17.10.2025
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 28 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit on Oct. 7 from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg SFB, California.
Credit: SpaceX
SpaceX is now authorized to double its current annual launch cadence from Vandenberg SFB, California, and to launch its Falcon Heavy rocket from the Western Range, base operator Space Launch Delta (SLD) 30 announced Oct. 14.
The U.S. Air Force signed a record of decision on Oct. 10 to authorize a boost in SpaceX’s cadence from 50 Falcon 9 launches per year from Space Launch Complex-4 (SLC-4), to up to 100 launches per year for both Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy from SpaceX’s two Vandenberg pads, SLC-4 and SLC-6, a news release sasys.
Under the signed record of decision, the Falcon Heavy can launch and land five times per year from and at SLC-6. SpaceX will modify SLC-6 to support both launch vehicles’ operations. SpaceX secured a lease agreement in 2023 for SLC-6, which previously supported United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV and Delta IV Heavy rocket launches.
SpaceX will also construct a new hangar north of SLC-6 to support integration and processing for the two rockets. The new hangar would sit south of SpaceX’s existing horizontal integration facility. SLC-4 will not be modified under the signed agreement.
The decision to boost SpaceX’s launch rates from the West Coast comes as the U.S. supports a record number of satellite deployments this year from both of its ranges, including Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida. As of Oct. 15, the Eastern Range hosted 86 launches in 2025, while Vandenberg has supported more than 50 missions this year. SpaceX is responsible for a majority of those launches as it deploys satellites for its Starlink communications network, and supports National Security Space Launch missions for the Pentagon, along with its Transporter commercial rideshare program.
The Air Force authorized the changes to SpaceX’s activities at Vandenberg to meet near-term U.S. government space launch requirements from the base, “specifically for medium- and heavy-lift launches to polar and other orbits less reliably available elsewhere without compromising current launch capabilities,” SLD 30 said in the release.
The Air Force in January announced plans to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to evaluate potential effects related to plans to increase the Falcon 9 launch and landing rates at Vandenberg, and to redevelop SLC-6 to support Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy operations. It released a draft EIS in May and the final EIS in October alongside the record of decision. The Air Force will develop a mitigation plan within 90 days of signing the record of decision to identify and track specific mitigations related to the approved work.
Quelle: AVIATION WEEK