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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 | Roscosmos / Progress Rocket Space Centre | Avio / Arianespace | China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) / CASC |
| Country | 🇷🇺 Russia | 🇪🇺 Europe | 🇨🇳 China |
| Status | Active | Active | Active |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Small | Medium |
| Propellant | RP-1 / LOX | Solid (HTPB + ammonium perchlorate all four stages) | RP-1 / LOX (stage 1); LH2/LOX (stage 2) |
| Reusable | No | No | No |
| Stages | 3 | 4 | 2 |
| First flight | 2004 | 2022 | 2020 |
| Payload to LEO | 8,200 kgas of [1]Soyuz-2.1b with Fregat upper stage; 2.1a variant ~7,020 kg LEO ↑ Best | 2,300 kgas of [1]SSO: ~1,700 kg | 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. |
| Payload to GTO | 3,250 kgas of [1]With Fregat-M upper stage ↑ Best | — | — |
| Height | 46.3 mas of [1] | 35 mas of [1] | 50.3 mas of [1] ↑ Best |
| Liftoff mass | 312 tas of [1] | 210 tas of [1] | 356 t (base); 371 t (8A)as of [1] ↑ Best |
| Success rate | 97%as of [2]~160/165 mission successes since 2004 per aggregated launch logs | 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% (16/16 combined base + 8A)as of [1] ↑ Best |
| Total flights | ~165as of [2] | 8as of [2] | 16 (base + 8A combined)as of [1] ↑ Best |
| Cost / kg LEO | — | ~$16,500/kgas of [1]Based on ~$38M list price / 2,300 kg ↓ Cheapest | — |
| Summary | Russia's primary medium-lift workhorse, descended from the Soyuz family that has flown since 1966. Carries both crewed Soyuz spacecraft and Cygnus-class cargo. Fregat upper stage significantly expands mission flexibility. Production continues at Samara (now TsSKB-Progress). | 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. | 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. |
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.