Air Force Museum receives WWII stone roller from China Published April 8, 2004 DAYTON, Ohio (AFPN) -- A stone roller Chinese workers used during World War II to construct airfield runways as long as 8,500 feet in Kunming, China, will make a permanent stop at the Air Force Museum here this summer.Hundreds of Chinese workers pulled the roller, made of solid stone and weighing nearly 11,000 pounds, to compress gravel runways used by the Flying Tigers, 14th Air Force and transport aircraft flying the "Hump Route" from India to China. Tens of thousands of Chinese helped build runways during the war.In a ceremony in Kunming, the roller was presented, on behalf of the people of Yunnan Province, to the museum. Representatives of the American Embassy in Beijing, the American Consulate General in Chengdu, and the Sino-American Aviation History Foundation attended."The roller is a symbol of the toil, determination and sacrifices of the Chinese people in resisting Japanese aggression," said Terry Aitken, Air Force Museum senior curator. "The airfields constructed in China with rollers such as these were a critical factor in the success of the U.S. air campaign against Japanese forces."The roller is expected to arrive in time for the closing of the Chinese exhibit currently at the museum titled, "The Memory of History," in late June. Museum experts said the exhibit chronicles the special bond the United States and China formed through the Flying Tigers' efforts. It also highlights Chinese citizens rescuing down American Airmen, the rigors and hazards of flying the "Hump Route" and defending the Burma Road. (Courtesy of Air Force Materiel Command News Service)