China has been very agile in developing its super-heavy lift vehicle Chang Zheng 9 (CZ-9). It initially started as a fully expendable rocket, like the Ares V or SLS rockets, but over the years developed into at first a partially reusable concept, and recently, with Starship becoming more real, it changed its design again to become a fully reusable launch vehicle. Today we want to look at the road to that design.
Over the years, head designer Long Lehao, who also managed the Chang Zheng 3 program, has been the most prominent source of updates about the massive rocket, but it also appeared on other stages, such as airshows, and rare updates were provided.