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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | Long March 8 (incl. 8A) 🇨🇳 China Trust: Operator-primaryⓘ Last verified Active · Last updated 2026-07-26Remove × | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) / CASC | Firefly Aerospace | Interstellar Technologies |
| Country | 🇨🇳 China | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇯🇵 Japan |
| Status | Active | Active | In Development |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Small | Small |
| Propellant | RP-1 / LOX (stage 1); LH2/LOX (stage 2) | RP-1 / LOX | Liquid biomethane (LBM) / LOX |
| Reusable | No | No | No |
| Stages | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| First flight | 2020 | 2021 | 2027 |
| Payload to LEO | 8,100 kgas of [1]5,000 kg to 700 km SSO (base); the enlarged-second-stage 8A variant (first flew 2025-02-11) lifts 7,000 kg to the same SSO reference orbit. ↑ Best | 1,030 kgas of [1]SSO capacity ~630 kg | 250 kgas of [1]500 km SSO. No flight attempts as of this research — follows the company's successful suborbital MOMO sounding-rocket program. A larger orbital vehicle, DECA, was announced January 2023. |
| Payload to GTO | — | — | — |
| Height | 50.3 mas of [1] ↑ Best | 29 mas of [1] | — |
| Liftoff mass | 356 t (base); 371 t (8A)as of [1] ↑ Best | 54 tas of [1] | — |
| Success rate | 100% (16/16 combined base + 8A)as of [1] ↑ Best | 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 | 16 (base + 8A combined)as of [1] ↑ Best | 7as of [2] | — |
| Cost / kg LEO | — | ~$14,500/kgas of [1]Based on ~$15M list price / 1,030 kg LEO ↓ Cheapest | — |
| Summary | A two-stage medium-lift launcher originally designed with a reusable combined-booster-recovery concept in mind, though currently operational vehicles fly expendable. Exclusively from Wenchang. | 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. | A liquid-biomethane orbital smallsat launcher from Interstellar Technologies, Japan's most established private rocket startup by suborbital flight heritage, though not yet flown to orbit. |
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.