China places 1st satellite of year into orbit

In December, the model performed its 100th flight, becoming the first of all Chinese rocket types to achieve this feat.

So far, all of the model's 102 launches have been conducted from the Xichang spaceport.

The release noted that the Long March 3 family, which consists of the Long March 3A, 3B and 3C types, is scheduled to make more than 10 flights this year.

Last year, China carried out 68 space missions, more than any previous year. Sixty-six of the missions were successful.