Chinese aviation authorities approved a new helium airship Wednesday in Beijing, the first developed entirely in China.

The HJ-2000 airship, developed by the Beijing Huajiao Airship Co., Ltd., was granted flight licenses by the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC) for two airborne vehicles, ending China's history of relying on imported manned airships.

According to the Beijing company, the HJ-2000 airship is an airborne vehicle obtaining most of its lift from helium, a lighter-than-air gas.

The airship is light and can stay aloft for days at much lower costs than other aircraft. It will mainly be used for aerial advertising, photograph, patrolling and environment monitoring, the company said.

While starting to upgrade the HJ-2000 type, the company has also finished the design of HJ-3000 and HJ-4000, two types of airship to be used for aerial photograph, advertising, tourism andaerial transportation and started the design of HJ-5000 airship, which will be used for anti-terrorism and aerial patrolling purposes.