A Pakistani astronaut will join China's space station on the Shenzhou-24 mission, CCTV reported on November 7, 2026, citing the China Manned Space Agency. The astronaut will fly as a payload specialist, the first foreign visitor to the station, and return to Earth aboard the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft after a short-term in-orbit flight. China has not identified the astronaut or announced the mission date.
The flight would put a Pakistani national on China's station as its first foreign visitor, extending Beijing's space cooperation with Pakistan under the Belt and Road Initiative. China has not named the astronaut or set a launch date for Shenzhou-24.
A Pakistani astronaut will join China's space station on the Shenzhou-24 mission, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported on November 7, 2026, citing the China Manned Space Agency. The astronaut will fly as a payload specialist, making the first visit by a foreign national to the station and the first joint spaceflight by Chinese and foreign astronauts in the history of China's manned space program.
CCTV said the astronaut will return to Earth aboard the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft after a short-term in-orbit flight. Beijing has not announced the date of the mission, and China has not identified which astronaut will fly.
A Pakistani space agency official told Reuters in September that pilots Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud had spent months training at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center in Beijing for a mission. Reuters reported the cooperation falls under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative.
The primary report did not describe the selection process behind the flight. An attached account said the cooperation stems from an agreement signed by China and Pakistan in February 2025 that launched the selection, after which two candidates were chosen and trained in China, one designated to fly and the other as backup. That account was not used as a source for this record.
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