China's Spaceplane Tengyun May Take Off And Land At Airports: Reports

China's spaceplanes are so advanced that they may not need launch sites and can take off and land at airports. The test flight of Tengyun was carried out in July by its developer, state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC). So advanced is its technology of Horizontal Take-off and Horizontal Landing (HTHL) that it edges out its U.S. equivalent of X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), which is rocket-launched, reported South China Morning Post. The report, quoting the Chinese military magazine Naval and Merchant Ships, said this cost-saving development has added to concerns over the weaponization of space in the era of hypersonic missiles. "Chinese spaceplane technology was inspired by the US X-37B, but the American OTV still needs to be launched by rocket, while China has now overcome this limitation," magazine editor-in-chief Su Ming was quoted by the news outlet.