China’s Beijing Transcender Manned Aerospace Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Transcender")’s "Transcender One (CYZ1)" is expected to achieve its maiden manned flight in 2028, marking the country's first commercial manned spacecraft. Transcender has begun pre-selling tickets at 3 million RMB (1.74 million MYR) each, with a 10% deposit securing a spot—total places available are just over 20. More than ten paying space tourists have already signed contracts from academia, business, aerospace, the arts, entertainment, internet influencer circles, and more. Chinese actor Huang Jingyu has announced that he will become the 009th space tourist.
Shenzhen Robotics Pioneer to Become First Batch of Space Tourists
According to the "Transcender One" technical team, more than three spacecraft have already been booked, totaling over 20 space tourists; the first manned flight is expected around 2028. The first batch of commercial space tourists includes Zhiyuan Robotics’ CMO Qiu Heng, young actor Huang Jingyu, multiple robots such as "Zhongqing Robot PM01", Toread brand founder Wang Jing, Chinese Academy of Engineering academician Li Licheng, Chinese-American poet Lin Xiaoyan, Guangzhou Grandview Group vice chairman & CEO Xie Meng, Star River Dynamics CEO Liu Baiqi, and prominent aerospace blogger @NASA Enthusiast.
Among them, Zhiyuan Robotics’ CMO Qiu Heng has become "China’s No.001 Commercial Astronaut". In 2023, Qiu Heng purchased China’s first commercial "space ticket" out of his own pocket, becoming the first ordinary person to sign up for suborbital flight. He stated that humanoid and quadruped robots can create unlimited productivity, rapidly serving industry and commerce, and potentially helping humanity expand new frontiers in the future.
On the 22nd, actor Huang Jingyu officially announced that he has become the 009th space tourist. Huang Jingyu said he is honored to become a space traveler and looks forward to taking China’s own spacecraft to personally reach that sea of stars.
On January 18, the crew module of Transcender's independently developed Transcender One (CYZ1) manned spacecraft completed comprehensive verification tests of its landing cushioning system. According to Transcender, this is the first critical technology verification project for a full-size manned spacecraft test module landing buffer system in China’s commercial aerospace sector. The success of this test marks Transcender as the third commercial aerospace company globally to develop and validate manned spacecraft landing buffer technology.
Transcender was established in January 2023 as China’s first commercial "Manned Aerospace Technology" company, focusing on developing reusable crewed spacecraft and operating space tourism. They plan to complete the development of reusable suborbital manned spacecraft within 3-4 years, aiming to achieve space tourism in China, and even Asia, by around 2028.