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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | ULA | Avio / Arianespace | CASC / CALT |
| Country | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇪🇺 Europe | 🇨🇳 China |
| Status | Retired | Active | Active |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Small | Medium |
| Propellant | RP-1 / LOX (RD-180); LH₂ / LOX (Centaur III) | Solid (HTPB + ammonium perchlorate all four stages) | RP-1 / LOX (YF-100 + YF-115) |
| Reusable | No | No | No |
| Stages | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| First flight | 2002 – 2024 | 2022 | 2016 |
| Payload to LEO | 18,850 kgas of [1]401 configuration. Maximum 401/551 stretch to 20,520 kg. 551 max 29,420 kg (5-solid boosters). ↑ Best | 2,300 kgas of [1]SSO: ~1,700 kg | 13,500 kgas of [1]SSO capacity ~5,500 kg |
| Payload to GTO | 8,900 kgas of [1]551 configuration (maximum performance) ↑ Best | — | — |
| Height | 58.3 mas of [1]401 configuration ↑ Best | 35 mas of [1] | 53.1 mas of [1] |
| Liftoff mass | 334 tas of [1]401 configuration without strap-ons | 210 tas of [1] | 597 tas of [1] ↑ Best |
| Success rate | 100%as of [2]99/99 mission successes from Aug 2002 through Apr 2024 (final Kuiper flight). Only launch vehicle with 100% success across 99 missions. ↑ Best | 75%as of [2]6/8 successes; VV22 (Dec 2022) Zefiro-40 failure destroyed Pléiades Neo 5&6; returned to flight VV25 (Dec 2024). 3 successes in 2025. | 100%as of [2]12/12 missions, all Tianzhou ISS resupply or CZ-7 tech demo flights ↑ Best |
| Total flights | 99as of [2]Retired after KA-01 (Amazon Kuiper satellite testbed, Apr 9, 2024) ↑ Best | 8as of [2] | 12as of [2]Most recently Tianzhou-10 cargo to Tiangong (May 11, 2026) |
| Cost / kg LEO | — | ~$16,500/kgas of [1]Based on ~$38M list price / 2,300 kg ↓ Cheapest | — |
| Summary | ULA's workhorse from 2002–2024. Launched Mars Science Laboratory (Curiosity), OSIRIS-REx, Solar Orbiter, Lucy, New Horizons, and the Boeing Starliner. Its Russian RD-180 first-stage engine became a political liability after 2022; last flight was the Amazon Kuiper testbed on Apr 9, 2024. | Europe's primary small satellite launcher derived from Vega. The P120C first-stage motor is shared with Ariane 6's solid strap-on boosters. Avio took over programme management from Arianespace in Dec 2025. | China's workhorse medium-lift rocket, used exclusively for Tianzhou automated cargo missions to the Tiangong space station. Designed to replace the Long March 2F for high-cadence LEO/cargo missions. Uses the same YF-100 engines as Long March 5's boosters. |
28 launch vehicles across 10 countries — active, retired, and in development — with primary-source citations from manufacturer user guides and agency press kits. Pure URL state: bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.