China honors taikonauts as role models

BEIJING -- China honored a group of taikonauts Thursday with the title the "role models of our times."

The Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee granted medals and certificates of honor to all members of the Taikonaut Corps of the People's Liberation Army, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this month.

Over the past two decades, 21 taikonauts were selected from the ranks of air force pilots. They have completed six missions, conducted over 100 experiments in space and orbited the earth for a total 68 days and nights.

Among them, Jing Haipeng who flew on three missions -- Shenzhou-7, Shenzhou-9 and Shenzhou-11, was awarded the country's highest military award, the Order of Bayi, in 2017.