Space Pioneer says part of rocket crashed in central China during test

BEIJING (Reuters) – Beijing Tianbing Technology Co said on Sunday that the first stage of its Tianlong-3 rocket under development had detached from its launch pad during a test due to structural failure and landed in a hilly area of the city of Gongyi in central China.

There were no reports of casualties after an initial investigation, Beijing Tianbing, also known as Space Pioneer, said in a statement.

(Reporting by Ryan Woo and Ellen Zhang; Editing by Gareth Jones)