Photo: Xinhua

China on Saturday announced the crew for the Shenzhou-23 manned spaceflight mission, which includes Lai Ka-ying, the country’s first astronaut from Hong Kong to carry out a spaceflight mission, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA). 

The three-member crew will consist of spaceflight engineer Zhu Yangzhu, spacecraft pilot Zhang Zhiyuan and payload specialist Lai, with Zhu serving as the commander. 

Lai is also the first female payload specialist selected from the Hong Kong and Macao regions for China’s space program. Both Zhang and Lai will embark on their first spaceflight mission. 

The three astronauts are scheduled to meet Chinese and foreign media reporters at the Wentian Pavilion of the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Saturday.