SpaceX Falcon 9 Booster B1067 Flies Record 36th Time on Starlink 10-42
SpaceX flew Falcon 9 booster B1067 for a company-record 36th time, deploying 29 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral and closing on the space shuttle Discovery's all-time launch record of 39.
Key Takeaways
SpaceX flew Falcon 9 booster B1067 a company-record 36th time on July 9, 2026, launching Starlink 10-42 from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40 at 5:25 a.m. EDT.
The mission deployed 29 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit over a 63.5-minute sequence, pushing the active Starlink fleet past 10,700 satellites.
B1067 landed on the drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas about 8.5 minutes after liftoff and now trails only NASA's shuttle Discovery, which flew 39 orbital missions, for the all-time launch record.
B1067 debuted in June 2021 on CRS-22, later flew the Crew-3 and Crew-4 astronaut missions, and has logged 24 Starlink flights.
The launch was Falcon 9's 80th mission of 2026, with roughly 80% of this year's flights dedicated to Starlink expansion.
Kaan Tınmaz
SpaceX flew its Falcon 9 booster B1067 for a record 36th time on July 9, 2026, lifting off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 5:25 a.m. EDT and deploying 29 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit. The flight cemented B1067 as the most-reused orbital-class rocket in company history.
The mission
Starlink 10-42 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida. About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, the first stage returned to Earth and touched down on SpaceX's drone ship "A Shortfall of Gravitas" in the Atlantic Ocean. The upper stage deployed all 29 broadband satellites in a 63.5-minute-long sequence, growing an operational Starlink fleet that now exceeds 10,700 active satellites.
The record and what comes next
B1067 first flew in June 2021 on the CRS-22 Dragon mission, went on to loft the Crew-3 and Crew-4 astronauts and racked up 24 Starlink flights along the way. Its 36th launch beats SpaceX's own reusability benchmark set in early June and puts NASA's space shuttle Discovery, which flew 39 orbital missions between 1984 and 2011, within reach.
What record did Falcon 9 booster B1067 set on the Starlink 10-42 mission?
B1067 flew for a 36th time on July 9, 2026, making it the most-reused orbital-class rocket in SpaceX history and beating the company's previous reusability benchmark set in early June.
How many satellites did Starlink 10-42 deploy and where did it launch from?
The mission deployed 29 Starlink broadband satellites into low Earth orbit after lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
How close is B1067 to the space shuttle Discovery's launch record?
With 36 flights, B1067 is three launches short of Discovery's all-time record of 39 orbital missions flown between 1984 and 2011.
Where did the booster land after the launch?
About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, B1067 touched down on SpaceX's drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas in the Atlantic Ocean.
