SpaceX has unveiled ambitious plans to launch its Starship mega-rocket up to 120 times per year from Florida, causing a stir among its competitors. The company aims to launch from two locations: NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and the Space Launch Complex (SLC)-37 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS).
At the Kennedy Space Center, SpaceX plans to launch its Starship mega-rocket up to 44 times per year. This has led to concerns among competitors, including Blue Origin and United Launch Alliance, who have called on regulators to ensure minimal disruptions to other launch providers in the area. Blue Origin even suggested limiting Starship operations to particular times and giving other launch providers a right of first refusal for conflicting launches.
However, SpaceX’s ambitions don’t stop there. The company also plans to launch Starship from SLC-37 up to 76 times per year. This means that SpaceX aims to launch its next-gen rocket up to 120 times per year within a six-mile area on the Florida coast. The U.S. Space Force is currently preparing the draft environmental assessment that will be released to the public this winter, and that document will contain SpaceX’s final anticipated launch cadence.
SLC-37 is a historic launch pad at CCSFS, home to NASA’s Saturn rocket in the 1960s and, more recently, United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV series rockets. The pad is now inactive after ULA flew its Delta IV Heavy for the final time in April.
Read more: techcrunch.com