A Long March-5 rocket carrying a new communication technology test satellite blasts off from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in south China's Hainan Province, June 11, 2026.  (Photo by Li Wenjun/Xinhua)

Wenchang in South China's Hainan Province is stepping up efforts to raise its launch and manufacturing capacity of satellites, with the No.1 and No.2 launch pads at Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site having entered routine operation, the satellite "super factory" having moved into trial production, and offshore recovery platforms and the TT&C (telemetry, tracking and command) systems being built at an accelerated pace, the Hainan Daily quoted a local official as saying on Tuesday.

Yuan Shiying, deputy head of the Wenchang International Space City Administration Bureau, made the remarks at a press conference on Monday promoting the high-quality development of Hainan Province during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30).

By the end of this year, the new No 3 and No 4 launch pads will be ready for launches, and the satellite "super factory" will roll out its first satellite. Major rocket-chain projects - including China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Commercial Rocket Co, Expace Technology Co and Space Pioneer - have broken ground one after another. 

By continuously improving supporting infrastructure such as transfer roads and transport terminals, Wenchang will accelerate the development of a high-cadence, high-reliability, low-cost commercial launch capability, providing efficient support for the "hundred rockets, thousand satellites" mission, the official said.

Meanwhile, driven by the groundbreaking of the new zone of China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) in Hainan and the controlled rocket recovery of the Long March-10B maiden flight, Wenchang will provide targeted services to leading enterprises and target upstream and downstream suppliers - core components, additive manufacturing  -  in order to ensure that "Made in Wenchang, Launched from Wenchang" quickly become reality, according to the report.

Relying on the first one-stop commercial aerospace satellite data processing and trade zone, Wenchang will expand new formats such as cross-border data flows and aerospace products trade, and strive to realize by 2035 the vision that "Wenchang's space professionals launch satellites made in Wenchang with rockets made in Wenchang from Wenchang's two launch sites," it said.

At the press conference, officials noted that the newly established Hainan Aerospace Group is positioned as the comprehensive implementation body for undertaking national major missions and infrastructure construction, and as the core service body for cultivating a commercial aerospace industry cluster.

Going forward, it will focus on "driving industry through the launch site" to refine and strengthen the core space business, scale up R&D investment to advance self-reliance in science and technology, while acting as an industry-city integration platform to speed up park development and, by riding the free-trade port's opening advantages, building an international cooperation window - striving to become a world-class enterprise with national and global influence by 2035.

Aerospace related tourism is also a distinctive strength of Wenchang. Having set its sights on becoming the "Capital of Aerospace Tourism," Wenchang will coordinate its resources and shift its aerospace cultural tourism from a "node economy" toward a "comprehensive experience economy," striving to make the city a world-class aerospace tourism destination by 2030.