Born into a wealthy family in Pyongyang, Han Jang-ho dedicated his life to the struggle for Korea’s independence and passed away at the age of 100 in Milpitas, near San Francisco. At the age of 19, unable to withstand the pressures of Japanese colonial rule, he fled one night with money and clothes provided by his grandfather, saying goodbye to his parents without a chance to meet them again. In 1913, while working in Shanghai, he saved money to travel to the United States. His purpose for going to America was to engage in the independence movement. As he wished, he arrived at Angel Island in San Francisco in 1916, where he completed immigration procedures with the help of Pastor Lee Dae-wi of the Korean Methodist Church in San Francisco. In March 1916, he served as the president of the North American branch of the Korean National Association in San Francisco.
After moving to Manteca in Northern California and working as a farm laborer, he, along with colleagues Lee Sam-seong, Oh Bak-man, and Seong Bok-su, established a plan for activities aimed at the independence of their homeland. In 1919, he received flight training at a flying school in Redwood City, California, and became a pilot. He later contributed to the establishment of the Korea Independent Air Force, the first Korean military aviation unit. He sought financial support from the U.S. government and various organizations to purchase bombers necessary for combat after receiving specific technical training in flight control methods, but these efforts ended in vain.
In February 1920, after No Baek-rin established a Korean flying school in Willows and Kim Jong-rim purchased five airplanes, Han was appointed as an instructor there. While teaching flight skills to over 50 students, he strengthened their resolve for the anti-Japanese struggle. Han Jang-ho envisioned forming a flight squadron to carry bombs to Tokyo, aiming to bomb the city to achieve Korea’s independence. This plan was similar to the one approved by President Roosevelt in 1942, which involved General Doolittle’s air raid on Tokyo, after which the American squadron intended to cross over to China. Han had already conceived a similar plan in 1919.
In June 1921, he participated in Park Yong-man’s military school for boys in Hastings, Nebraska. In 1995, he was posthumously awarded the Order of Merit for National Foundation.
His son, Dr. Richard, was born in Hastings, Nebraska, while Han Jang-ho was attending Park Yong-man’s military school. A graduate of Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago, he was at Stanford University and received several awards for his essays related to medicine. In 1949, he made significant contributions to the medical field as a pioneer in discovering new techniques for heart surgery. His wife, Kim Nan-young, is the author of “Clay Walls,” which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. A well-known cardiologist, he is now retired and currently writing about family history. His father’s collection has been donated to the Korean Heritage Library at USC, where the family holds five collections under their names. Equipment used by his father, such as helmets and other flying gear, has been donated to the Historical Society in San Francisco.
The government posthumously awarded him the Order of Merit for National Foundation in 1995.
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