A Falcon 9 first stage booster launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base on July 10, carrying 29 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit. The booster, designated B1071, completed its 35th flight, approaching SpaceX's current reuse record of 36 flights set days earlier by another booster. The first stage landed successfully on the droneship "Of Course I Still Love You" about 8.5 minutes after liftoff, and the upper stage continued toward orbital deployment roughly 62 minutes after launch.
B1071 has flown a diverse manifest of 21 prior Starlink missions alongside classified government payloads and other dedicated launches. The successful flight marks the 81st Falcon 9 mission of 2026, with roughly 80% dedicated to Starlink operations. SpaceX's Starlink constellation currently exceeds 10,700 active satellites and could expand substantially larger; the company has applied for regulatory approval to operate up to 100,000 spacecraft in LEO.