| ![Astronauts Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng wave to wellwishers after getting out of the return module of the Shenzhou VI spacecaft at the main landing field in Central Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Monday morning October 17, 2005. The module landed 4:33 A.M. after a five-day flight. [Xinhua]](xin_2311030309201582152117.jpg) Astronauts Fei 
 Junlong (L) and Nie Haisheng wave to wellwishers after getting 
 out of the return module of the Shenzhou VI spacecaft at the main landing 
 field in Central Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Monday morning October 
 17, 2005. [Xinhua]
 
  | 
Chinese astronauts will leave their spaceship to walk amongst the stars as 
part of the nation's next manned space mission. 
The Shenzhou-VII due to be launched in two years time will carry three 
astronauts, who will make China's first space walks, said a senior designer, at 
Guangdong's on-going airshow. 
"All our work on Shenzhou-VII is going smoothly and as scheduled," said Qi 
Faren, former chief designer of the Shenzhou series of spaceships. 
The spaceship is a development from the Shenzhou-VI, which carried two 
astronauts into space last year, said Qi. 
"Currently the spaceship's sub-systems are at spaceship city for assembly," 
said Qi, speaking at the Sixth China International Aviation and Aerospace 
Exhibition in Zhuhai. 
Meanwhile research and design projects for the Shenzhou-VIII, IX, and X 
spacecrafts are also under way, he added. 
Candidate astronauts, including Yang Liwei, Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng, who 
have all made trips into space in the past few years, are competing to be 
selected for the mission, Yang said at a joint press conference on Wednesday. 
"The physical, technical and mental requirements have been raised for the 
astronauts, because they will walk outside the spaceship," said Yang. 
As yet, female astronauts have not been considered for the mission, said 
Yang, who is also the vice-director of the research and training centre for 
astronauts. 
As the space flight programme develops, high-calibre female astronauts will 
be chosen for tasks in space, Yang promised. 
Space tourists? 
Answering a query about when common people may be sent into space, Yang said 
ordinary people will one day be able to enjoy space tours as spaceship 
technology matures and the physical requirements for space travel become lower. 
"It's only a matter of time," Yang said. 
Besides the launch of Shenzhou-VII, ambitious blueprints for China's rapidly 
growing aviation and aerospace industry have been mapped out. 
The nation plans to carry out eight major aerospace missions or programmes in 
five years, said Zhang Yunchuan, minister for Commission of Science, Technology 
and Industry for National Defence, at a summit held to coincide with the 
exhibition yesterday.