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China's leading spaceship designer said in Beijing recently that the successful launch and return of the unmanned "Shenzhou III" gave him full confidence in a manned mission into space in the near future.

Qi Faren, chief designer of the Chinese Research Institute of Space Technology, said that the tests of "Shenzhou III" on scientific research and life-support systems have made the manned launch possible.

After the launch of "Shenzhou III" on March 25 in Jiuquan, in northwest China's Gansu Province, Chinese space scientists are further convinced that the new type of carrier rocket, the Long March II-F, can effectively carry the capsule which is due to contain two or three astronauts.

Meanwhile, the scientists have obtained valuable data on the internal environment, spaceship movements, escape equipment and telecommunications network, said Qi who is among the latest group of members elected to the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE).

The specialists had made many technical improvements to "Shenzhou I" and "Shenzhou II", which were launched into outer space in 1999 and 2001 respectively, and succeeded in making the third spaceship technically identical to a possible manned one, said Qi who is attending the CAE's ongoing sixth conference.

"The most important part of a manned carrier rocket is the life-support system," Qi said.

The engines installed on "Shenzhou III" to cushion its landing performed well, according to Qi. The solid structure of the returned capsule meant it was effectively still in its original form before the launch.

During the spaceship's seven-day tour of outer space, all scientific equipment kept working, Qi added.

The monitoring networks, which were positioned both on land and sea, could easily survey and control the spaceship, he said.

That made "Shenzhou III" technically advanced in comparison with equivalent crafts made by foreign scientists, he said.

China started its manned space program in the early 1990s.