China completed 16 launches of its Long March rockets in 2017, said China Aerospace Science & Technology Corporation on Jan. 1.

However, the annual plan for the last year was to complete nearly 30 launches of the rocket family, according to reports in early 2017.

Counting the Kuaizhou-1A launch vehicle lifted on January 9, 2017, and the Kaituozhe rocket launched on March 3, 2017, China has completed 18 public rocket launches over the last year.

China’s Long March 3B rocket failed to reach orbital destination with Zhongxing-9A satellite in mid-June last year, and the Long-March 5 also fell short of orbit after liftoff on July 2, 2017, which was a reason for the decrease of the country’s rocket launching missions.

Experts predict that 2018 will be a major year for the Chinese aerospace industry, and the delayed projects of 2017 will also be implemented this year.