4 Chinese pilots in intensive training for space trip: report

Asian Economic News, Jan 22, 2001

HONG KONG, Jan. 17 Kyodo

Four Chinese jet fighter pilots are in intensive training to prepare for the country's first manned space flight, a Hong Kong newspaper reported Wednesday.

The four, who will be China's first astronauts, were chosen from more than 1,000 candidate pilots for the mission, the China-backed Wen Wei Po said.

After thorough training, the condition of the four is expected to be better than that of counterparts in the United States and Russia, the report claimed. If China manages a manned space mission, it would be the third country to do so after the two.

Leaders in Beijing have ordered that the safety of astronauts be ensured first when launching a manned spacecraft, the newspaper said.

China's aerospace program moved another step forward following the safe return of its second unmanned spacecraft, ''Shenzhou II,'' to Earth Tuesday night after a 108-orbit voyage that lasted less than a week.

Official media earlier reported that China needs three to four more test flights of unmanned craft before it can send an astronaut into space.

Its first space flight took place in November 1999 with the launch of the unmanned ''Shenzhou.''

On Wednesday, Wen Wei Po quoted unnamed aerospace experts as saying the purpose of sending astronauts into space is to study the responses of organisms to a zero-gravity environment.