Ex-factory worker and engineer to make history as one of China’s first space passengers

SCMP | Aug. 14, 2026, 6 a.m. | Original

A self-made engineer who began her career on the factory floor, Huang Xiaochi will become one of China’s first commercial space tourists when she flies on a suborbital mission in 2028. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/QQ.com

A 73-year-old Chinese female entrepreneur has recently become the 22nd passenger of the domestically developed spacecraft CYZ1.

On August 8, Huang Xiaochi was officially designated as passenger No 022 for CYZ1, a project by the commercial space start-up InterstellOr.

Huang is scheduled to embark on a suborbital mission aboard the spaceship in 2028, reaching the Kármán line, the widely recognised boundary of Earth’s atmosphere where outer space begins, allowing her to view Earth from that vantage point.

Other passengers announced for the inaugural CYZ1 flight include Li Licheng, an 85-year-old academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Qiu Heng, CMO of the robotics start-up AgiBot, and actor Johnny Huang Jingyu.

Reports indicate that presale tickets for the spacecraft are priced at three million yuan (US$440,000) each.

Reports suggest that presale tickets for the spacecraft are priced at three million yuan (US$440,000) each. Photo: Baidu
Reports suggest that presale tickets for the spacecraft are priced at three million yuan (US$440,000) each. Photo: Baidu

Before her anticipated journey into space, Huang Xiaochi has led an extraordinary life.

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