China's Long March 10B Debuts with First Successful Rocket Stage Recovery
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) successfully completed the maiden flight of the Long March 10B (CZ-10B) launch vehicle from the Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site at Wenchang on July 10, 2026. The rocket delivered its payload to the intended orbit. More notably, its first stage performed a controlled recovery using a net capture system on a sea platform — China's first successful recovery of a rocket first stage.
A Historic Milestone
Prior to this mission, China had attempted rocket stage recovery twice, with the Long March 12A and the Zhuque rocket, both ending in failure. Today's success makes China the second country after the United States to master controlled recovery of a launch vehicle first stage.
The Long March 10B is a kerosene-liquid oxygen rocket with a reusable first stage design. The recovery method involves a vertical return followed by capture using a tensioned wire-net system deployed on a sea platform — a different approach from SpaceX's vertical landing on drone ships.
Mission Overview
- Launch time: July 10, 2026, approximately 13:20 Beijing time (05:20 UTC)
- Launch site: Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site (Wenchang)
- Launch vehicle: Long March 10B (CZ-10B), CASC
- Payload: Successfully delivered to orbit
- Recovery method: First stage vertical return, sea platform net capture
Broader Implications
The Long March 10B is a cargo variant of the Long March 10 rocket family, China's next-generation launch vehicle series designed to support missions including crewed lunar landings. Reusability will significantly reduce launch costs and increase flight cadence, benefiting China's lunar exploration program, space station operations, and large satellite internet constellation deployment.
This milestone marks a major step forward in China's reusable rocket development, and the flight data collected will be critical for the development of other Long March 10 variants.