At 18:30 on September 27, 2024, the Long March 2D lifted off from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, successfully delivering the Shijian-19 satellites into their destination orbit. The launch mission was a complete success.

The Long March 2D Launch Vehicle, developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST), is a two-stage normal-temperature liquid-propellant launch vehicle known for its characteristics of high reliability, cost-effectiveness, and strong adaptability. It supports a variety of launch configurations, including single-satellite, multi-satellite parallel, serial, and rideshare missions. The launch vehicle has a payload capacity of 1.3 tons for deploying satellites into a 700-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit.

This mission marks the Long March 2D Launch Vehicle’s return to launching recoverable satellites after an 8-year hiatus. To address potential weak links, the project team actively organized test crews to conduct thorough “double-thinking” exercises and carried out special quality reviews. To meet the payload requirements of the recoverable satellite, the team customized a workflow for installing the payload fairing on the tower 48 hours before launch. Given the new procedures and operations, the test team identified critical nodes and risk points, developed detailed work processes and contingency measures, and organized joint rehearsals with satellite and launch site teams. These efforts ensured timely completion of the fairing installation after its ascent to the tower, smooth execution of subsequent propellant loading and critical launch points, and ultimately, the mission’s complete success.

This launch mission is the 92nd launch of Long March 2D, the 219th launch of the Long March series of launch vehicles developed by SAST, and the 537th launch of the Long March launch vehicle family.