Space Force offers new Vandenberg launch site

WASHINGTON — Vandenberg Space Force Base is offering launch providers access to a new site with conditions that could enable flights of SpaceX’s Starship.

The U.S. Space Force released a request for information, or RFI, on Dec. 29 regarding use of Space Launch Complex (SLC) 14, a new site near the southern tip of Vandenberg. The site is undeveloped land with no launch infrastructure in place.

The service is seeking expressions of interest from companies proposing to use the site to launch heavy or super-heavy vehicles. The RFI defines heavy-class launch vehicles as those with payload capacities of 20,000 to 50,000 kilograms and super-heavy vehicles as those with capacities greater than 50,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit.

“A heavy/super-heavy launch capability at VSFB offers a strategic advantage to the USSF, enabling the deployment of larger, more capable military satellites and facilitating rapid response missions during national security emergencies,” the RFI states. “Adding heavy/super-heavy launch capabilities at VSFB enhances resilience, diversifies the government’s portfolio, and accelerates satellite constellation reconstitution due to increased lift capacity.”

The RFI said SLC-14 is the “most viable site for large-scale heavy/super-heavy launch programs” at Vandenberg. The site would be the southernmost launch facility at the base, several kilometers from utilities and other infrastructure. The nearest constraint identified in the document is a rail line about 600 meters from the site boundary.

Beyond the requirement that the site be used for a heavy or super-heavy launch vehicle, the RFI imposes additional conditions. Launch service providers must demonstrate “sufficient financial maturity” to build and operate a launch site there.

“It is imperative that SLC-14 be actively developed; a well-funded LSP offers the greatest assurance of successful vehicle and site operations, safeguarding against potential setbacks due to financial constraints,” the RFI states.

The Space Force said it prefers to use the site for new vehicles rather than ones that already have launch sites at Vandenberg, to “increase launch diversity” at the base. The service is also interested in vehicles with “unique capabilities,” such as point-to-point transportation or the ability to return payloads.

The RFI emphasizes the need for “technically mature” vehicles capable of operating from SLC-14 within five years of signing a lease agreement. Companies must also provide details about their operations to address safety concerns and minimize impacts on other launch operators at the base.

Those factors would appear to favor SpaceX’s Starship. The vehicle falls into the super-heavy class as defined in the RFI. SpaceX, with an estimated valuation of about $800 billion and plans to raise potentially tens of billions of dollars in an initial public offering next year, would likely meet the financial maturity requirements.

SpaceX currently launches Falcon 9 rockets from SLC-4 and is redeveloping SLC-6 for Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy missions. The company has not announced plans to use either site, or any other location at Vandenberg, for Starship, a vehicle it has said could support point-to-point missions.

Other companies developing heavy or super-heavy launch vehicles already have access to sites at Vandenberg. United Launch Alliance is finishing work to convert SLC-3, formerly used by the Atlas 5, for Vulcan Centaur. Blue Origin holds a lease for SLC-9 to build a New Glenn launch site. It is unclear whether any other launch provider could meet the RFI’s financial and technical requirements.

While SpaceX has not disclosed plans to launch Starship from Vandenberg, the company may be interested in doing so to support national security and other missions requiring sun-synchronous or other high-inclination orbits. SpaceX’s launch site at Starbase, Texas, as well as facilities under development at the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, are not well-suited for such orbits.

The RFI calls for responses within 30 days. The Space Force did not provide a timeline for evaluating submissions or for next steps. Any decision to award a lease for SLC-14 would be contingent on a launch safety analysis and completion of an environmental impact statement.