China launched its first state-owned reusable rocket, the Long March 12A, from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China on Monday. The mission succeeded in orbital insertion and payload deployment but failed to recover the first-stage booster during a vertical landing attempt 250 kilometers downrange.
The Long March 12A, developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, lifted off as China’s inaugural state-owned effort in reusable rocket technology. State news agency Xinhua reported that while the rocket’s second stage entered its planned orbit and successfully deployed its payload, the first-stage booster was not successfully retrieved. This outcome represents China’s second unsuccessful booster recovery attempt within the same month.
Earlier this month, on December 3, private Chinese firm LandSpace’s Zhuque-3 rocket achieved orbital insertion but encountered a catastrophic failure during its landing phase. After a successful re-entry, the Zhuque-3’s first-stage booster lost an engine during the landing burn and crashed at the edge of the recovery pad in a fireball.
The United States holds the distinction as the only country to have successfully returned an orbital-class booster to Earth. SpaceX achieved the first such landing with its Falcon 9 rocket in December 2015. More recently, Blue Origin landed the first-stage booster of its New Glenn rocket on a drone ship during the vehicle’s second flight attempt in November 2025.
China’s commercial and state-owned space developers pursue reusable rocket technology to enable more frequent launches at reduced costs. The Long March 12A operates as a two-stage vehicle powered by liquid oxygen and methane. It measures 69 meters in height with a 3.8-meter diameter and possesses a payload capacity of 12,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit.
For this maiden flight, the Long March 12A’s first stage targeted a vertical landing on a designated pad approximately 250 kilometers downrange from the Jiuquan launch site. This reusability approach supports China’s plans to construct large satellite constellations, such as the Guowang network, which intends to deploy nearly 13,000 satellites by the 2030s.
Both the Long March 12A and Zhuque-3 missions accomplished their primary objectives by delivering payloads to the planned orbits. These successes highlight advancements in the precise sequencing of maneuvers essential for booster recovery operations. Investigations continue to determine the exact causes of the landing failures in both cases.
