Before the United States formally entered World War II, a handful of Americans had already taken to the skies in battle against Japan. The Flying Tigers, led by World War I veteran Claire Chennault, were an all-volunteer force of American pilots who fought for the Nationalist government of China as it strove to blunt the Japanese advance. Even though they were in Chinese service, the Flying Tigers struck the first American blows against the Empire of Japan, and their efforts helped keep China on its feet to continue prosecuting the war — an important factor when the United States formally joined the war effort in late 1941.

A symbol of American grit after Japan's shocking advances in the first weeks of their war against the United States, the Flying Tigers, and their distinctive fighter p

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