Head to head
Long March 3B/E vs Tsiklon-3
Two vehicles in the same payload class. Every figure below comes from the same two sources for both rockets, and a row appears only when both publish the input.
Payload to low Earth orbit
Side by side
| Metric | Long March 3B/E | Tsiklon-3 |
|---|---|---|
| Flights flown | 78 | 122 |
| Success rate | 97.4% | 94.3% |
| Payload to LEO (kg) | 12,000 | 4,100 |
| Launch cost | $70M | $15M |
| Cost per kg to LEO | $5,833 | $3,659 |
| Liftoff thrust (kN) | 5,924 | 2,713 |
| Length (m) | 56.3 | 39.27 |
| Diameter (m) | 3.35 | 3 |
| Launch mass (t) | 456 | 189 |
| Stages | 3 | 3 |
Long March 3B/E
97.4% success rate76 of 78 flown · 2 failed
2007peak 2025 · 13 flights2026
Tsiklon-3
94.3% success rate115 of 122 flown · 7 failed
1977peak 1985 · 12 flights2009
Long March 3B/E is built by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation of China.Tsiklon-3 is built by Yuzhnoye Design Bureau of Ukraine.
Full specifications and the complete launch history for each: Long March 3B/E · Tsiklon-3.
Specifications from Launch Library 2 by The Space Devs, launch records from Space Index. Derived figures are computed here; see sources and method.