Chinese firm plans flight test of reusable spacecraft next year

A major Chinese commercial space venture plans to conduct the debut flight of its first reusable spacecraft model in early 2027, according to a senior project leader. CAS Space, which is incubated by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is independently developing the Lihong 2, which measures about 18 meters in length, has a diameter of 3.35 meters, consists of a booster rocket and a payload module, and has a liftoff weight of roughly 60 metric tons.

Wang Yingcheng, a senior spacecraft researcher and executive vice-president of CAS Space Frontier Labs in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, told China Daily in an exclusive interview that the design work of the reusable spacecraft has been completed and ground tests of the prototype are progressing smoothly.

"To date, wind tunnel tests for the payload module and the booster rocket, as well as propellant retention tests, have been completed. Intensive engine hot-fire tests and captive carry tests are currently underway," Wang said. "We plan to carry out the debut flight in the first quarter of 2027 to verify whether the spacecraft can return from an altitude of about 100 kilometers and land safely on the ground.

During the flight, it will carry various types of payloads, such as space medicines and intelligent robots, to conduct in-space experiments and tests," he added. Demarcated at an altitude of about 100 km, the Karman Line is the boundary internationally recognized to separate Earth's atmosphere and the edge of outer space.

Wang said the Lihong 2 has a design capacity of carrying at least 3 tons of payloads, or up to seven passengers, during each flight. The spacecraft's booster rocket is equipped with three self-developed 30-ton-class Liqing 1 engines propelled by liquid oxygen and kerosene, and it also features vertical landing capability, which is critical to reusability.

"The vehicle will serve as a verification platform for major rocket recovery and reuse technologies as well as a microgravity experiment platform," Wang said. "The 100-km recovery test will help us verify designs for multiple restarts and thrust modulation of rocket engines, propellant management, navigation, guidance and landing control.

The designs and the experience will be used on the reusable variant of our Kinetica 2 rocket model," he said. Wang highlighted that the Lihong 2 can support in-space manufacturing operations, and that capability can inject momentum into the long-term development of a wide range of industries.

"Space-based manufacturing is a breeding ground for disruptive scientific and technological innovations, and also a critical high-value link for the commercial space sector to advance from 'space transportation' to 'space utilization'," he said. For example, special drug crystals formed in space could serve as trailblazers for biomedical innovation; crop breeding in space could develop new varieties for ecological agriculture; and the deployment of intelligent robots in space could pave the way for "space factories", he said.

CAS Space is also conducting research and development related to its Lihong 3 reusable spacecraft, Wang said. Designed for long-duration in-orbit scientific experiments and space-based manufacturing tasks, the Lihong 3 can provide a microgravity environment for up to one year for at least 300 kilograms of payloads meant for in-space manufacturing, he said, adding that its debut flight and in-orbit verification are scheduled for 2028.

According to a report released in May by United States-based consulting company Future Market Insights, the global market for in-space manufacturing was valued at around $6.3 billion in 2025, and the figure is projected to reach $46.8 billion by 2036. The sector will register a compound annual growth rate as high as 20 percent over the decade, demonstrating robust industrial growth momentum, the report said.