SpaceX moved the USSF-153 Falcon 9 liftoff to 8:42 a.m. PDT Thursday from Vandenberg, with the rocket carrying an undisclosed number of U.S. Space Force satellites to low Earth orbit.
Because the mission is classified, SpaceX released no detailed post-launch timeline beyond a planned booster landing about 8.5 minutes after liftoff.
Booster B1081 is making its 27th flight; a successful droneship recovery would mark the 224th landing on Of Course I Still Love You and the 660th Falcon booster landing overall.
USSF-153 is SpaceX's fifth national security launch of 2026, following NROL-105, NROL-172, an SDA Tranche 1 mission and USSF-366, as secrecy continues to limit public details.
As Falcon 9 boosters push past 27 flights, what hidden physical limits might eventually halt SpaceX's unprecedented rocket reuse streak?
With billions invested in classified Starshield contracts, are global militaries becoming dangerously reliant on a single private company's satellite network?
How will rival nations counter a decentralized, laser-linked military satellite web that is rapidly being adopted by allied forces worldwide?