When you think of space shuttles or rockets launched into space, you probably think of the Kennedy Space Center. After all, some of the most important expeditions, including the Apollo missions, launched from the center’s own Launch Complex (LC) 39A. In 2014, the Kennedy Space Center signed an agreement with SpaceX, making the company a tenant and allowing it to use the launch pad to launch rockets into orbit. However, that partnership appears to have been discontinued as SpaceX prepares for the next phase of its space launch business.
At a SpaceX Crew-12 pre-launch press conference in February 2026, senior mission manager Lee Echerd said the company planned to retain the LC 39A for “Falcon Heavy launches and hopefully launch our first Starship later this year.” To clarify, SpaceX has launched Starship rockets before, but these were test flights conducted by SpaceX at its own factory in Texas, and some of them ended in explosive failures, causing major safety issues for airlines. But SpaceX engineers have reportedly solved the reentry issue, which is one of the biggest differences between Starship V2 and Starship V1.
Echerd’s comments follow an earlier statement from SpaceX Vice President of Launch Kiko Dontchev. In December 2025, Dontchev announced on X plans to move most Falcon 9 launches to Space Launch Complex (SLC) 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station instead of using 39A. However, the US Federal Aviation Administration website states that SpaceX plans to install new infrastructure on LC 39A to support Starship super-heavy launches. But the company must “obtain a new or modification of an existing vehicle operator license” to proceed.
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SpaceX is and has been using another launch pad for other missions
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on launch pad – Joe Raedle/Getty Images
While Kiko Dontchev’s announcement focused on moving Falcon 9 launches to the SLC 40, the organization is using the platform for other purposes. Most of the upcoming Falcon 9 and all future Dragon missions will launch into space from SLC 40, Lee Echerd said at a press conference. However, this decision did not come out of nowhere.
SpaceX will begin modifying the SLC 40 in 2023 to support the crewed Dragon mission, and the work will be completed in 2024. In fact, most upcoming launches in the near future (using Falcon 9) will lift off from SLC 40. While SpaceX has used both the LC 39A and the SLC 40 for launches over the years, December 17, 2025 marks SpaceX’s last mission from the LC 39A. SpaceX’s next planned mission using the LC 39A is tentatively scheduled for a Falcon Heavy launch in July 2026. The rocket will carry the Astrobotic Griffin lander and FLIP rover, a smaller, more advanced version of the revolutionary FLEX rover. After this, we probably won’t see SpaceX launch using the LC 39A again for some time.
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