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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | Long March 6 (incl. 6A / 6C variants) 🇨🇳 China Trust: Operator-primaryⓘ Last verified Active · Last updated 2026-07-26Remove × | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | SAST (Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology) / CASC | CASC / CALT | Firefly Aerospace |
| Country | 🇨🇳 China | 🇨🇳 China | 🇺🇸 USA |
| Status | Active | Active | Active |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Medium | Small |
| Propellant | RP-1 / LOX (stages 1–2); N2O4/UDMH (stage 3, base variant) | RP-1 / LOX (YF-100 + YF-115) | RP-1 / LOX |
| Reusable | No | No | No |
| Stages | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| First flight | 2015 | 2016 | 2021 |
| Payload to LEO | 1,080 kg to SSO (base Long March 6)as of [1]Long March 6A (4 solid boosters, elongated stage 1): at least 4,000 kg to SSO. Long March 6C: similar class without the boosters. Both variants first flew from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. | 13,500 kgas of [1]SSO capacity ~5,500 kg ↑ Best | 1,030 kgas of [1]SSO capacity ~630 kg |
| Payload to GTO | — | — | — |
| Height | 29 m (base variant)as of [1] | 53.1 mas of [1] ↑ Best | 29 mas of [1] |
| Liftoff mass | 103 t (base variant)as of [1] | 597 tas of [1] ↑ Best | 54 tas of [1] |
| Success rate | 100% (base Long March 6, 15/15)as of [1]6A first flew 2022-03-29, 6C first flew 2024-05-07; both maintain perfect records within their own flight histories as of this date. ↑ Best | 100%as of [2]12/12 missions, all Tianzhou ISS resupply or CZ-7 tech demo flights | 43%as of [2]3/7 full successes (FLTA003 Jul 2023, FLTA005 Dec 2024, FLTA007 Mar 2026) + 2 partial successes + 2 failures through FLTA007 |
| Total flights | 15 (base variant)as of [1] ↑ Best | 12as of [2]Most recently Tianzhou-10 cargo to Tiangong (May 11, 2026) | 7as of [2] |
| Cost / kg LEO | — | — | ~$14,500/kgas of [1]Based on ~$15M list price / 1,030 kg LEO ↓ Cheapest |
| Summary | A family of medium-lift launchers from SAST serving China's growing SSO/LEO commercial and government satellite demand, with the 6A and 6C variants adding solid boosters or a simplified expendable configuration respectively. | 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. | Firefly Aerospace's two-stage small-lift rocket powered by four Reaver engines at sea level and one Lightning engine in vacuum. Also provides launch services for NASA's CLPS programme (Blue Ghost lander launched on Falcon 9). FLTA007 'Stairway to Seven' succeeded Mar 11, 2026. |
48 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.