Blue Origin is expanding its Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 36 into a dual-pad site to support the larger New Glenn 9×4 rocket alongside the existing LC-36A vehicle, even as teams race to repair pad damage from a May static-fire test explosion before flying again before the end of 2026.
Revamping Launch Complex 36 for a Dual-Pad Operation
Blue Origin is moving forward with plans to turn its Florida launch site into a dual-pad facility designed to support the company’s two planned New Glenn heavy-lift vehicle variants. The revamp at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station follows an unexpected setback on May 28, when a static-fire test explosion destroyed a New Glenn rocket and caused extensive damage to the existing pad.
Rather than abandoning the original infrastructure, the company is rebuilding the damaged pad as LC-36A to serve its current vehicle variant. At the same time, a separate crew is breaking ground on a brand-new adjacent pad, LC-36B, which will act as the operational home for an upcoming, larger version of the rocket.
Engine Configurations and the Scale of New Glenn 9×4
The physical expansion directly mirrors the differing demands of the two rockets. The baseline vehicle, designated as the New Glenn 7×2, relies on seven BE-4 engines on its first stage and two BE-3Us on its upper stage. That is the configuration that debuted successfully in 2025 and flew two subsequent missions before the May 8 test anomaly involving the fourth flight article, which was slated to carry Amazon Leo wireless internet satellites.
By contrast, the upcoming New Glenn 9×4 will be taller and built to loft much heavier payloads into orbit. Its first stage will harness nine BE-4 engines arranged in a circular pattern reminiscent of SpaceX’s Falcon architecture, while its upper stage will incorporate four BE-3Us. To accommodate this larger vehicle, Blue Origin will construct not only the second pad but also a dedicated Vertical Integration Facility and a Payload Processing Facility. Financial backing for those processing assets includes a $78.2 million contract awarded by the Space Force to Blue Origin in October 2025.
Testing New Vertical Operations at LC-11
The May explosion forced the company to rethink how rockets are rolled out and prepped on the ground. Chief Executive Dave Limp noted that engineers are replacing the traditional transporter-erector system with an alternative concept of operations.
Instead of rolling out the entire fully integrated rocket horizontally, only the heavy booster stage will travel to the pad horizontally before being raised upright. The upper stage and payload fairing will arrive separately in a vertical orientation, then be mated to the booster via a crane.
To validate this strategy quickly, the team set up tests at another nearby location. the team conducted vertical stacking lifts and matings, gathered wind-damping data and effects, and tested new mechanisms that guide and slot these structures into place
, Limp detailed regarding tests run using a forward dome simulator at Cape Canaveral’s LC-11 facility.
Rebuilding Infrastructure and Looking Toward 2026
The logistical undertaking required for the site expansion is massive. Building out the new infrastructure will require sourcing 2,500 tons of steel columns, much of which will feed into the construction of a towering 700-foot-tall (213 meters) launch tower.
Launch Complex 36 carries deep historical roots in American spaceflight, having supported NASA’s Surveyor, Mariner, and Pioneer missions across four decades before its eventual decommissioning and demolition in the mid-2000s. Blue Origin secured the lease for the property in 2015 and began construction the following year.
Proud to honor the legacy of Launch Complex 36. Rebuilding LC-36A and flying again this year remains our priority. Alongside that work, a separate team is beginning work on LC-36B, the operational home for New Glenn’s
Dave Limp, chief executive of Blue Origin
While the company had initially hoped to fly as many as eight to 12 missions in 2026, the May accident compressed that manifest down to a single hopeful launch for the remainder of the year. Executives have not yet published a timeline for when LC-36B will reach completion or when the New Glenn 9×4 will make its maiden flight.
