Beyond innovation paradox: Practices and reflections on promoting high-quality development of commercial aerospace with low costs

Commercial spaceflight, as a national strategic emerging industry, is critical for seizing the high ground of the space economy and fostering new quality productive forces through its low-cost and high-quality development. Currently, international enterprises represented by SpaceX have gained a leading advantage through technological breakthroughs and business model innovations, posing severe challenges to China’s aerospace security and development. This study first analyzes the evolutionary trajectory of low-cost development in commercial spaceflight, then delves into the “low-cost vs. high-quality” innovation paradox faced by the traditional aerospace industry and its root causes. Building on this analysis, it examines the experiences of international commercial spaceflight companies in overcoming this paradox, summarizing breakthrough pathways such as technological architecture innovation, business model-driven innovation paradigms, and reforms in scientific and technological management models. The study further points out that China’s commercial spaceflight sector faces severe challenges, including insufficient systemic top-level planning, a disconnect between development philosophies and market demands, gaps in core technological capabilities, and lagging industrial innovation ecosystem development. To address these issues, it emphasizes the urgent need for multidimensional measures, such as strengthening top-level design and standard unification, adopting a cost-priority development philosophy, promoting organized breakthroughs in key technologies, and improving ecosystem support mechanisms, to provide robust support for reducing costs and enhancing quality in commercial spaceflight.