67 Jiadaukou Nan Jie, Dongcheng Qu, Beijing Tel.: (010) 68370114 Fax.: (010) 68372427The origins of the Ministry of Aerospace Industry [MOS] date to the establishment of Military Academy 5, a specialized research organization for China's missiles and launch vehicles. On October 6, 1956, under the directive leadership of Vice-Premier Nie Rongzhen, the No.5 Research Academy of the Ministry of National Defense missile development organization was set up and Dr. Qian Xuesen was appointed the president. In 1964, the Party Central Committee and the State Council decided to establish the Seventh Ministry of Machine Building, on the basis of Military Academy 5, to unify the leadership of the missile industry, concentrate forces and to speed up the development of missiles. In 1965, Ministry 7 took over Academies 1 for long-range rockets (CALT), 2 for ground-to-air missiles (CCF [China Chang Feng]), 3 for cruise missiles (CHETA [China Haiying Electromechanical Technology Academy]), and 4 for solid-fuel motors (ARMT [Academy of Rocket Motors Technology]), as well as the Shanghai Tactical Missiles Bureau and Meteorological Rockets Institute. The ministry was subsequently renamed the Ministry of Aerospace Industry. The China Aerospace Corporation [CASC] was established in 1993, incorporating the No.5 Research Academy of the Ministry of National Defense, the Seventh Mininstry of Machine Building Industry, the Ministry of Astronautics Industry and the Ministry of Aerospace Industry.
The central task of the 1998 restructuring of the State Council was to separate the functions of the government from those of enterprises. Owing to the special nature of the defense industrial system, including the Ministry of Aerospace Industry, the new State Astronautics Bureau functions under the Defense Industrial Committee (General Office) under the State Council. The State Aerospace Bureau and the State Atomic Energy Agency were retained, representing the country in foreign exchanges and, internally, acting as an institution of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense.