SpaceX Declines Three Space Force Launches as Rivals Lag

SpaceX has declined to carry three future Space Force satellite missions, and no other launch company offered to take them either, according to the latest industry roundup. The missions were listed under the National Security Space Launch initiative, and two of them were for the Space Development Agency.

The agency is building a network of hundreds of military satellites in low-Earth orbit for data services, missile warning and tracking. Brig. Gen. Eric Zarybnisky, the Space Force's acting portfolio acquisition executive, acknowledged growing pains as demand for rockets rises. "Temporarily, there are some things we'll need to work through, again, as we get new providers flying," he said. SpaceX has been declining to sign new Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy contracts for customers of all kinds. United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin, the other potential providers, are both working through setbacks with their vehicles, though Zarybnisky remains optimistic they will resolve them.

Spain and Canada push for their own rockets

In Europe, PLD Space says its Miura 5 is nearing final integration. It is one of three Miura 5s the company has built, the other two being used to qualify key systems, CEO Raúl Torres said in an October 19 update. One second stage is fully integrated and at the Teruel test facility for qualification, including a wet dress rehearsal and a static hot-fire test. PLD now targets the small-lift rocket's first flight before mid-2027.

In Canada, startup Reaction Dynamics is seeking to raise $350 million to grow from 68 employees to more than 350. It is developing the small-lift Aurora, aiming for orbit in 2028, and plans a medium-lift Borealis with 6 tons to low-Earth orbit by 2031. "We believe Canada should be able to reach orbit on its own terms," said founder and CEO Bachar Elzein. Both timelines look highly ambitious.

Other launches

Rocket Lab is preparing its 98th Electron launch, carrying three HAWK satellites for HawkEye 360, as early as 07:00 UTC on October 23. Japan also launched its $578 million Martian Moons eXploration mission on an H3 rocket, beginning a five-year trip to land on Phobos and return samples to Earth.

The Space Force's difficulty shows how tight US launch capacity has become while new medium-lift rockets, including Stoke Space's Nova, Relativity Space's Terran R, Rocket Lab's Neutron and the Firefly and Northrop Grumman Eclipse, are still in development.