Long March 2F/G version
Long March 2F/G CZ-2F/T
The CZ-2F/T is the upgraded Long March 2F built for uncrewed missions. It shares the deep changes of the 2F/G — redesigned booster tanks and delayed separation — but omits the escape tower and carries a 4.2 m fairing for bulky payloads. It is 52.03 m tall, lifts off at 493.1 tonnes and places 8.6 tonnes in low Earth orbit.
- September 29, 2011
- First launch
- No
- Reusable
History
The Tiangong laboratories
The 2F/T introduced the upgraded Long March 2F versions on 29 September 2011 with Tiangong-1, China's first orbital laboratory, later visited by crews in 2012 and 2013. In September 2016 it launched Tiangong-2, occupied that same year. Carrying no crew, the variant could drop the escape tower and use the space for a larger 4.2 m fairing, impossible on the crewed configuration.
The reusable spaceplane
Since 4 September 2020 the 2F/T has been the launcher of the Chinese reusable experimental spaceplane, whose flights are announced with very few details. For that payload it uses a special fairing with bulges that house parts of the vehicle without enlarging the overall diameter. The spaceplane's fourth flight lifted off on 7 February 2026.