On the eve of China’s Army Day, state media highlighted the work of military test pilot Yang Yong, including previously undisclosed accidents and deaths associated with China’s carrier aviation program.
The disclosures came as China marked the 99th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) amid continuing personnel changes at the highest levels of the military.
Xinhua reported that Yang Yong, a test pilot with military Unit 91548, received a National Defense Science and Technology First-Class Merit under an order signed by Xi Jinping in his capacity as chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC).
A subsequent state-media video titled “Fujian Ship Catapults the KJ-600! Test Flight Details Revealed” provided details about Yang’s test-flight experience.
According to the video, Yang was flying at an altitude of 10,000 meters when his aircraft suffered a cockpit depressurization that caused a continuing loss of oxygen.
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Because a civil aviation corridor was below the aircraft, Yang did not immediately descend. State media said he maintained an altitude of 10,000 meters for 13 minutes and completed the test before returning with the required flight data.
CCTV presented the incident as an example of Yang’s performance as a test pilot.
State media acknowledges deaths during carrier training
The same coverage disclosed that Yang had witnessed serious injuries and deaths among fellow personnel during a roughly 20-day period of carrier aircraft flight training.
CCTV did not identify those killed or injured or provide details about the incidents.
The disclosure offered a rare official acknowledgment of casualties associated with China’s carrier aviation training program.
Yang also described an incident involving a J-15 carrier-based fighter during a ski-jump takeoff.
According to his account, the aircraft suffered a major engine malfunction during its takeoff roll. The fighter stopped less than five meters from the edge of the flight deck.
China’s newest aircraft carrier, the Fujian, differs from the country’s first two carriers by using electromagnetic catapults rather than relying exclusively on ski-jump launches.
The carrier has been used to test aircraft including the J-15T fighter and KJ-600 fixed-wing airborne early-warning aircraft.
Rocket Force video highlights backup launch crews
The PLA also released a propaganda series titled “Winning” for the anniversary.
One segment featured Qiu Guoxu, identified as a Rocket Force backup launch operator.
Qiu said backup units are sometimes viewed as secondary to primary launch crews and referred to a saying within the force that the longer personnel remain in backup roles, the further they are from conducting an actual launch.
“I believe the opposite,” Qiu said. “At the critical moment, a backup unit may well become the ace of aces.”
He said his company performs a “double backup” function during exercises, with personnel remaining alongside launch vehicles while repeatedly relocating and maintaining combat readiness.
Qiu also recalled a colleague asking whether they might spend their entire careers without being called upon to perform their primary wartime mission. Qiu said personnel nevertheless had to remain fully prepared.
The PLA has not fought a large-scale war since its 1979 conflict with Vietnam.
The Rocket Force has also been one of the main targets of China’s recent military anti-corruption investigations. Several senior Rocket Force commanders have been removed or investigated since 2023.
No CMC member listed at Army Day reception
China’s Defense Ministry held its annual Army Day reception on July 31, with Defense Minister Dong Jun delivering the main address.
No serving member of the Central Military Commission other than Xi was listed as attending the reception.
That marked a change from previous years. In 2023, senior attendees included CMC members Li Shangfu, Liu Zhenli, Miao Hua and Zhang Shengmin. Three commission members attended in 2024 and two attended in 2025.
Dong became defense minister in December 2023 following Li Shangfu’s removal but has not been appointed a state councilor or CMC member, positions held by several of his predecessors.
The reduced representation comes amid a major turnover within China’s senior military leadership.
The 20th Central Military Commission originally consisted of Xi and six other senior officers. A series of investigations and personnel changes has since removed most of its original membership.
Zhang Shengmin was elevated to CMC vice chairman in October 2025.
More than 100 senior officers removed or absent
The personnel changes extend beyond the Central Military Commission.
According to a Wall Street Journal tally published in March, approximately 36 military delegates had lost their seats in the National People’s Congress since the current legislative term began in 2023. That represented nearly 13 percent of the military delegation’s original 281 members.
The newspaper also reported that, of 81 officers Xi had promoted to the rank of full general, at least 25 had been expelled from the Communist Party, removed from their posts or placed under investigation.
The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) has separately tracked personnel changes across the PLA.
In a report published in February, CSIS identified 101 senior officers who had either been removed or disappeared from public view since 2022. The group included 36 full generals and lieutenant generals that CSIS classified as formally purged and another 65 senior officers considered potentially purged.
CSIS calculated that 52 percent of 176 top military leadership positions had been affected by the turnover.
At the July 31 Army Day reception, Defense Minister Dong Jun called on the PLA to “thoroughly implement Xi Jinping Thought on Strengthening the Military” and uphold the Central Military Commission chairman responsibility system, which places ultimate military authority with CMC Chairman Xi Jinping, according to China’s Ministry of National Defense.
He also called on military personnel to remain loyal to the Chinese Communist Party.
State secrets agency publicizes military information case
Separately, China’s National Administration of State Secrets Protection publicized a case on Aug. 4 involving a military enthusiast accused of disclosing classified information.
According to the agency’s “Secrecy Watch” WeChat account, a man surnamed Lu attracted the attention of a foreign intelligence service after discussing military subjects in an online chat group.
The agency said another man, surnamed Jin, approached Lu while presenting himself as a journalist and asked him for information concerning subjects including China’s domestically produced aircraft carriers.
Authorities alleged that Lu collected information and obtained internal classified documents, which he provided in exchange for payment.
He was subsequently arrested and prosecuted for intentionally disclosing state secrets, according to the account.
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