Veteran Chinese astronaut to lead fresh crew to space station

Jiuquan, China: China announced on Wednesday that a veteran astronaut will lead two crew members on their first flight to the Tiangong space station,...

Jiuquan, China: China announced on Wednesday that a veteran astronaut will lead two crew members on their first flight to the Tiangong space station, the latest milestone in its race to send a manned mission to the Moon by 2030.

The Shenzhou-20 mission is scheduled to blast off at 5:17 pm on Thursday (0917 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), told a news conference.

At the helm will be Chen Dong, a 46-year-old former fighter pilot and experienced space explorer who, in 2022, became the first Chinese astronaut to spend more than 200 cumulative days in orbit.

Speaking about Thursday's Shenzhou mission -- which will be his third -- Chen said he was "still very excited".

"Every space journey is very unique, so I look forward to bringing in more experience and breakthroughs in the flight," the mission commander said.