SpaceX pauses Starlink cadence for 11 days while Starship development accelerates

SpaceX deployed 27 Starlink satellites into orbit on Oct. 23, a launch that underscores the declining frequency of Falcon 9 flights as the company shifts its engineering focus to the larger Starship vehicle.

The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 6:48 p.m. EDT. The payload fairing contained the 27 spacecraft of Starlink Group 15-15. The first stage booster, designated B1063, separated from the upper stage approximately 2.5 minutes into the flight.

Booster B1063 performed a landing burn after the mission clock passed eight minutes and touched down on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You. This was the 36th launch and landing for that specific booster, which previously carried NASA’s DART mission in November 2021. The upper stage completed its first engine burn shortly after the booster landed and is scheduled to coast for 45 minutes before a final orbital insertion burn. The 27 satellites were scheduled to begin deployment into low Earth orbit 62 minutes after liftoff.

This mission increases the total number of active Starlink spacecraft to more than 11,000. However, the launch interval has lengthened considerably. The previous Starlink launch occurred 11 days before Oct. 23, a delay that followed an earlier gap of more than three weeks. At their peak, these missions launched every two to three days.

The 100th Falcon 9 launch of 2026, which carried the Starlink 10-49 group from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, has been identified as the final Falcon 9 Starlink mission from Florida’s Space Coast. Similar shifts are anticipated for the West Coast. SpaceX plans to phase out the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy almost entirely once Starship begins operational flights. Starship is designed for full reusability and features a payload bay large enough for the upgraded Version 3 Starlink satellites, which are too large for the Falcon 9.

The Oct. 23 flight was the 116th Falcon 9 mission of 2026. Approximately three-quarters of this year’s launches have been dedicated to Starlink. The reduced cadence suggests that 2025, when the rocket completed 165 launches, will remain its busiest year. At the current rate, the Falcon 9 is expected to fly just under 150 missions by the end of 2026.