SpaceX - Falcon 9 - Tranche 1 Transport Layer C - SLC-4E - Vandenberg SFB - October 15, 2025

Launch Date: October 15, 2025 (PDT) Launch Time: 4:06 p.m. PDT, 2306 UTC (October 16 01:06 CEST) Launch Site: SLC-4E - Vandenberg Space Force Base, California Targeted Orbit: Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) Launch Inclination: South Launch Status: Nominal orbit insertion, booster landed successfully on the droneship. Mission: Tranche 1 Transport Layer C Launch Provider: SpaceX Launch Contractor: SDA Launcher System: Falcon 9 (Booster B1093 - Turnaround time 34 days) Flight for the Booster: 7 Previous Flights of the Booster: 6 - 5 Starlink missions, Tranche 1 Transport Layer B Droneship: Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) Price: $69,75 million (without payload) Diameter: 3,7 m Height: 70 meters Payload to Orbit: 22,800 LEO / 8,300 GTO Lift-Off Thrust: 7,607 kilonewtons Fairing: Diameter 5,2 meters / Height 13 meters Stages: 2 SpaceX is targeting October 15, at 4:06 p.m. PDT, 2306 UTC (October 16, 01:06 CEST) for a Falcon 9 launch of the Space Development Agency’s (SDA) first Tranche 1 mission to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This will be the seventh flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched five Starlink missions and Tranche 1 Transport Layer B. Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship, which will be stationed in the Pacific Ocean. The space vehicles launched during this mission will serve a part of SDA’s Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, a new layered network of satellites in low-Earth orbit and supporting elements that will provide global military tactical communication and missile warning, indication, and tracking capabilities. You will find more information about the trajectory and data on the day of the launch here: https://flightclub.io/live Countdown Hr/Min/Sec Event 00:38:00 SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for propellant load 00:35:00 RP-1 (rocket grade kerosene) loading begins 00:35:00 1st stage LOX (liquid oxygen) loading begins 00:16:00 2nd stage LOX loading begins 00:07:00 Falcon 9 begins engine chill prior to launch 00:01:00 Command flight computer to begin final prelaunch checks 00:01:00 Propellant tank pressurization to flight pressure begins 00:00:45 SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for launch 00:00:03 Engine controller commands engine ignition sequence to start 00:00:00 Falcon 9 liftoff LAUNCH, LANDING, AND DEPLOYMENT All Times Approximate Hr/Min/Sec Event 00:01:12 Max Q (moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket) 00:02:30 1st stage main engine cutoff (MECO) 00:02:34 1st and 2nd stages separate 00:02:42 2nd stage engine starts (SES-1) 00:06:24 1st stage entry burn begins 00:06:47 1st stage entry burn ends 00:08:12 1st stage landing burn begins 00:08:36 1st stage landing 00:08:38 2nd stage engine cutoff (SECO-1) 00:56:43 2nd stage engine starts (SES-2) 00:56:51 2nd stage engine cutoff (SECO-2)