The Shenzhou-14 taikonauts will return to Earth on Sunday evening, and the aerial search and rescue team is ready for the mission after month-long preparation, a commander at the Dongfeng landing site in northwest China told CGTN.

Chen Shi, deputy commander of the landing site, said the mission is the most difficult since the site began to receive and recover Shenzhou manned spaceships in 1999.

The challenges include conducting the mission at night on the large landing site, too much sand blown by helicopters taking off and landing, as well as low temperatures that could reach close to minus 20 degrees Celsius, Chen said.

More than 10 aerial search and rescue drills have been conducted in the past month at the Dongfeng Landing Site in preparation for the return of the Shenzhou-14 crew to Earth. (Photo: CGTN)

But they have the best pilots for the task at hand.

"Every plane has two command pilots, who are all ace pilots. And against the low temperatures and the sand, we have adopted sufficient measures to ensure the success of the mission," said Chen, who's also an ace pilot.

The commander said that they had conducted more than 10 drills with all teams on the ground.

"We intensified the trainings, which include four phases – adapting to the situation, reinforcing our capability, working on special projects and confirming the final tasks. We have done all of them. The average flight time for each pilot is about 80 hours," he said.

The trainings covered the entire recovery process and took into consideration all kinds of special situations. The commander is confident that his team will be successful.

"I grew up with China's manned space program and began missions in 1999. This is my 11th time conducting a mission," he said.

"I feel honored and proud to participate in and witness the development of China's aerospace sector and I am confident that we can fulfill our duties," he said.