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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | LandSpace | CASC / CALT | Firefly Aerospace |
| Country | 🇨🇳 China | 🇨🇳 China | 🇺🇸 USA |
| Status | Active | Active | Active |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Heavy | Small |
| Propellant | Methalox (LOX / liquid methane) | UDMH/N₂O₄ (stages 1–2) + LH₂/LOX (stage 3 YF-75) | RP-1 / LOX |
| Reusable | No | No | No |
| Stages | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| First flight | 2024 | 1996 | 2021 |
| Payload to LEO | 6,000 kgas of [1]4,000 kg to 500 km SSO. Enhanced variant of the base Zhuque-2 with a common-bulkhead tank, TQ-15 thrust-vectoring engine on stage 2, and a niobium-alloy nozzle extension. A further-improved Block 2 first flew 2026-05-14 with subcooled propellant loading and a 3-ignition second stage. | 11,200 kgas of [1] ↑ Best | 1,030 kgas of [1]SSO capacity ~630 kg |
| Payload to GTO | — | 5,500 kgas of [1]With 4 strap-on liquid boosters (CZ-3B/E enhanced variant) ↑ Best | — |
| Height | — | 54.84 mas of [1] ↑ Best | 29 mas of [1] |
| Liftoff mass | — | 426 tas of [1]Enhanced variant with 4 liquid strap-on boosters ↑ Best | 54 tas of [1] |
| Success rate | 100% since 2024-11-27 debutas of [1] ↑ Best | ~95%as of [2]~6 failures/partial failures out of ~105+ flights; gradually being superseded by Long March 5 for GTO | 43%as of [2]3/7 full successes (FLTA003 Jul 2023, FLTA005 Dec 2024, FLTA007 Mar 2026) + 2 partial successes + 2 failures through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 | 2+ (2E variant)as of [1] | ~105as of [2] ↑ Best | 7as of [2] |
| Cost / kg LEO | — | — | ~$14,500/kgas of [1]Based on ~$15M list price / 1,030 kg LEO ↓ Cheapest |
| Summary | LandSpace's enhanced methalox launcher, the higher-performance successor to the original Zhuque-2 (the first methalox rocket ever to reach orbit, in 2023) — see slug 'zhuque-2' for the original vehicle already in our database. | China's primary geostationary transfer vehicle for over 25 years. Launched communications, meteorology, and navigation satellites including Beidou-3 (GEO/IGSO nodes). Being phased out in favour of Long March 5 for heavier GTO payloads as newer domestic communications satellites grow in mass. | 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.