Two Nations, Two Debut Rockets: China’s Long March 10B and India’s Vikram-I Set for Historic Launches
Featured image: [Renderings of the Long March 10B (left) and Skyroot Aerospace’s Vikram-I (right); credit: CASC/Chinarocket (left), Skyroot Aerospace (right)]
A rare double debut in orbital spaceflight is unfolding this week. China’s partially reusable Long March 10B and India’s first fully private orbital launch vehicle, the Vikram-I from Skyroot Aerospace, are both preparing maiden flights within days of each other : each representing a milestone in its nation’s space ambitions.
Long March 10B: China’s commercial reusable rocket
The Long March 10B, a two-stage medium-lift rocket developed by CASC’s commercial arm Chinarocket, is set to launch from Wenchang Commercial Launch Complex-2 on Hainan Island. Standing 70 meters tall with a 5-meter diameter, it can deliver 16 metric tons to low Earth orbit in reusable configuration.
The rocket is powered by seven YF-100K kerosene-fueled engines on the first stage, generating 8,750 kilonewtons of sea-level thrust. In a novel recovery approach, the first stage will aim for a net-capture at sea on a marine platform rather than a propulsive landing on a droneship. The second stage introduces a YF-219 methane-fueled engine : the first Chinese orbital stage to use methalox propellant.
The Long March 10B is optimized for China’s Guowang megaconstellation, with its 11 metric ton capacity to a 900-kilometer orbit tailored for batch-launching internet satellites. It is the commercial variant of the Long March 10 family, which also includes a crew-rated super-heavy version for China’s lunar landing by 2030 and a medium reusable variant for servicing the Tiangong space station.
A recovery test in February 2026 saw a first-stage test article perform a controlled splashdown roughly 200 meters from its recovery platform, a key validation milestone.
Vikram-I: India goes private
India’s Vikram-I, named “Aagaman” (Sanskrit for “Arrival”) and built by Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace, has its launch window opening July 12 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. The 26-meter, all-carbon-composite rocket can lift 350 kilograms to a 500-kilometer orbit, targeting the small-satellite market.
The four-stage solid-fueled vehicle uses Kalam-series solid motors : the Kalam-1000, Kalam-250, and Kalam-100 : with a fourth stage powered by four 3D-printed Raman-I hypergolic engines. The rocket can be assembled and made launch-ready within 24 to 72 hours at the pad.
Four payloads : a mix of domestic and international customers including one Skyroot satellite : will ride on the maiden flight. Skyroot was founded in 2018 by former ISRO scientists Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka, and has raised roughly $95.5 million to date. Its 20,000-square-meter Infinity Campus in Hyderabad can produce one orbital rocket per month.
The company’s suborbital precursor, Vikram-S, launched in November 2022 as India’s first private rocket to reach space. Skyroot now aims to capture 10 percent of the global small-satellite launch market : estimated at roughly $25 billion by 2033 : and scale to monthly launches by 2027.
Complementary trajectories
The two debut rockets serve very different markets despite launching in the same week. The Long March 10B targets medium-lift megaconstellation deployment from China’s state-owned sector, while Vikram-I aims for the small-satellite niche from a private Indian startup. Both are pathfinders: the LM-10B tests reusability for China’s commercial launch fleet, and Vikram-I tests whether India can produce a commercially viable private orbital launch service.