Air Search Team Ready for Shenzhou-18 Crew Return | China Space Station

Air Search Team Ready for Shenzhou-18 Crew Return | China Space Station

The air search and rescue team for the return of the three Shenzhou-18 astronauts is fully ready to welcome the trio back at the Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. They must navigate the complicated desert terrain with next to zero visibility during the wee hours to guarantee a safe return of the homecoming Shenzhou-18 crew.

The team is making final preparations and performing maintenance checks on its five helicopters: a command helicopter, a communications helicopter, a medical monitoring helicopter, and two for medical rescue.

The team, stationed approximately 40 kilometers from the anticipated landing point, has intensified its preparations for this nighttime rescue, led by members with extensive experiences in Shenzhou recovery missions.

Wang Wenjuan, an air search and rescue team member, said the two major challenges of this mission are next to zero visibility and sandy desert terrain.

Wang said the team stationed at the Dongfeng landing site in early October for comprehensive drills and site inspections, fully preparing themselves to handle the mission's challenges.

"In these training sessions, we enhanced our preparations in all aspects to tackle the mission's key challenges. For equipment, we installed high-power searchlights, infrared optical pods, and both binocular and quad-night vision goggles. As for personnel, each mission crew has two captains and two mechanics, with an additional navigator assigned. Our pilots each have over 3,100 hours of flight time, bringing extensive experience to the task. The navigator plays a crucial role in supporting the whole crew receiving navigation signals, planning search route, and providing real-time positioning data. They assist the pilots with precise calculations to approach the return capsule and ensure a smooth and accurate landing without deviating by a single meter or degree. Overall, our air search and rescue team is fully prepared with the highest level of expertise, safety, and reliability to bring our astronauts home," she said.

Shenzhou-18 Crew:

Ye Guangfu (叶光富, commander)

Li Cong (李聪, mission specialist)

Li Guangsu (李广苏, mission specialist)

Video Credit: CCTV

Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: Nov. 2, 2024

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