On Jan. 25, China approved a technical plan for a 600 kilometer-an-hour high-speed magnetic levitation train, said CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co., Ltd, the initiator of the research project.

The technical plan was reviewed by 19 academicians and experts. After queries and discussion, the reviewing team affirmed the plan and approved it unanimously.

The project is one of 18 national key research and development plans set by the country’s Ministry of Science and Technology in 2016.

As a new and cutting-edge transit technology, high-speed magnetic levitation railway has attracted huge attention. Japan’s superconducting magnetic levitation train reached a top test speed of 603 km/h, and the German-designed vehicle can hit 505 km/h. The operating speed of the maglev trains in Shanghai, which use German technology, is 430 km/h.

A 600 km/h magnetic levitation system and its engineering application are still a whole new area for China.

Experts believe that such a system is a perfect complement to high-speed rail, which runs at 350 km/h; civil aircraft fly between 800 and 1,000 km/h.

According to the plan, the first Chinese-made high-speed maglev sample train will roll off the production line in 2020 and complete a 5-kilometer test run.