Tianlong

Chinese commercial kerolox small-to-medium-lift orbital rocket

Space Pioneer's Tianlong-2 became the first private Chinese rocket with a liquid-fuel first stage to reach orbit, in April 2023. Its successor had a more dramatic start: a Tianlong-3 first stage broke free from its test stand during a static fire in June 2024 and made an unintended flight before crashing into hills outside Gongyi. The rocket's first real flight, in April 2026, failed about two minutes after liftoff.