An impressive 93 United States Space Force launches lifted off from Florida's coast in 2024, setting a new Space Force record for the second year in a row.
Space Launch Delta 45 (SLD 45), headquartered at Patrick Space Force Base in Florida, is a unit of the United States Space Force responsible for managing space launch operations on the East Coast, including launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and NASA's Kennedy Space Center.
Last year, SLD 45 — the world's busiest spaceport in 2024 — saw a record-breaking 93 rocket launches from the Eastern Range, which, collectively, delivered 1,389 orbital assets into space, according to a statement from the U.S. Space Force.
"We have an outstanding team of professionals dedicated to meeting our nation’s space access needs," Brig. Gen. Kristin Panzenhagen, Eastern Range director, said in the statement. "The relationships we have built between SLD 45 and the commercial launch service providers is a great example of what it means to partner to win."
The 2024 tally included 88 SpaceX missions — 62 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and 26 from Kennedy Space Center — and five United Launch Alliance (ULA) missions for a total of 93 launches, compared to 74 in 2023, SpaceNews.com reported.
Most notably was SpaceX's Crew-9 mission on Sept. 28, 2024 — the first-ever human spaceflight to launch from Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) at Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, representing a key milestone in SpaceX's commercial crew program. The mission was piloted by NASA astronaut Nick Hague, who became the first active U.S. Space Force Guardian to launch into space since the branch's establishment in 2019.
In addition to the Eastern Range at Cape Canaveral, the Space Force oversees the Western Range at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, from which SpaceX launched 46 missions in 2024. The company also launched four test flights of its next-generation Starship vehicle from its South Texas launch site called Starbase, demonstrating the rocket’s reusability.
As part of this increased launch activity, Space Launch Delta 45 and SpaceX implemented new processes to reduce the turnaround times between launches, including SpaceX’s automated flight safety technologies for pre-launch preparations, SpaceNews reported.
"Our team is ready for an even higher launch cadence in 2025, assuring access to space for our nation and maintaining our position as the world’s premier gateway to space," Panzenhagen said in the Space Force statement.
Some key launches from Cape Canaveral to look forward to in 2025 include Blue Origin's debut of its New Glenn rocket and ULA's Vulcan Centaur rocket, which is slated to launch on its first national security mission for the U.S. Space Force.
