16-05-2025
- Science
- South China Morning Post
China's PLA warns US Space Force ‘orbital carrier' risks escalating arms race
China's military has warned that a plan by the US Space Force to deploy 'orbital carriers' will accelerate an
arms race in space
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In a commentary published on Thursday by the PLA Daily, an expert from the People's Liberation Army Space Engineering University pointed to a recent US$60 million contract awarded by the US Space Force to develop an orbital transport craft. The article said the project would 'boost US war-fighting strength, yet intensify the two nations' military rivalry and threaten space security'.
The article, published under the name Wang Tiantian, appeared to refer to a contract granted to the Seattle-based space infrastructure company Gravitics.
The firm announced in March that it was creating a '
game-changer ' system that it expected to have launched for demonstration as early as 2026. The carrier could deploy 'multiple manoeuvrable space vehicles' within hours – instead of days or weeks – using conventional launchers to counter possible threats, the company said.
At a defence conference in March, Michael Guetlein, US Space Force vice-chief of space operations, said the service was shifting towards 'a warfighting force'.
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