Guns, troops, jets and…pigeons: what to expect from Beijing’s military parade

Beijing’s military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the second world war will begin at 10am on Thursday after President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan lead foreign guests to a rostrum overlooking Tiananmen Square.

Before the 70-minute parade, the People’s Liberation Army choir and orchestra will give a rendition of the national anthem – The March of the Volunteers, which was written in 1934 during the Japanese invasion of Manchuria as an anti-Japanese song.

Xi will then give a speech before inspecting the honour guards of the army, navy and air force.

The parade forces will be split into 50 formations – two of which will be made up of war veterans – that will march past (and fly over) the Tiananmen Square crowds for the next 50 minutes.

Kicking off the procedure will be 20 helicopters carrying the national flag that will form the number ‘70’ in the air.

These will be followed with a march-past by 11 phalanxes of troops representing the PLA, and 11 fighting forces that were most prominent during the war. The PLA phalanx will feature both men and women from the army, air force and navy.