Active
Long March 2F
Human-rated medium-lift rocket and the only Chinese launch vehicle cleared to carry astronauts, flying Shenzhou crews to the Tiangong station.
CASCLong March 12B
Active
Partially reusable, kerosene/liquid-oxygen launch vehicle built by CASC Commercial Rocket Co., Ltd. for CASC's commercial constellation launch business, designed from the outset for propulsive first-stage recovery. A separate CASC reusable-rocket line, the methane/liquid-oxygen Long March 12A built by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, reached orbit on its own December 2025 debut but has yet to land its booster successfully.
Latest update Aug 16, 2026
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Current status
Debuted on June 1, 2026 from Jiuquan, delivering two Qianfan broadband satellites to orbit without attempting a first-stage landing on the maiden flight. No recovery attempt had been made as of mid-August 2026; CASC's near-term reusability focus has centered on reflying the Long March 10B booster recovered on July 10, 2026.
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Specifications6
03
In the news1
China's reusable Long March 12B debuts with Qianfan satellites
CASC's new partially reusable Long March 12B lifted off from Jiuquan at 4:40 a.m. EDT on June 1 in a no-notice maiden flight, successfully delivering two Genesat-built Qianfan broadband satellites - the constellation's 10th batch - to orbit. The 72-meter, 20-ton-to-LEO vehicle uses nine YF-102R kerolox engines on a 4.37-meter core and is designed for propulsive first-stage recovery, though the debut did not attempt a landing; the rocket is China's most capable commercial-class lifter to date and is expected to be a workhorse for the Shanghai-led megaconstellation.
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More from CASC9
ActiveLong March 5 / 5B
China's most powerful operational rocket; the heavy-lift workhorse that launches Tiangong station modules (5B), Chang'e and Tianwen deep-space missions, and large GEO satellites.
ActiveLong March 7
Kerolox medium-lift rocket designed as a next-generation workhorse; launches Tianzhou cargo freighters to the Tiangong space station.
ActiveLong March 8 / 8A
Lower-cost commercial medium-lift rocket optimized for sun-synchronous and constellation deployment, central to China's GuoWang and other satellite-internet build-out.
In DevelopmentLong March 10
Partially reusable super-heavy-lift rocket for the crewed lunar program, designed to separately launch the Mengzhou spacecraft and Lanyue lander to trans-lunar injection.
In DevelopmentLong March 9
Fully reusable super-heavy launch vehicle in development - a Starship-class methalox design intended for mega-constellations, lunar and Mars cargo, and future crewed deep-space missions.
ActiveShenzhou
China's crewed spacecraft, ferrying three taikonauts at a time to the Tiangong station; built by the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST).
- Active
Tianzhou
China's automated cargo spacecraft, delivering pressurized and unpressurized supplies, propellant, and experiment payloads to the Tiangong space station; built by CAST and rated the world's most capable active cargo spacecraft by transport capacity.
- Active
Long March 12
CASC Eighth Academy two-stage cryogenic launcher and China's first 4-meter-class single-core rocket. CASC says it is about 62 meters long and can lift at least 6 tonnes to a 700 km sun-synchronous orbit, with optional 4.2 or 5.2 meter fairings. On Oct. 10, 2026 it flew satellite-internet LEO group 27 from Hainan as the 671st Long March mission.
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More in Rockets
ActiveFalcon 9
SpaceX
Partially reusable two-stage medium-lift launch vehicle. The world's most frequently launched orbital rocket.
ActiveFalcon Heavy
SpaceX
Heavy-lift launch vehicle consisting of a strengthened Falcon 9 core with two additional boosters.
ActiveDragon
SpaceX
Reusable spacecraft for cargo and crew transport to the International Space Station.
In DevelopmentStarship
SpaceX
Fully reusable super-heavy-lift launch system designed for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. V3 (Block 3) variant with Raptor 3 engines is the production version.