SpaceX has closed a major chapter in the history of its Falcon 9, completing what it says is the final planned Falcon 9 Starlink mission from Florida.
The final flight came Wednesday morning with a launch from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Following that launch, SpaceX Vice President of Launch Kiko Dontchev announced the end of the era, saying the company has no more Falcon 9 Starlink missions planned from Florida.
“This morning’s @SpaceX mission from pad 40 was the last planned Falcon 9 Starlink launch from Florida (and it launched on the fleet leading booster!!), marking the end of an era for these launches on the East Coast. From here on, Starlink missions out of Florida will fly on Starship,” Donchev said on X.
This doesn’t mean SpaceX is abandoning Florida entirely. Instead, the move is pre-emptive, with future Starlink launches from the Space Coast shifting to Starship, despite the mega-rocket not yet being ready for commercial missions.
Starship takes over in Florida
Falcon 9 has been the workhorse behind Starlink’s rapid expansion, completing roughly 260 Starlink missions from Cape Canaveral over the past seven years.
Those flights helped build Starlink into the world’s largest low-Earth orbit satellite constellation, providing internet connectivity to more than 12 million customers.
However, Falcon 9 isn’t retiring from SpaceX. The rocket will continue launching Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Meanwhile, Florida will become the proving ground for Starship’s ability to replace Falcon 9.
Starship is designed to carry significantly more satellites per flight than Falcon 9, particularly the larger next-generation Starlink satellites. That increased capacity is a major part of SpaceX’s plans to dramatically increase the size and capabilities of the network.
This morning’s @SpaceX mission from pad 40 was the last planned Falcon 9 Starlink launch from Florida (and it launched on the fleet leading booster!!), marking the end of an era for these launches on the East Coast. From here on, Starlink missions out of Florida will fly on… pic.twitter.com/VG9rTdLg0G
— Kiko Dontchev (@TurkeyBeaver) August 25, 2026
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