Falcon 9 launches 21 military data-relay satellites five days after a last-minute abort
A Falcon 9 carried 21 Space Development Agency data transport satellites from Vandenberg on October 10, the fourth of nine Tranche 1 launches. Space.com says it was the 111th Falcon 9 flight of the year.
Credit: SpaceX (CC0), file photo of a Falcon 9 launch from Vandenberg
A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 3:39 a.m. EDT on October 10 with 21 data transport satellites for the US Space Force's Space Development Agency, Space.com reported. An October 5 attempt had aborted in the final minute of the countdown for reasons SpaceX has not disclosed.
The satellites are part of the agency's Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, a mesh network in low Earth orbit for military communications and missile warning and tracking. Space.com says the flight was the fourth of nine SpaceX will fly to build the network's Tranche 1.
The first stage, booster 1103, landed back at Vandenberg a little over seven minutes after liftoff on its sixth flight. According to Space.com, it was the 111th Falcon 9 launch of the year, with more than 70% of this year's flights dedicated to Starlink.