A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket lifts off from launch pad 39-A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., February 6, 2018. With rocket launches increasing, there are calls for more research and cooperation on managing their environmental impact. (Thom Baur/Reuters)
By Sandra Erwin,
Published by Space News, 21 October 2026
Congress directed the Pentagon to consider federal, state and commercial land to increase launch capacity
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force needs another major spaceport by 2030 to handle rising military and commercial launch demand and is considering government and privately owned sites, the head of Space Systems Command said Oct. 21.
The service has begun a planning effort to examine what a third spaceport could look like as its two primary launch ranges at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida and Vandenberg Space Force Base in California face growing demands on infrastructure and personnel, Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant told reporters at AFCEA’s Space Industry Days conference, .
“We need this capability by 2030,” Garrant said, while describing that timeline as aspirational.
The effort comes as military satellite deployments are rising alongside a commercial launch boom that relies on the same range infrastructure. Garrant said the Space Force faces shortages of firefighters, Defense Department technicians and security personnel at its existing launch bases.
“When you look at the manifest plus the commercial expectations and demands, it is a real challenge,” he said.
The Space Force has not decided where a third major spaceport would be located or whether the government would own it.
Garrant said the service is considering a range of options, including a new federal installation, state-owned land, commercial property or a public-private partnership. Each approach carries advantages and drawbacks, he said, and no decision has been made.
“We’re not discounting any of those options,” Garrant said.
Finding a suitable location for heavy rockets is more complicated than simply securing land. Garrant cited the need to consider access to appropriate orbital trajectories, public safety, launch commodities and nearby communities. Developing a new site would also require close cooperation with state and local governments, he said.
The planning effort follows a congressionally mandated examination of future U.S. launch capacity.
Section 1608 of the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act established the Spaceport of the Future initiative and directed the Air Force to study whether Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg could accommodate projected launch demand and to examine alternative sites.
The law requires consideration of sites on federal land, private-land partnerships and locations outside the continental United States, along with the potential use of existing commercial spaceports. It also directs the Air Force to examine infrastructure costs, public-private financing and regulatory obstacles.
The initial report was due to congressional defense committees by March 31, with annual updates required through 2031. The report has not been publicly released.
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink disclosed some of its findings at a congressional hearing in May, saying the study concluded that the United States probably needs another site capable of handling heavy and super-heavy rockets because of capacity and resiliency concerns at the existing ranges.
Garrant said the follow-on planning effort is just starting. Space Systems Command plans to develop recommendations for senior leaders and seek input from the Space Force, NASA and the National Reconnaissance Office.
The Federal Aviation Administration will also have a role, Garrant said.
He suggested the eventual national launch network could distribute different classes of rockets among multiple sites. “Where does it make sense to look at small and medium launch, as well, and some spaceports that aren’t at those major installations,” Garrant said.
The FAA lists more than a dozen licensed or federal spaceports across the United States, although their capabilities vary considerably and many are not equipped for large orbital rockets.
Building capacity in the short term
Space Systems Command is not waiting for a decision on another spaceport before expanding the capacity of Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg, said Col. Andrew Menschner, the command’s deputy commander.
The military is investing in greater access to launch commodities, examining future port facilities and assessing other infrastructure needed to accommodate higher launch rates, he told reporters.
“We’re not waiting for a third spaceport,” Menschner said.
The Space Force on Oct. 20 separately released a long-term vision for modernizing the Eastern Range at Cape Canaveral and the Western Range at Vandenberg, warning that demand for space access is increasing fast enough to “soon outpace our current capacity” and risks turning the ranges into a bottleneck.
Under that plan, each spaceport would eventually be capable of supporting as many as three major operations at the same time, while the broader range enterprise would be designed to handle surges of five to eight major operations per day.
See: Original Article
