Interview With Zhang Yulin

Interviewee: Zhang Yulin (pseudonym)

Interviewer and writer: CUI FENG

Location: Wuhan, Hubei province, China

Date: October 9, 2021                 

Language: Chinese (Translated by CUI FENG)

Interview with Zhang Yulin

In early 1970, about two months after joining the People's Liberation Army (PLA), I was deployed to Laos. We were then known as internationalist fighters that were helping the Laotian people resist American imperialist aggression. At that time, my platoon was stationed on a hill slope at the 86th kilometer of the New West Line. Around April, intelligence indicated that American planes might be planning to airdrop spies on an open space near the Luang Prabang mountains. My platoon was ordered to set up an ambush to intercept those spies.

Each of us carried a load of about sixty to seventy kilograms on the march towards the ambush area. Our field packs included four hand grenades, ninety (90) rounds of ammunition, a submachine gun, a machete, and dry rations, among other things. We arrived at the designated area in the middle of the night. The eleven soldiers in my squad quickly spread out with a distance of 20 meters between each of us, and laid in the grass. The insects in Laos were terrifying: especially the mosquitoes which were unusually large. We described the mosquitoes as "B52" bombers because they would swarm towards us in groups at night. Fortunately, we had mosquito repellent. During the night mission, we could also hear the sounds of elephants, wild buffalo, and goats, all which added to our trepidation. There were many grasshoppers and they often crawled on our necks, backs, or thighs. Despite wearing leggings, we still couldn't avoid getting bitten by grasshoppers.

However, after laying in wait in the area for three days, we did not find any enemy soldiers. It wasn't until the fourth night when we heard the roar of an aircraft. At that time, we didn't have air superiority, and the enemy's plane flew very low, seemingly only a few hundred meters above the ground. But the plane quickly flew away. On the fifth day, four planes arrived: two reconnaissance aircraft and two helicopters. However, after dropping a few illumination flares, the enemy planes flew away without conducting any paratrooping or air drops. On the sixth morning, we received orders from the command headquarters to withdraw to our base, and so we retreated accordingly. That was the only combat mission I participated in during my time in Laos.

We didn't directly participate in the civil war in Laos. Our main task was to protect the Chinese road construction team and ensure the security of the PLA road construction units. The combat missions primarily focused on air defense operations, defending against American planes conducting bombing operations or right-wing government agents conducting reconnaissance.