China’s future spaceplane may be able to take off and land at airports

Successful test flight in July suggests it has an advantage over the rocket-launched US equivalent, Chinese military magazine says

It adds to concerns over the weaponisation of space, as powers race to develop anti-satellite weapons and hypersonic missiles

Reading Time:3 minutes

99+

An artist’s impression of the CASC spaceplane, which had its first test flight in July. Photo: Weibo

Published: 10:00pm, 19 Dec 2021

China’s space flight technology may have advanced beyond that of the United States as it can now launch spaceplanes without rocket propulsion, according to a Chinese military magazine.

It means the spaceplanes will not need launch sites and will be able to take off and land at airports – a cost-saving development that has added to concerns over the weaponisation of space.

China is developing a spaceplane known as Tengyun, which has a horizontal take-off and horizontal landing (HTHL) system. That gives it an advantage over the US equivalent, the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), which is rocket-launched, according to military magazine Naval and Merchant Ships.

The Chinese spaceplane was said to be inspired by the American X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle. Photo: US Air Force/AFP

A video clip of the magazine’s editors discussing US hegemony in space and the Tengyun spaceplane project was posted on its Chinese social media accounts on December 12.

“Chinese spaceplane technology was inspired by the US X-37B, but the American OTV still needs to be launched by rocket, while China has now overcome this limitation,” magazine editor-in-chief Su Ming said in the video.

He was referring to a test flight of the Tengyun carried out by its developer, state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), in July. It was launched on the suborbital flight by a mother ship instead of a rocket.

“The successful HTHL test suggests future Chinese aerospace aircraft will be able to take off from airports anywhere in the country,” Su said. “That means future spacecraft flights could go from the current 30 times a year to more than 1,000 [a year] – more like regular planes.”

The CASC announced the Tengyun civilian aerospace project in 2016, aiming to develop a reusable space transport system to save costs, based on the American OTV. It unveiled the HTHL system in July this year, calling it “a solid foundation” to develop reusable transport technology between Earth and space.