Chinese woman in space

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China is expected to launch its first woman in space no later than 2010. Following the successful piloted flight of Shenzhou 5 in October 2003, China announced plans to send a woman into space as well.

Gu Xiulian, president of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF), told a gathering that she proposed that women, too, should be trained for space missions after China's first piloted space trip. Her proposal was accepted by the central authorities, according to a report in the Beijing Youth Daily in March, 2004.

On July 26, 2005, Hu Shixiang, deputy chief commander of the piloted space program of China, told the China Daily that women astronauts would work as flight commanders or on-board engineers. In 2006 the first group of four were due to be selected from a pool including professional pilots, scientists and doctors, but this did not happen.

On July 28 an officer in the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) said 35 women had been selected for pilot training, which would also include elements of astronaut training. They were chosen from 200,000 high school graduates and were between 17 and 20 years old. Their training will take four years at the Aviation University of Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force. Subsequent statements have confirmed that upon graduation in 2009, the leading members of this group will form China's first female astronaut team.

Although China has not given a firm date as to when it will send a woman into space, Western observers believe the Shenzhou 10 mission, due to be launched in 2010, is a likely time.

In September 2004, Chinese "space watchers" identified one female astronaut candidate, Major Guo Liman, age 32 and an experienced PLAAF flight instructor, as the possible favorite to make the first flight, although in view of the emergence of the 2005 group of female pilots, this now seems less likely

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