China keeping mum about its first manned space flight

BEIJING — The launch could happen as early as this weekend from a remote base in the Gobi Desert. China's first manned space flight would carry one "taikonaut" — or as many three. It could last from hours to several days.

Other than that, the Chinese government isn't really saying.

After 11 years of planning to join the space-faring elite, China is on the brink of making history and reaping a propaganda windfall. But as the hour approaches, the communist government is staying silent about a date and other details, wary of risking the damage of public setbacks.

"They don't want to commit themselves," said Phillip Clark, a British expert on the Chinese program.

A successful manned launch would stand as a testament to China's economic and technical progress, winning Beijing respect abroad and — more important — approval at home. Chinese leaders long ago traded in leftist ideology for economic reform and, battered by corruption scandals, have used such flag-waving appeals to nationalism to bind the nation together.

The launch would come 42 years after Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit the Earth. But China would still be only the third country capable of manned space flight, vaulting it ahead of Japan and European countries, which have only unmanned programs.

And China would be accomplishing something that even the United States, with its space shuttle fleet grounded following the Columbia disaster, can't do right now.

Still, some Chinese complain privately that the program is a waste of money in a society where the average person makes about $700 a year.

China hasn't released the identities of its first astronauts, 12 military pilots who, according to state media, were picked from among 2,000 applicants. Newspapers say all are about 30 years old and 5-foot-7 inches tall.

They have been dubbed "taikonauts" in English from the Chinese word for space. In Chinese, they are "yuhangyuan," or travelers of the universe.

At least one of them will go up before the end of October, state media say.

And the Beijing-backed Hong Kong newspaper Ta Kung Pao said it would happen sometime after this Friday. That could coincide with a meeting of the Communist Party's ruling inner circle that convenes Saturday, allowing President Hu Jintao and other leaders to be shown on state television talking with the crew in orbit.