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and other senior officials including State Councilor Zhou Yongkang, Guo Boxiong, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, Gu Xiulian, vice-chairwoman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), and Bai Lichen, vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

China was expected to hold a series of programs including air shows in four major cities to mark the centenary, with focus on the development and reforms of the Chinese Air Force, according to military sources.

This year, celebrations have been going on in more than 20 countries and regions worldwide in memory of the historical invention by the Wright brothers of the United States.
 
(Xinhua News Agency November 4, 2003)