In the midst of a massive purge within the ranks of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) military, the top personnel of state-owned military industry enterprises are experiencing significant shake-ups, with personnel changes being carried out in secrecy. According to Chinese media reports, in just the month of April, four major state-owned military industry enterprises saw changes in their leadership.
Since April, the top executives of four major state-owned military industry enterprises in China have all experienced adjustments. The new heads include Zhou Jie as the General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group, Chen Shaoyang as the General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, and Li Ligong as the Chairman of China Electronics Information Industry Group. Meanwhile, there are vacancies in the positions of Chairman of China Aviation Engine Group and General Manager of China Electronics Information Industry Group.
Among them, the official website of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation indicated that Chen Shaoyang, formerly Vice General Manager of China Aviation Engine Group, was promoted to General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation as early as mid-April this year. His predecessor, Gong Bo, was last seen in public in January 2025, and his whereabouts remain unknown.
Gong Bo, aged 59 (born in February 1966), previously served as the Chief Engineer of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group and Vice General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation. In December 2022, Gong Bo succeeded Liu Shiquan as the General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation. Liu Shiquan then moved on to become the Chairman of China Ordnance Industry Corporation Limited.
In December 2023, Liu Shiquan, along with Wu Yansheng, Chairman of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group at the time, and Wang Changqing, Vice General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, had their membership in the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference revoked.
Over the past two years, amid the anti-corruption campaign within the CCP’s military industry system, several high-ranking officials who were once in positions at China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation have fallen and often disappeared before being officially charged.
Apart from Liu Shiquan and Wang Changqing, other notable figures include Chen Guoying, former General Manager of China Ordnance Equipment Group, Yuan Jie, former Chairman of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, and Zhang Hongwen, former Secretary of the Hefei Municipal Party Committee in Anhui Province.
There have also been adjustments in the top leadership of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group. The official website of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group was updated to show that by the end of April this year, Zhou Jie, formerly Vice President of the China Institute of Engineering Physics, had been promoted to the General Manager of the group. His predecessor, Zhang Zhongyang, aged 54 (born in October 1970), is currently of unknown whereabouts.
Zhang Zhongyang hails from the Second Aerospace Institute of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, serving as Vice General Manager and General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group after 2018. In January 2024, Wang Xiaojun, Director of the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, was removed from his post, and Zhang Zhongyang took on the additional role of Director. Subsequently, Zhang Zhongyang was rumored to be under investigation.
Zhang Zhongyang is said to be closely connected to former Secretary of the Hunan Provincial Committee, Xu Dazhe, who previously served as Chairman of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation. Xu Dazhe, once General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, has been absent from important meetings for several times in the past year.
In April 2025, the official website of China Electronics Information Industry Group announced that the former General Manager, Li Ligong, had been appointed as Chairman, leaving the position of General Manager temporarily vacant. Similarly, the website for China Aviation Engine Group showed that Cao Jianguo no longer held the position of Chairman, with that role also temporarily vacant. Cao Jianguo, having worked at the Third Aerospace Institute of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation for many years and being an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, disappeared after September 2024 and was rumored to be under investigation for corruption.
According to official data from the CCP, there are a total of 11 major state-owned military industry group companies in China, categorized into six groups: nuclear industry, aviation industry, aerospace industry, weapons industry, shipbuilding industry, and military electronics industry.
Since 2024, there has been significant turmoil in the top personnel of the 11 military industry group companies, with eight Chairmen (Party Secretaries) and all 11 General Managers (Directors) being replaced. Notably, the positions of Chairman of China Aviation Engine Group and General Manager of China Electronics Information Industry Group are currently vacant.
The General Manager of China Ordnance Equipment Group has changed twice in the span of a year. In April 2024, Zhang Yujin, Vice General Manager of China Commercial Aircraft Company at the time, was promoted to General Manager of China Ordnance Equipment Group, replacing Chen Guoying, who had been absent for a long period before quietly being dismissed from his position. In February 2025, Zhang Yujin was transferred to the position of General Manager of China Aviation Engine Group, while Zhou Zhiping, General Manager of Dongfeng Motor Corporation at the time, took up the position of General Manager of China Ordnance Equipment Group. There are speculations that Dongfeng Group might merge its automotive business with the Ordnance Equipment Group.
Yuan Jie, former Chairman of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, and Wen Gang, former Chairman of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation, both served as alternate members of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP. Zhang Zhongyang, former General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group, also an alternate member of the 20th Central Committee, had his resignation reasons and whereabouts not publicly disclosed.
As of now, there are few cases confirmed by the authorities, including the removal of Wu Yansheng, then Chairman of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group, and Liu Shiquan, then Chairman of China Ordnance Industry Corporation, from the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference in December 2023. In August 2024, Tan Ruisong, who had been relieved of his position as Chairman of China Aviation Industry Corporation for over a year, was arrested in March 2025 on charges of corruption and bribery.
Independent commentator Du Zheng wrote in an article for Taiwanese media “The Liberty Times” on March 8, stating that the current trend in the CCP political arena indicates a prevalence of “internal handling,” where many are secretly sentenced or even executed. The cancer of corruption within the CCP is beyond cure, and the operations of “pseudo-anti-corruption” are becoming increasingly obscure, signifying the descent of this regime down a dark path.