Mao's plane gets a look

Reporters yesterday view an IL-14 twin-engine military personnel transport that served Chairman Mao Zedong between March 1957 and September 1958. The plane is on display at the China Aviation Museum in Beijing. After more than four months of renovations, the museum opens on Sunday ahead of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Liberation Army Air Force. The facility features 309 aircraft and other weapons including missiles, radar and anti-aircraft guns, among which 114 are relics preserved by the state.