SpaceX has told the FAA it wants to launch Starship 456 times a year, up from a current permit for 25. The plan is only the start of a regulatory conversation, and environmental studies will be needed before any approval.
SpaceX is asking the FAA for permission to launch Starship 456 times in a single year, according to an FAA disclosure published Tuesday. The company currently has permission for up to 25 launches a year of its Super Heavy booster and Starship rocket from Boca Chica, Texas.
A two-phase plan to 456 launches
The request appears in a seven-page notice of intent covering Starship-Super Heavy operations at the Boca Chica Launch Site at Starbase, Texas. In it, SpaceX describes two phases: 100 launches per year in Phase 1, then 456 per year in Phase 2.
Because the reusable Super Heavy and Starship land separately after each launch, the document also covers 200 annual landings in Phase 1 and 912 in Phase 2. It does not say when SpaceX hopes to begin Phase 1, but Phase 2 would follow within several years once Phase 1 starts.
Launch cadence has climbed every year
SpaceX alone launched 31 commercial missions in 2021, 57 in 2022, 92 in 2023, 130 in 2024, and 161 in 2025. By comparison, the author notes that ULA launched six rockets in 2025, Arianespace seven and Rocket Lab 18.
Each Starship can carry up to 150 tons of payload. At 456 launches, that could put upwards of 68,400 tons into orbit annually, according to the article.
Environmental reviews come first
The notice is just the beginning of a conversation between SpaceX and the FAA, and even Phase 1 probably lies years in the future. Environmental impact studies will be needed to assess effects on coastlines, fish and wildlife populations, and human populations.
Further reviews include noise, visual and socioeconomic studies. Even after those, there is no guarantee the FAA will approve the plan.
Source: The Motley Fool
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