Rival operators race to scale capacity as demand outstrips supply
SpaceX has halted sales of rideshare missions on its Falcon 9 rocket — the world’s busiest — and is winding down the vehicle to focus on its next-generation Starship, according to people familiar with the matter. The shift is sending satellite operators, lunar lander developers and other payload customers hunting for new launch arrangements, with some companies unable to secure Falcon 9 flights beyond 2028, the people said.
Rideshare missions are flights in which multiple companies share space on a single Falcon 9, allowing smaller payload operators to reach orbit without booking an entire rocket. SpaceX’s decision to stop selling those shared flights removes a long-standing option from the commercial launch market.
SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment on the Falcon 9 phaseout.
The pullback comes as launch demand is set to outstrip supply at least through the end of the decade, according to government and industry officials. The Wall Street Journal reported the development Tuesday in its Logistics Report newsletter, written by reporters Micah Maidenberg and Becky Peterson and edited by Mark R. Long.
The customers waiting for rides to orbit include operators of national-security satellites, Earth-imaging constellations, lunar landers ferrying cargo to the moon’s surface, and internet-service spacecraft, according to the WSJ. Startups are also developing orbital data centers, power systems and other infrastructure that will require launch capacity, the paper reported.
Rival rocket operators are pushing to fill the gap, but are hard-pressed to offer immediate relief, the WSJ reported. Increasing rocket-launch rates takes time, and setbacks along the way are common, it said.
Companies hunting for alternatives include both established payload operators and the newer entrants behind orbital data centers and power systems. Each of those customer groups faces the same constraint: the time required to bring replacement launch capacity online.