"China will become the third country in the world to launch manned space flight. In the past, China's 'Shenzhou' (unmanned) spaceships have successfully gone into space to orbit the earth," Wang Shuquan, deputy secretary of the Commission for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence, was quoted as saying.

"China will still continue to develop its space exploration plans. At a future time, China will carry out lunar landing and flight experiments."

Wang was quoted by the semi-official China News service on its website.

He did not give an exact date for China's first manned space flight, which is expected to take place "right after" a Communist Party Central Committee plenary meeting ending on October 14, the Beijing-backed Wen Wei Po newspaper in Hong Kong cited authoritative sources as saying last week.

Wang's comments reflect similar recent comments by Chinese officials reported in the Chinese media saying sending a man to the moon is part of China's plans for its space program.

Some overseas scientists predict China will accelerate its space program and could have its own space station by 2008.

A separate report by the Beijing-backed Ta Kung Pao newspaper in Hong Kong said Sunday the Chinese astronauts, who recently arrived at a base in northwest China where the manned space flight will be launched, have begun training inside the actual spacecraft.

They were conducting practices and familiarizing themselves with how to operate the spacecraft. They were also practicing how to trouble shoot a variety of possible problems, the report said.

A pool of 14 Chinese astronauts had arrived at the Jiuquan base in Gansu province, the Hong Kong-based and also Beijing-backed Wen Wei Po newspaper had said last week.

The Ta Kung Pao report quoted a source who has seen the astronauts saying that they were all "handsome guys."

The source said the astronauts wore their spacesuits during practice and that the suits were mainly milky white or cream-colored.

The spacesuits were designed by China, the report said, apparently countering claims by some foreign experts they were copied from the Russian suits, right down to the color scheme.

The report said each spacesuit costs about the same price as a luxury car.

SPACE.WIRE