During the Liaoning Science and Technology Conference held in the provincial capital Shenyang in 2024, the aircraft general design expert Yang Fengtian was honored with the Liaoning top sci-tech award. Born in Yixian county in 1941, Yang has dedicated over 60 years to China's aviation sector and still works six hours every day to develop new energy aircraft and promote the general aviation industry.

"I am very willing to keep working as long as my health allows," he said.

In the 1960s, Yang joined the AVIC Shenyang Aircraft Design and Research Institute after graduating from college and worked on the design of Chinese fighter jet Shenyang J-8, which was granted the special prize of the State Scientific and Technological Progress Award.

Yang once stated in an interview that the most memorable moment in his career was J-8's first successful flight on July 5, 1969. "That was the first time I saw an aircraft I had helped design take to the skies," he said.

In the late 1980s, Yang was responsible for developing aerial refueling technology for the J-8II. Facing significant risks and challenges, Yang and his team demonstrated resolute determination and unyielding spirit, achieving success within two years. This breakthrough was of strategic significance for enhancing the operational capabilities of the country's air force and navy.

In 2007, Yang was elected as an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, China's highest academic title in science and technology. Nevertheless, his commitment to the aviation industry continued. In 2010, he became the president of Shenyang Aerospace University. Under his leadership, the Liaoning General Aviation Academy was founded in 2021.

Despite his age, Yang worked with young researchers at the academy to achieve technological breakthroughs in new energy aircraft, advancing China's expertise in aviation lithium battery technology, electric propulsion systems, and composite material structural design.

In September, China's first two-seat electric helicopter, the RX1H, made its maiden flight at the Shenyang Faku Caihu Airport. The helicopter research program, led by Yang's team at the LGAA, achieved advancements in over 10 technological areas, including high-energy-density battery integration, high-efficiency electric drive systems, and lightweight structural design.

"Working hours are the happiest time, and the laughter after solving problems is the most joyful sound for me," Yang said. "Watching our fighters take off and land brings me immense satisfaction. I truly cannot stay away from aircraft."

Yang has spent most of his life in Liaoning, contributing to the province's aviation industry and sci-tech development. The region has, in turn, shaped his personality and bolstered his career, becoming an inseparable part of his legacy.

Alongside Yang, Liaoning is now home to 57 academicians of the CAE and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, including Guo Xu from Dalian University of Technology, Li Dianzhong from the Institute of Metal Research at CAS, Pan Yishan from Liaoning University, Yu Haibin from the Shenyang Institute of Automation at CAS, Zhu Jiaojun from the Institute of Applied Ecology at CAS and Liu Yongquan from the AECC Shenyang Engine Research Institute.

Solid foundation

As one of China's major industrial bases, Liaoning has abundant scientific and educational resources and a solid innovation foundation, which injects momentum into its sustained growth.

The province is leveraging sci-tech innovation as the main driver to cultivate new quality productive forces, and stepping up efforts to build a regional sci-tech innovation center with national influence to provide great support for its full revitalization, according to a senior official from the Liaoning Department of Science and Technology.

Liaoning has established an array of high-level sci-tech platforms including the "two cities and one park" — Shenyang Hunnan Sci-tech City, the Dalian Yinggeshi Scientific City and the Shenfu Scientific Innovation Park.

The core startup area of Hunnan Sci-Tech City opened last year, attracting 50 sci-tech projects such as the Innovation Center for Special Metals and High-end Components Technology and the Liaoning Liaohe Laboratory.

Liaoning Liaohe Laboratory is one of four new provincial research institutes established in 2022, alongside the Liaoning Academy of Materials, Liaoning Binhai Laboratory, and Liaoning Huanghai Laboratory. These institutes focus on intelligent manufacturing, new materials, clean energy, and high-end equipment manufacturing, respectively, with the goal of enhancing Liaoning's sci-tech platforms through institutional innovation and breakthroughs in key technologies, said government officials.

In the first quarter of 2025, the added value of industrial enterprises above a designated size in Liaoning rose by 3.6 percent year-on-year. Notably, the added value of high-tech manufacturing surged by 10.9 percent, marking the best performance in the past decade.

Cities across the province have cultivated their advantageous industries, showcasing great vitality in the sci-tech sector. The coastal city of Dalian stands out as a regional leader in the marine economy, with traditional industries such as fisheries and sea transportation accelerating transition. Anshan, one of China's largest producers of magnesite raw materials, has proposed to build a world-class magnesite production base and aims to achieve an output value of 50 billion yuan ($7.03 billion) this year.

Liaoning is home to more than 40,000 sci-tech small and medium-sized businesses, as well as 14,000 national high-tech companies, and three unicorn enterprises — startups valued at over $1 billion.

Favorable environment

To accelerate the transformation and utilization of research results, the province has established a working mechanism connecting research institutes and companies. A list of technological demands from tech companies is released regularly, enabling researchers to carry out more targeted research programs and address specific technology challenges.

Meanwhile, enterprises can stay informed about the latest technological advancements based on sci-tech achievement lists from research institutes and universities, offering tailored support such as capital and application scenarios.

Focusing on the innovation needs of companies, the "sci-tech commissioner" program was launched. In 2024, more than 1,000 people from universities, research institutes, enterprises, and public institutions were selected and dispatched to different companies across the province to assist with technology research, talent cultivation, finance, and research result transformation.

Among them, Sun Xi, a teacher from Yingkou Institute of Technology, was assigned to Liaoning Rontec Advanced Material Technology to assist in aluminum foam production.

"We achieved breakthroughs in core technologies thanks to Sun's assistance. Our production capacity has tripled with new equipment," said Zhu Delin, general manager of the company.

Senior engineer Dai Fengyou from the patent center of DLUT helped Dalian Jingtuo Machinery Manufacturing use two intellectual property assets as collateral to secure a loan of 5 million yuan.

These sci-tech commissioners serve as a bridge between companies, universities and research institutes, ensuring cooperation and fostering the deeper integration of sci-tech research and industrial innovation, according to officials from the department.

This year, the first batch of 813 "sci-tech commissioners" was dispatched in February, with the total number expected to hit 3,000.

In addition, the province has built an online comprehensive service platform to gather innovation resources, improve services, and advance the transformation of scientific research results.

The platform, now in trial operation, integrates technological demands, research results, sci-tech talents, instrument sharing, startup incubation, and technology services.

According to the plan, it will further add and enhance services such as online demand-supply matching, virtual road shows, evaluation and technology transaction, while connecting with municipal platforms as well as key companies, universities, and research institutes to form a collaborative innovation system.

Official data showed that Liaoning's transaction value of technology contracts reached 154.08 billion yuan in 2024, marking a year-on-year increase of 17.8 percent — 6.6 percentage points higher than the national average.

Key projects

Over the past few years, Liaoning has made great strides in scientific and technological research, developing cutting-edge technologies and major equipment across sectors such as aviation, marine, rail transport and energy.

�6�1 Fendouzhe

The Fendouzhe, or Striver in English, a deep-sea manned submersible developed by Chinese scientists, was launched in 2016.

Zhao Yang from the Shenyang Institute of Automation at CAS served as its deputy chief designer.

In November 2020, the submersible, crewed by Zhao and two other researchers, completed its diving mission in the Mariana Trench, setting a new national depth record of 10,909 meters. This marked a milestone in China's deep-sea exploration, demonstrating its comprehensive strength in marine high technology.

�6�1 ±1,100-kilovolt direct current converter transformer

The ±1,100 kV direct current converter transformer, developed by TBEA Shenyang Transformer Group, is a key component of the Changji converter station in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, which is also the starting point of the Changji-Guquan ±1,100 kV UHV direct current transmission project.

Stretching approximately 3,293 kilometers, the project holds the world record for the longest transmission distance, highest voltage level, and largest transmission capacity.

By the end of 2024, the transmission line had delivered about 312.09 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity to Guquan township in East China's Anhui province, since it began operations in September 2019.

�6�1 Photon-counting CT

Shenyang-based company Neusoft Medical Systems received market approval in August for its NeuViz P10 photon-counting CT scanner. This marks the first photon-counting CT approved in China, and the world's first wide-body system equipped with an 8-centimeter detector. The photon-counting CT is considered a breakthrough in the next-generation imaging sector. Unlike conventional CT scanners, which first convert X-rays into light before generating digital images, the NeuViz P10 utilizes a cadmium zinc telluride detector to capture and convert X-ray photons directly into a digital signal.

zhanglinwan@chinadaily.com.cn