Remains of former senior military official cremated

The remains of General Xu Qi-liang, a former senior military commander, were cremated in Beijing on Sunday.

Xi Jinping, along with other Party and State leaders, including Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang and Li Xi, bade farewell to Xu at the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery.

Amid solemn music, they walked slowly toward Xu's body and stood in silent tribute. They then paid their final respects with three bows, shook hands with Xu's family members and offered condolences.

Xu, who was 75, died of illness on June 2 in Beijing.

He had served as a member of the Political Bureau of the 18th and 19th Central Committees of the Communist Party of China and as a vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission. He was extolled as an excellent CPC member, a time-tested and loyal communist soldier, a proletarian military strategist and an outstanding leader of the People's Liberation Army.

Xu, a native of Shandong province, was born in March 1950 to a farmers' family and spent his early years at local schools.

In July 1966, he was admitted to a flight school run by the PLA Air Force. In July 1967, the young cadet became a CPC member.

After graduating in the summer of 1969, Xu was assigned to the 26th Fighter Jet Division of the PLA Air Force, and he rose through the ranks due to his outstanding service and leadership skills. In May 1983, Xu was named commander of the division.

In August 1984, he was appointed deputy commander of the PLA Air Force's 4th Combined Corps. One year later, he became the chief of staff of the Air Force's Shanghai Regional Command.

In July 1989, he was transferred to the Air Force's 8th Combined Corps as the chief of staff, and he became the corps' commander the next summer.

In January 1993, Xu was promoted to the post of deputy chief of staff of the PLA Air Force, and in October 1994, he was appointed the force's chief of staff.

In February 1999, he was transferred to the PLA Shenyang Regional Command as chief of the command's air force.

In June 2004, he was named the PLA's deputy chief of staff.

In September 2007, Xu was appointed top commander of the PLA Air Force and was soon named a member of the Central Military Commission, China's highest military authority.

In November 2012, he was elected a member of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee and a vice-chairman of the CMC.