China is determined to reduce its reliance on foreign technology. But is the country ready for the consequences?
Image: Courtesy CKGSB
Saturday, October 27 was supposed to be an historic day for China’s growing aerospace industry. Landspace, a Beijing-based startup, was set to become the first private Chinese company to launch a rocket into outer space.
At 4 p.m., Landspace’s ZQ-1 rocket blasted off smoothly from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in Inner Mongolia. Spectators watched the ZQ-1 shed its first two stages as it cut through the pristine blue skies.
Then, something went wrong. At 6.40 p.m., a fault occurred during the third stage. Soon after, Landspace declared the mission a failure. The company will have to wait until 2020 for its next shot at history.
[This article has been reproduced with permission from CKGSB Knowledge, the online research journal of the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB), China's leading independent business school. For more articles on China business strategy, please visit CKGSB Knowledge.]