SpaceX delays California launch
April 27, 2023
By Chris Forrester
The planned April 25th and April 26th launches of 46 of its Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base have been postponed until today [April 27th]. SpaceX also announced its would be expanding its activity at Vandenberg.
SpaceX is leasing Complex-6 at Vandenberg which will become SpaceX’s second launch site at the facility. SpaceX is picking up the site which was vacated last year by the joint Boeing-Lockheed Martin United Launch Alliance.
Under the lease, SpaceX will launch its workhorse Falcon rockets from Space Launch Complex-6 at Vandenberg Space Force Base, a military launch site north of Los Angeles where the space company operates another launchpad. It has two other pads in Florida and its private Starbase site in south Texas.
A Space Force statement said a letter of support for the decision was signed by Space Launch Delta 30 commander Col. Rob Long. The statement did not mention a duration of SpaceX’s lease.
The site is extremely useful for any rocket/satellite business in that it permits rockets to be launched safely in a southern trajectory over the Pacific Ocean.