A Chinese startup has set an ambitious timetable in the country’s race to develop reusable rockets, a technology pioneered by SpaceX and used by Elon Musk’s company to lower costs and dominate the global industry for satellite launches.
Beijing-based Orienspace, which last month conducted its first launch of a single-use rocket, is developing the reusable Gravity-2 and expects the rocket’s maiden flight to take place in late 2025 or early 2026, co-founder and co-Chief Executive Officer Yao Song said in an interview.
Other Chinese companies competing to achieve reusability include Beijing Interstellar Glory Space Technology, a startup known as i-Space, which staged a test in December. Meanwhile, a subsidiary of state-owned China Aerospace Science and Industry last month conducted a vertical takeoff and landing test of its reusable Kuaizhou rocket.