China achieves first reusable rocket landing

China has successfully landed a reusable rocket for the first time, marking a milestone in the country’s space programme.

According to state media, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASTC) said the Long March 10B rocket lifted off from Hainan Province in southern China at 12:15 p.m. local time (0415 GMT) on Friday.

CASTC said the rocket’s booster separated from the upper stage and, about six minutes later, returned to Earth vertically before being recovered on a floating platform.

The development is expected to strengthen China’s efforts to compete in reusable rocket technology, an area currently dominated by the United States through SpaceX and Blue Origin.

Reusable rockets are designed to reduce the cost of space missions by recovering and reusing boosters, which are typically the most expensive components of launch vehicles. Traditionally, rocket stages are discarded and destroyed during ascent, making launches more costly.

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According to the BBC, SpaceX achieved the first successful landing of its reusable Falcon 9 rocket following an orbital mission in December 2015, while Blue Origin landed its reusable New Glenn rocket in November 2025.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 now carries out about 150 launches annually, with some boosters reused dozens of times.

China made its first attempt to recover a reusable rocket in February using the Long March 10A, which completed a controlled descent before splashing down near a recovery platform.

The Long March 10B is capable of carrying at least 16 metric tonnes of payload to low-Earth orbit and has drawn comparisons with SpaceX’s Falcon 9.

Unlike the Falcon 9, however, the Long March 10B does not land autonomously on a ground pad or drone ship. Instead, the booster is captured using landing hooks attached to a net mounted on a floating recovery platform.

The successful landing boosted investor confidence in China’s space sector, with shares of China Spacesat and China Satellite Communications each rising by the maximum daily limit of 10 per cent under the country’s stock market regulations.