The aerosol optical parameters can be quantitatively observed with high precision using a high-spectral-resolution lidar (HSRL) without considering the lidar ratio. In this study, an airborne HSRL was developed to observe the optical characteristics of aerosols and lidar was used for performing airborne observation experiments. Herein, the aerosol optical parameter inversion algorithm was improved accordingly. The experimental data of different flight areas and different flights were selected for inversion. Subsequently, the aerosol characteristics were analyzed by combining the solar photometer, hybrid single-particle Lagrangian integrated trajectory model, and satellite data. The analysis results denote obvious differences among the values of the aerosol optical parameters in different regions. The aerosol extinction coefficient exceeds 1.2 km -1 in areas with frequent human activities such as towns and factories.The lidar ratio varies significantly with the altitude, and its maximum value is 60 sr. The aerosol optical depth is concentrated between 0.7 and 1 in the altitude from 0 to 3 km. In mountainous and marine areas, the aerosol extinction coefficient is concentrated in the range of 0.2 to 0.8 km -1; further, the lidar ratio varies only slightly with the altitude and is concentrated between 5 and 30 sr. The aerosol optical thickness is concentrated between 0.3 and 0.7 in the interval from 0 to 3 km. Furthermore, the aerosol distribution is affected by the meteorological conditions, such as the wind and weather conditions, as well as the pollution processes; the optical characteristics of the aerosols in the same area on different dates are affected by various factors, including the movement and diffusion of atmospheric pollutants.