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yesterday

SpaceX to Launch GPS III-7 Mission Following ULA’s Vulcan Delays

It underscores SpaceX’s emergence as the Pentagon’s go-to launch provider after securing the majority of Phase 3 national security contracts.

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A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station May 30, 2025, carrying the GPS III SV-08 satellite. Credit: SpaceX
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on a mission for the Space Force on Dec. 17, 2024. (Handout/SLD 45)
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Overview

  • SpaceX’s Falcon 9 is set to launch the GPS III-7 satellite from Cape Canaveral’s launch complex tonight after the mission was reassigned from ULA.
  • The swap follows ULA’s Vulcan rocket encountering years of setbacks and only partial Space Force certification covering five of nine orbital requirements.
  • Major Gen. Stephen G. Purdy has confirmed Vulcan’s first national security launch won’t occur before July.
  • Earlier this year the Space Force awarded SpaceX 28 of 54 Phase 3 national security missions under a $13.7 billion contract.
  • The new GPS satellites are three times more accurate and eight times more resistant to jamming, and the Space Force has accelerated mission deliveries to under three months from approval to liftoff.