Towers planned in California to launch SpaceX rockets

Finally, the only ones Enterprise example stood with an external tank and solid rocket boosters on the SLC-6 in front of An opponent disaster in 1986 caused the DOD to reconsider its reliance on the shuttle. Once again, the Air Force left the construction site, never launching a single mission.

NASA’s prototype space shuttle orbiter Enterprise, complete with an external tank and two rocket boosters, stands at the Space Launch Complex-6 (SLC-6), adjacent to the communications building and telecommunications tower at Vandenberg Air Force Base (today Vandenberg Space Force Base) in California in February 1985.

Credit: US Air Force/Tech. Sgt. James Pearson

After a few attempts to revive SLC-6 for use with the Titan IV in the early 1990s, the site saw its first use with the launch of Lockheed Martin’s LMLV-1 in 1995, followed by Athena I and Athena II rockets with NASA and Space Imaging (later GlobalEye) payloads in 1999 respectively.

Boeing (then United Launch Alliance or ULA) then leased the site and converted the existing warehouse, including a conference building, a telecommunications tower, and an entry platform, to launch 10 Delta IV rockets for National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) missions. The last installation from SLC-6 to date was for a Delta IV Heavy on September 24, 2022.

SpaceX at SLC-6

In 2023, SpaceX signed a lease to use SLC-6 on its Falcon rockets. Tuesday’s crash advanced the company’s plans to replace the facility.

Since 2013, SpaceX has been launching Falcon 9 rockets from Space Launch Complex-4 (SLC-4) in Vandenberg.

In addition to having access to SLC-6 itself, SpaceX in 2016 acquired the Orbiter Transporter System (OTS) It was designed for West Coast locations. A 76-car vehicle is now used to transport the Falcon 9’s first stages from the company’s Cape Canaveral facility to its launch site in Florida.

Explosive debris severed the support structure of the Fixed Umbilical Tower at Space Launch Complex-6 during the demolition conducted on June 16, 2026, at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

Credit: US Space Force/Staff Sgt. Daekwon Stith

According to an environmental study in 2025, SpaceX expects that it will take another 18 months to complete SLC-6 modifications, including the creation of two Falcon 9 skid pads that can be reused for the first stage. Falcon Heavy implementation may begin as early as 2030, pending NRO needs.

“We’re not just rebuilding infrastructure,” Horne said. “We are expanding the industry’s capabilities to build a sustainable business environment, and ensure that the United States is prepared to protect our national interests and meet the challenges of the future for many years to come.”

Click to get SPACE for more pictures of the damage to the SLC-6 support towers.