Watch: SpaceX launches 27 Starlink satellites on its 117th Falcon 9 mission of 2026

SpaceX has sent 27 more Starlink satellites into orbit from California in the early morning of October 27, 2026. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base at 3:25 a.m. EDT, and this marks the 117th Falcon 9 launch of 2026. The satellites, listed as Starlink Group 15-16, were successfully placed in low Earth orbit. The first-stage booster then landed on a droneship in the Pacific Ocean. This was booster B1082’s 21st Starlink mission and its 26th flight overall.

The booster shut down its engines and separated from the upper stage about 2.5 minutes into the flight. It then adjusted its path toward a droneship named Of Course I Still Love You. Touchdown came at 8 minutes and 23 seconds after liftoff, just seconds before the upper stage finished its first engine burn. The upper stage lit its engine a second time about 53 minutes after liftoff. That burn lasted only 3 seconds. A few minutes later, the 27 satellites were released. 

SpaceX plans to wind down Falcon 9 as Starship takes over

SpaceX’s Starlink network consists of more than 11,000 active spacecraft. Now, SpaceX is shifting its focus to Starship, which is its larger and more powerful rocket that is still under development. On top of that, plans to retire Falcon 9 have begun. The retirement will take place once the next-generation Starship starts regular operational flights.

Commenting on this, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote on X, “Once Starship is flying reliably several times per week, it makes sense to shift super scarce SpaceX engineering and production resources to Starship to get launch rate to several times per day, which means winding down Falcon.”

SpaceX is getting ready for Starship Flights 15 and 16

SpaceX has been busy at its Texas facility. Flight 15 will be the fourth flight of Starship V3. Its first stage, Booster 22, fired all 33 Raptor engines in a full-duration static fire test at 8:22 a.m. CDT on Sunday. On the following day, the 171-foot Ship 42, the upper stage for Flight 15, was rolled out to the Massey Outpost for a single-engine static fire at 9:17 p.m. 

Elon Musk has announced that both the booster and the ship will be caught at the end of Flight 15. The ship catch would be a first. “We’re going to try to catch the ship, which is a super big deal,” Musk said in an interview. “If we do so, that’ll be the first time that there’s been full recovery of an orbital class rocket.” Ship 43, the upper stage for Flight 16, was also moved to Pad 2 and lifted in what appeared to be another catch simulation. SpaceX has not confirmed that purpose. 

According to reports, Flight 16 would be the first Starship launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Commenting on Flight 16, Musk added, “The next big milestone would be to refly both the booster and the ship,” with a Flight 16 where “all parts of an orbital rocket are reflown.” He also hinted that Flight 15 is only about four to six weeks away, and that it “probably launches a little bit before Thanksgiving, is my guess.”

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