SpaceX launched a classified U.S. Space Force mission aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Saturday morning, marking the sixth West Coast launch of the month and the third national security flight in sixteen days for the military customer.
The Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4-East at 7:00 a.m. PDT under dense fog on a southerly trajectory. The launch occurred during a three-hour window that opened early Saturday morning, with backup opportunities previously slated for Sunday.
Third Space Force Launch in Sixteen Days From Vandenberg
This national security flight, designated as the USSF-385 mission, continues a rapid deployment cadence for the U.S. Space Force from the California base. Industry watchers note that this flight was also the sixth and final Falcon 9 launch of the month from the West Coast site.
While military officials have not disclosed precise orbital destinations or operational details for the payload, reporting indicates that the mission is part of a broader deployment strategy. Observers and specialized space outlets connect the flight to a series designed to put satellites based on SpaceX’s Starshield—a government-tailored variant of the company’s Starlink broadband constellation—into orbit. Previous launches in this sequence, including USSF-366 on Aug. 15 and the September 10 flight, each cataloged 23 satellites in orbit, while the September 17 mission headed to a different orbit carrying 17 spacecraft.
Booster 1100 Completes Tenth Flight and Drone Ship Landing
Following stage separation, the rocket’s first-stage booster successfully returned to Earth. The booster, designated as tail number B1100, touched down on the autonomous drone ship Of Course I Still Love You
stationed in the Pacific Ocean roughly eight and a half minutes after liftoff.
It was the 10th launch and landing for booster 1100, which previously supported eight Starlink broadband missions alongside an NROL-105 national security payload. Local residents caught a break during the recovery phase, as no sonic boom was expected locally.
Payload Secrecy and Cutoff Webcasts
As is standard protocol for classified national security operations, public viewing of the payload was strictly limited. SpaceX confirmed that its customer requested that no views of the rocket’s payload or second stage be broadcast during the webcast. The company subsequently cut off its live transmission shortly after the booster achieved touchdown on the drone ship, omitting the usual coverage of payload deployment seen on commercial flights.
Vandenberg Operations Amid East Coast Focus
The heavy reliance on Vandenberg for military payloads highlights a broader operational shift for SpaceX. While the company traditionally splits its launch manifest between coasts, Vandenberg has become the prime site for Falcon 9 flights as operations at Cape Canaveral increasingly pivot toward Starship development. In September alone, only a single Falcon 9 flew from the company’s East Coast launch facility.