A Y-20 large transport aircraft perform at the PLA Air Force open day event kicked off in Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin. Photos: Cui Meng/GT

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force will on Friday send its J-20 stealth fighter jets to escort the Y-20 large transport aircraft for the first time in the repatriation from South Korea of the remains of Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) martyrs who sacrificed their lives in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53) mission. 

This is a move that will not only pay tribute to the CPV martyrs but also display the increasing number of J-20s in service, experts said on Wednesday.

The ninth batch of 88 CPV martyrs who fought and died bravely in a foreign land during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea is finally returning home, as the handover ceremony and burial event of their remains have officially been launched on Wednesday, the Chinese Ministry of Veterans Affairs announced on Wednesday.

The Chinese delegation will hold a ceremony with the South Korean side in the South Korean city of Incheon on Thursday, after which a repatriation ceremony is scheduled the next day at Incheon International Airport before the fallen heroes are transferred home aboard PLA Air Force state-of-the-art Y-20 transport aircraft. On Saturday, the remains of the martyrs will be buried at the CPV martyrs' cemetery in Shenyang, capital of Northeast China's Liaoning Province, following a ceremony, the ministry said.

Since 2014, for eight consecutive years, eight batches of 825 remains of CPV martyrs have returned to their motherland. 

When the remains of CPV martyrs return to China on Friday, the J-20 will escort the Y-20 when the latter enters Chinese airspace, Shen Jinke, a spokesperson at the PLA Air Force, told media on Wednesday.

The two members in the PLA's 20-series aircraft will pay tribute to the revolutionary martyrs, Shen said.

J-20 fighter jets attached to an aviation brigade under the PLA Air Force taxi in close formation during a flight training exercise on January 7, 2022. Photo: eng.chinamil.com.cn

This will be the first time the powerful J-20 stealth fighter jet has been deployed since the PLA Air Force started such missions in 2015. In 2020 and 2021, the PLA Air Force sent Y-20 transport aircraft to repatriate remains of CPV martyrs, and they were escorted by J-11B fighter jets.

The move will display the growing strength of the PLA, and replacing the J-11B with the J-20 shows that more J-20s are in service, Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert and TV commentator, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Official releases have confirmed that the J-20 has been in service with the PLA Eastern Theater Command and the Northern Theater Command, with reports indicating the aircraft is also being commissioned into other theater commands.

The CPV martyrs had made tremendous sacrifices in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and as their remains return to motherland, the PLA welcome them back home with latest transport aircraft and fighter jets, telling them that the motherland and its military are becoming ever stronger, with advanced weapons and equipment, Song said.

"No other country can bully China, as the Chinese military is capable of safeguarding China's national sovereignty, security and development interests," Song said.