Chinese commercial aerospace company Space Pioneer responds to rocket crash

Space Pioneer, a leading commercial aerospace company, was about to conduct the maiden flight of its TL-3 rocket this year when an accident occurred during the testing process.

On the afternoon of June 30, the disaster prevention bureau of Gongyi city, Henan province, learned that an accident had occurred when a private rocket company in the city was conducting a rocket engine test. The rocket accidentally took off from the test stand and flew into the air before crashing in a mountainous area. The disaster prevention bureau of Gongyi city was dispatched to the scene to handle the incident, and there have been no reports of casualties so far. It is reported that the rocket involved in this accident is Space Pioneer’s TL-3 first-flight rocket, with the test part being its first stage.

Space Pioneer later responded with the statement: “At 15:43 on June 30, 2024, the TL-3 liquid-fueled rocket independently developed by Space Pioneer conducted a hot test of a nine-engine sub-level parallel propulsion system at the Gongyi Comprehensive Test Center in Henan Province.”

During the test run, an under-floor rocket with an engine thrust of 820 tons ignited normally. Due to a structural defect at the connection between the rocket body and the test platform, the under-floor rocket separated from the launch pad. After rising into the air, the on-board computer automatically shut down, causing the rocket to plunge into a deep mountain area 1.5 kilometers southwest of the test platform. After hitting the mountain, the rocket disintegrated after falling. The test site was far from downtown Gongyi. Before the test, safety measures were enhanced in cooperation with local authorities and surrounding personnel were evacuated in advance. No casualties were reported during the investigation.

TL-3 is a large liquid-fuel launch vehicle developed by Space Pioneer to build China’s satellite internet constellation. Its performance is comparable to SpaceX’s Falcon 9, with a diameter of 3.8 meters, a launch mass of 590 tons, and a capacity of 17 tons in low Earth orbit (LEO) and 14 tons in sun-synchronous orbit (SSO).

During the test of the propulsion system of the TL-3 carrier rocket, nine TH-12 engines were fired simultaneously. This was the most powerful test of the propulsion system in the current development stage of Chinese carrier rockets. Compared with previous tests with China’s largest thrust, this test was twice as successful. Space Pioneer said: “We will quickly resolve any malfunctions and organize production and testing for new products.”

It is reported that the rocket test, also known as “ignition without liftoff”, is one of the most important tests before the maiden flight of a rocket. Its importance lies in checking the correctness of the engine operation plan, the compatibility of various systems in each rocket stage and important data from the test of the propulsion system.

Space Pioneer was founded in 2019, and its founder Kang Yonglai has been engaged in launch vehicle technology research and project management for nearly 20 years. He is an important figure in China’s launch vehicle industry. Since its establishment, Space Pioneer has completed 15 rounds of financing with a total amount of over 4 billion yuan, and its valuation has exceeded 12 billion yuan.

At Space Pioneer’s headquarters in Zhangjiagang, a total of 4 billion yuan was invested to build a liquid rocket engine production base with a capacity of hundreds of tons and large-capacity liquid rocket bodies. After full operation, there will be production lines for 30 large liquid rockets and 500 rocket engines per year. At the 2023 China Unicorn and Potential Unicorn Enterprise Report Conference, Space Pioneer was named a “Chinese Unicorn Enterprise”, becoming the first “Chinese Unicorn Enterprise” in Zhangjiagang City at that time.

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