Chinese private space-launch company, founded in 2019 by Kang Yonglai, formerly chief technology officer at LandSpace. One of China's leading private rocket firms.
Space Pioneer's main vehicle is the Tianlong-3 (TL-3), which has a low-Earth-orbit capacity similar to LandSpace's ZQ-3 (around 21 tonnes). TL-3 uses kerosene rather than methane as fuel. In 2023 Space Pioneer got into orbit with its maiden launch—the first time a private firm achieved immediate success with a liquid-fuelled rocket. SpaceX, by contrast, took four attempts to get its first vehicle, Falcon 1, into orbit.
In 2024 a TL-3 first stage broke free of its moorings during what was meant to be a ground test and flew hundreds of metres into the air before crashing in a nearby forest.
In 2026 Space Pioneer is expected to test its reusable Tianlong-3 vehicle.
In the first place, God made idiots; this was for practice; then he made school boards.