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USSF-385

Falcon 9 Block 5, SpaceX

Space Launch Complex 4E, Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

Launch time

T-0

Sat 26 Sept, 16:00:54 CEST

14:00:54 UTC

The rocket put its payload into the planned orbit.

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How sure is this date?

The source gives second precision. Launch plans can change.

Source updated

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Slip history

No changes since we started tracking on .

  1. LL2 update

    Launch success.

    Read the source update
  2. LL2 update

    Liftoff!

    Read the source update
  3. LL2 update

    Official Webcast by SpaceX has started

    Read the source update
  4. LL2 update

    Now targeting Sep 26 at 14:00 UTC

    Read the source update
  5. LL2 update

    Now targeting Sep 26 at 12:56 UTC

    Read the source update
  6. LL2 update

    GO for launch.

    Read the source update
  7. LL2 update

    Moved up to NET September 26.

    Read the source update
  8. LL2 update

    Added launch.

    Read the source update

Mission

USSF-385 on Falcon 9 Block 5 from Space Launch Complex 4E. Launch time, status and recorded date changes from Launch Library 2.

A classified mission for the United States Space Force. It is possibly a batch of classified LEO satellites based on SpaceX’s Starshield satellite bus, based on locations of rocket stage drop zones being exact fits with previous Starlink Group 15 launches.

Mission type
Government/Top Secret
Orbit
Low Earth Orbit

Rocket file imagery

A Falcon 9 rises above its launch tower through white exhaust clouds under a pale blue sky.

File imagery: Crew-9, 28 September 2024. Falcon 9 lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40.

Credit: NASA/Keegan Barber · Public domain (NASA) · Source

Launch timeline

Times are relative to liftoff.

  1. T-38 min

    GO for Prop Load

    Launch director verifies go for propellant load

  2. T-35 min

    Stage 1 LOX Load

    Start of liquid oxygen loading in the first stage

  3. T-35 min

    Prop Load

    Start of propelland loading

  4. T-16 min

    Stage 2 LOX Load

    Start of liquid oxygen loading in the second stage

  5. T-7 min

    Engine Chill

    Start of engine chilling

  6. T-1 min

    Tank Press

    Fuel tanks are pressurized to flight levels

  7. T-1 min

    Startup

    The onboard computer takes control over the countdown and runs last checks

  8. T-45 s

    GO for Launch

    Launch director verifies go for launch

  9. T-3 s

    Ignition

    Start of the engine ignition sequence

  10. T-0

    Liftoff

    First upwards movement of the rocket

  11. T+1 min 12 s

    Max-Q

    Maximum dynamic pressure

  12. T+2 min 26 s

    MECO

    Cut-off of the main engine

  13. T+2 min 30 s

    Stage 2 Separation

    Separation of the second stage from the first

  14. T+2 min 36 s

    SES-1

    First start of the second engine

  15. T+2 min 56 s

    Fairing Separation

    Separation of the payload fairing

  16. T+6 min 4 s

    Entry Burn Startup

    Start of the atmospheric entry burn

  17. T+6 min 26 s

    Entry Burn Shutdown

    End of the atmospheric entry burn

  18. T+8 min 1 s

    Stage 1 Landing Burn

    Start of the first stage landing burn

  19. T+8 min 23 s

    Stage 1 Landing

    Landing of the first stage

Launch pad

Space Launch Complex 4E

Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA (US)

Coordinates: 34.632, -120.611

View launch pad on a map
Launch data: The Space Devs (Launch Library 2)

Launch plans change. Times are estimates from the source, not a guarantee of liftoff.