SpaceX Starlink 291 launch and Falcon 9 first stage landing, 18 August 2025
Aug 18, 2025
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle launched 24 Starlink satellites (Starlink-291 / Starlink 17-5) to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, on 18 August 2025, at 16:26 UTC (09:26 PDT). Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage landed on the “Of Course I Still Love You” droneship, stationed in the Pacific Ocean. Falcon 9’s first stage (B1088) previously supported 8 missions: NROL-126, Transporter-12, SPHEREx/PUNCH, NROL-57 and 4 Starlink missions.