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 12
Active
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.
Latest update Oct 10, 2026
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In the news3
Long March 12 lofts satellite-internet group 27
A Long March 12 lifted off at 03:27 Beijing time on Oct. 10 from the Hainan commercial space launch site and placed China's satellite-internet low-Earth-orbit group 27 into its planned orbit. CASC said its commercial rocket company was the launch prime contractor, that the 62-meter, 4-meter-class vehicle can lift at least 6 tonnes to a 700 km sun-synchronous orbit, and that the flight was the 671st Long March launch. CNSA separately confirmed the satellites reached the intended orbit.
CASC keeps launch cadence up with two missions in a day
A week after a Long March 7A rocket broke apart during ascent on August 10, CASC flew two missions within about 24 hours: a Long March 12 lifted off from Hainan on August 16 carrying nine Guowang broadband satellites, followed by a Long March 2C delivering a satellite for the United Arab Emirates. CASC has not announced a root cause or a formal fleet clearance decision for the Long March 7A investigation as of this week.
Long March 12 lofts 24th Guowang internet satellite group
A Long March 12 rocket lifted off at 12:10 Beijing time on August 16 from Launch Pad 2 at the Wenchang Commercial Space Launch Site, placing nine low-Earth-orbit internet satellites into their preset orbits. The batch is the 24th group for Guowang, China's state-backed broadband megaconstellation, and brings the number of Guowang spacecraft in orbit to roughly 195. The launch is the first Chinese orbital mission from Wenchang since a Long March 7A broke apart shortly after liftoff there on August 10.
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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).
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Long March 12B
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.
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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.
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Partially reusable two-stage medium-lift launch vehicle. The world's most frequently launched orbital rocket.
ActiveFalcon Heavy
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Heavy-lift launch vehicle consisting of a strengthened Falcon 9 core with two additional boosters.
ActiveDragon
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Reusable spacecraft for cargo and crew transport to the International Space Station.
In DevelopmentStarship
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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.