Under the approved plan, the Air Force will allow SpaceX to modify SLC-6 for both the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets. SpaceX can now increase its total number of launches at Vandenberg from 50 to 100 per year, including up to five Falcon Heavy launches from SLC-6. The SLC-6 modifications will include two landing pads to support booster recoveries.<\/p>\n
In its record of decision, the Department of the Air Force said it approved what the EIS identified as \u201cAlternative 1,\u201d which allows SpaceX to construct a new hangar at SLC-6 for Falcon processing. The original plan would have repurposed an existing horizontal integration facility. There were no other differences between the two options.<\/p>\n
The Air Force said in December it would pursue the EIS<\/a> to evaluate expanding Falcon launch operations and repurposing SLC-6. Officials said the changes were needed to meet \u201ccurrent and near-term U.S. government space launch requirements\u201d while \u201creturning heavy-lift launch capability to the Western Range.\u201d<\/p>\n The study ruled out alternatives such as modifying SLC-4 to support Falcon Heavy, concluding that doing so would cause \u201cmultiple long-duration shutdowns of the launch pad\u201d that would disrupt both government and commercial missions.<\/p>\n According to the study, SLC-4 will support up to 70 Falcon 9 launches per year. There have been 49 Falcon 9 launches from Vandenberg so far this year. SLC-6 is expected to ramp up to 25 Falcon 9 and five Falcon Heavy launches annually as soon as 2027.<\/p>\n The same projections included 11 Falcon 9 launches and one Falcon Heavy launch from SLC-6 in 2026 as well. However, the study estimates it will take about 18 months to modify SLC-6 for Falcon launches, with work beginning in late 2025 or early 2026, suggesting that the facility will not be ready for launches until at least early 2027.<\/p>\n The federal approval overrides opposition from a state agency. In August, the California Coastal Commission voted against a proposal to increase Falcon 9 launches from 50 to 95 per year, citing insufficient information about noise from launches and sonic booms.<\/p>\n \u201cThe commission lacks critical information necessary to determine whether the proposed project would be consistent with the enforceable policies of the CCMP focused on the protection of sensitive marine and terrestrial species and habitats,\u201d the commission\u2019s staff report<\/a> stated, referring to the California Coastal Management Program.<\/p>\n The opposition was largely symbolic, since the Air Force has argued that launch operations at Vandenberg are a federal activity exempt from state oversight. State officials, however, note that most Falcon launches from Vandenberg are commercial missions, including Starlink deployments.<\/p>\n The EIS for the Department of the Air Force concluded that noise from launches and sonic booms \u201cmay cause annoyance to building occupants\u201d in Lompoc, California, the community closest to the launch site. However, it concluded that the noise would not have significant impacts.<\/p>\n![\"SLC-6\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/slc6delta4.jpeg\")
Vandenberg\u2019s Space Launch Complex 6, previously used by the Delta 4, will be converted into a launch pad for SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy. Credit: ULA<\/p>\n