SpaceX successfully launched 30 satellites into mid-inclination orbits on December 21, marking the second mission in its dedicated rideshare series. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 6:34 a.m. Eastern and landed back at the launch site eight minutes later. This was the 21st flight of the rocket’s first stage.
The largest payload on the Bandwagon-2 mission was a South Korean reconnaissance satellite for the military, followed by satellites from companies such as HawkEye 360, Iceye, Sidus Space, Tomorrow.io, True Anomaly, and Think Orbital. Several rideshare aggregators handled these customers, with Exolaunch accounting for 22 of the payloads.
SpaceX is increasing its launch frequency, aiming to reach 148 launches in 2024, up from 96 in 2023. However, the company will fall short of this goal. CEO Gwynne Shotwell stated that her team’s ambitious targets are intended to push the limits and stay competitive, with plans for 175 or 180 launches in 2025.
The company has achieved faster turnarounds by reducing the time spent on droneships returning boosters from days to a few hours. This has enabled SpaceX to increase its launch rate while maintaining its operational efficiency.
Source: https://spacenews.com/spacex-launches-second-mid-inclination-rideshare-mission