China plans to bring uncrewed space shuttle concept to life

The Haolong transporter is not designed to carry a crew, unlike Nasa’s original, but is intended to support the Tiangong space station

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An artist’s impression of the Haolong space shuttle shared on social media. Photo: WeChat/ Aviation Industry Corporation of China

Published: 6:01pm, 30 Oct 2024Updated: 3:59pm, 4 Nov 2024

China has given the green light to a new space shuttle more than a decade after the United States pulled the plug on its own programme.

The reusable Haolong vessel will be uncrewed and aims to cut the cost of transporting cargo to and from China’s Tiangong space station and boost efficiency.

Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency, said the agency had been searching for low-cost transporters to supply Tiangong, and the Haolong was one of two that has been given a contract to undergo engineering flight verification. The other spacecraft will not be reusable.

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“In order to further reduce the cost of uplink cargo transport for the Chinese space station, enhance the flexibility of uplink cargo transport and explore the development of commercial space models, last year we issued a notice to solicit an overall plan for low-cost cargo transport systems for the space station,” Lin said on Tuesday ahead of the launch of the Shenzhou-19 mission to the space station.

The Haolong cargo shuttle was designed by the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute, an affiliate of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).

It is a reusable winged commercial spacecraft that can be launched by a carrier rocket and will be capable of docking with the Tiangong space station. Upon re-entry, the shuttle will be able to land horizontally on an airport runway.

The design features a large wingspan and a high lift-to-drag ratio, could allow the space shuttle to carry large payloads, a post on one of AVIC’s official social platforms said.

The aim of the project was to reduce the cost of carrying cargo between the Earth and space and to establish a reliable, safe and efficient transport system, AVIC said.