First Flight of New Chinese Rocket Fails 

Kuaizhou-11 launch fails on July 10. Photo: China Central Television (CCTV)/China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) via SciNews

The first flight of the Chinese rocket Kuaizhou-11 carrier rocket carrying two satellites failed on Friday, Chinese state media reports. The rocket was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 12:17 p.m. (CST), but a malfunction occurred during the flight. 

“The specific cause of the failure is under further analysis and investigation,” Chinese state media reported. 

Kuaizhou-11 was a new rocket for Expace. The launcher receives significant financial backing from China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC). Expace’s feature rocket is the Kuaizhou-1.

[Read more about the Chinese launch market in Via Satellite’s May edition.]