SpaceX Proposal Would More Than Double Falcon 9 Launches at Cape Canaveral

FAA releases draft environmental assessment evaluating the impact of increasing launches from 50 to 120 per year.

Jack Daleo

Friday, March 14, 2025 at 04:09 PM ET

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Jack Daleo

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida in November 2021. [Courtesy: Joshua Conti/Space Launch Delta 45]

Key Takeaways:

SpaceX aims to significantly increase its Falcon 9 launch cadence, projecting 170 launches in 2025 after achieving 132 in 2024.
To facilitate this expansion, SpaceX proposes to more than double Falcon 9 launches from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral, from 50 to 120 annually.
This increased activity at SLC-40 necessitates building a new Falcon 9 landing zone due to expiring licenses and new regulations requiring landings near the launch site.
Similar plans for increased Falcon 9 launches and associated landing infrastructure are also underway for Kennedy Space Center and Vandenberg Space Force Base.

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SpaceX, the world’s dominant commercial space launch provider, is looking to ramp up the activity of its workhorse rocket.

The FAA on Friday released a draft environmental assessment (EA) analyzing the company’s proposal to more than double the number of Falcon 9 launches from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, from 50 to 120. To facilitate the increased cadence, SpaceX proposes building a new Falcon 9 landing zone (LZ) at SLC-40 to return the two-stage rocket’s reusable first stage.