A recyclable rocket, RLV-T5, developed by a private Chinese company, completed its first low-altitude test flight on March 27, Science and Technology Daily reported.

The vehicle flew to an altitude of 20 meters in strong winds, hovered for 10 seconds and landed at a designated location at the testing ground in Longkou city, east China’s Shandong province, according to a staff member with developer Linkspace.

The reusable rocket is compared to the SpaceX Grasshopper rocket used in the development of the Falcon 9 launch vehicle, but it has some innovative algorithm in core control.

The flight test verified key technologies including variable thrust, control, anti-disturbance and parameter adjustment in the development of the rocket, said Chu Longfei, chief technology officer of Linkspace.

In January 2018, the company completed low-altitude recovery tests of the RLV-T3 rocket, a predecessor of the RLV-T5 rocket, which accumulated experience for the latest test flight, Chu explained.

Future flight tests will focus on trialing technologies used to support the rocket’s functionality at altitudes above one kilometer, Chu said.