Pakistani pilots Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud are training in China, hoping one will become the country's first astronaut aboard China's Tiangong space station. Ariba Shahid explains ▻ ↧ China's space diplomacy lifts Pakistani astronaut toward orbit Two Pakistani pilots are memorising Mandarin, spinning in centrifuge drills and learning to eat, sleep and repair equipment while weightless ​as a decision nears on which one will become the first foreign astronaut aboard China's Tiangong space station.