Born in Linqu County, Shandong to a peasant's family, he entered the PLA and its Air Force No. 1 aeronautic preparatory school in 1966, learned piloting, and joined the Chinese Communist Party the following year. Later he transferred to the Air Force No. 8 and No. 5 aeronautic schools. He became a pilot after graduation in August 1969.
Xu was promoted to head of the military division in 1983, and vice army corps commander the next year. In 1985, he became chief of staff at the Air Force Shanghai headquarters, and also entered the PLA National Defense University for training. He was promoted to corps commander of the PLA Air Force in 1991 and was made a major general. In 1993, he became vice chief of staff of the Air Force and studied at the National Defense University again. After graduation, he was promoted to chief of staff of the PLA Air Force. He was made a lieutenant general in 1996.
In 1999, Xu became the vice commander and Air Force commander of the Shenyang Military Region, and studied at the National Defense University for the 3rd time in 2001. He was elevated to vice chief of staff of the PLA General Staff Department. He was made a full general on June 20, 2007. Xu also became the commander of the PLA Air Force in 2007.[1] In 2012, he became China's first career air force officer promoted to Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission[1] and was succeeded as Air Force Commander by General Ma Xiaotian.
From the 2010s through the 2020s, Xu emphasized developing China's air power and air force digitization.[1]
In July 2018, Xu met in Beijing with the US Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, to discuss regional issues and where the two men each laid out his country's military concerns before the other.[2]
Awards and decorations
Military ribbons within the People's Republic of China only reflect the wearer's echelon and time in service. Consequently, Xu's ribbon rack, being seven rows high, indicates he is at the Central Military Commission (CMC) level, the gold ribbon with a single star indicates he is a member of the CMC, and the rest of his ribbons indicate his time in service through a combination of one, two, three, and four-year service ribbons totaling forty-six years.[3]
References
^ abcLi, Xiaobing (2024). "Beijing's Military Power and East Asian-Pacific Hot Spots". In Fang, Qiang; Li, Xiaobing (eds.). China under Xi Jinping: A New Assessment. Leiden University Press. p. 258. ISBN9789087284411.
^"一文教你看懂解放军军衔、资历章，赶紧收藏" [One article teaches you to understand the rank and qualifications of the People's Liberation Army, hurry up and collect]. China Youth Online (in Chinese). 3 March 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
