Space Launch Complex 6 (SLC-6) has been around for several decades. First built for the Manned Orbital Laboratory in the 1960s, a project that was canceled 50 years ago, it was later modified for the space shuttle, which was canceled in 1989.
Other projects followed, and they too were canceled or completed.
Fast forward to 2025.
SpaceX, a private launch provider, has been operating successfully on south Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) at nearby Space Launch Complex 4 for several years. But the rockets it launches from this site can’t place into orbit some of the missions needed by the Space Force and NASA, so it needed another site that could accommodate a larger launch system.
A recently approved environmental impact statement puts it this way: “The proposed action is needed to meet current and near-term U.S. government space launch requirements from the Department of Defense space launch range that supports launches centered at VSFB (Western Range), specifically for medium- and heavy-lift launches to polar and other orbits less reliably available elsewhere, without compromising current launch capabilities.”
Over the years, there have been several attempts by local “you can’t do that here” activists to stop SpaceX launches. They have employed willing regulators such as the Coastal Commission and the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors to try and stop launches from the base. Of course, it wasn’t successful because they really have no authority over operations on federal property.
Even though naysayers have no authority, the Air Force doesn’t operate in a vacuum when it concerns projects of this size. Vandenberg has a very robust review process, much like that of local jurisdictions, when it evaluates projects for their impact on the environment and local community.
Multiple workshops with the local community were conducted, and military leadership included community concerns as part of the study process.
According to national policy, “The DAF [Department of the Air Force] is the lead agency for the EIS [environmental impact statement], with the FAA and the United States Coast Guard as cooperating agencies.” They completed this process on Oct. 10, and the Department of the Air Force signed a record of decision, which allows the project to move forward.
We need to step back a minute to the late 1970s when the space shuttle project was in the planning stages. At the time, the Air Force planned to launch every 14 days (that’s 24 times a year) from SLC-6 and recover the shuttle orbiter at Vandenberg. If you think that the SpaceX launches are noisy, imagine a missile system the size of the space shuttle blasting into space and the accompanying sonic booms as the orbiter returned to earth.
But, except for the thousands of people who worked on this 10-year project and the businesses that flourished while it was active, no one noticed it was here.
The environmental impact statement for the current project states, “Under the proposed action, Falcon Heavy, which has not launched from VSFB in the past, would launch and land up to five times per year from and at SLC-6.” It also increases launch cadence to 100 per year. The remaining 95 launches would be from SLC-4, assuming that they were needed.
The initial phase of this massive project will be the removal of several existing facilities that cannot be recycled for use on the new project. Demolition, removal of debris, and site preparation/new construction will take several months. Local businesses in both Lompoc and Santa Maria will benefit as workers are housed and construction materials, fuel, temporary lodging, and meals are purchased.
SpaceX pays a fee to the Space Force for all Western Range services including fire protection, base security, utilities, weather forecasting, and much more.
I am sure that some people will complain loudly; however, it’s the security of our nation that is most important here. Most of the complainers probably never gave much thought to what it takes in our modern world to ensure that they have a right to complain. One of those things is assured access to space and the orbits necessary to support defense and scientific missions.
So calm down; the SpaceX SLC-6 makeover is a strategic necessity and may just last longer than all the others.
Ron Fink writes to the Sun from Lompoc. Send a letter for publication to letters@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Oct 30 – Nov 6, 2025.