SpaceX Targets Starlink Launch as Falcon 9 Sets Reuse Record

SpaceX is targeting October 20, 2026, to launch 27 Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, with liftoff scheduled between 3:14 p.m. and 7:14 p.m. local time. The mission is expected to use a Falcon 9 first-stage booster flying for the 36th time, highlighting the company's continued use of previously flown rocket hardware.

According to KSBY, the booster has supported 26 Starlink missions and several other flights, including NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission and the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich ocean-monitoring mission. After separating from the upper stage, the first stage is expected to land on a recovery vessel in the Pacific Ocean.

The planned launch follows a separate Falcon 9 mission on October 15, when SpaceX sent the classified USSF-481 payload into space for the U.S. Space Force. According to Space.com, the rocket lifted off at 8:01 p.m. EDT from Vandenberg and successfully landed its first stage approximately 8.5 minutes later.

The October 15 flight marked the 28th mission for booster B1081. The vehicle delivered its classified payload toward an undisclosed destination, with the mission publicly identified as part of the U.S. Space Force's national security launch program.

The first stage landed on the autonomous droneship named "Of Course I Still Love You," positioned in the Pacific Ocean. SpaceX's mission description indicated that 16 of B1081's first 27 flights had supported the company's Starlink broadband satellite network.

According to the October 18 report from cristinaiglesias.com, B1081 has completed four NASA missions, four national security flights, two Transporter rideshare missions, two missions for European commercial customers and 16 Starlink launches. Those flights account for all 28 of the booster's completed missions.

The same report placed the total number of successful Falcon booster recoveries at 671, including 228 landings on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You. The figures illustrate the scale of SpaceX's recovery operations as individual first stages return to service across commercial, scientific and defense missions.

SpaceX's launch activity has also remained high throughout 2026. Space.com reported that USSF-481 was the company's 114th Falcon 9 mission of the year as of October 15, with more than 70% of Falcon 9 flights that year dedicated to Starlink deployments.

Beyond Falcon 9, SpaceX had launched its Falcon Heavy and Starship vehicles three times each during 2026 as of the October 15 report. Falcon Heavy remained operational, while Starship was still in its test-flight phase after reaching orbit for the first time on September 28.