SpaceX Scrubs SDA Tranche 1 Falcon 9 Launch Moments Before Liftoff

SpaceX scrubbed the overnight launch of 21 Space Development Agency satellites aboard a Falcon 9 after the rocket’s computers triggered an auto abort just before liftoff, with the company saying both the vehicle and the payload remain healthy and teams are resetting for another attempt no earlier than October 6.

The update came at 2:02 AM on October 5 as a reply in the mission’s launch thread. “Falcon 9 had an auto abort just prior to T-0,” SpaceX said. “Vehicle and payload are in good health, and teams are resetting for a launch attempt no earlier than tomorrow, October 6.”

The mission is the Space Development Agency’s fourth Tranche 1 data transport launch, carrying 21 communications satellites to low Earth orbit for the agency’s planned network of military data-relay satellites, according to SpaceX’s mission details. The Falcon 9 was set to lift off from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

An auto abort is a built-in safety response. When the Falcon 9’s onboard computers detect a reading outside limits in the final seconds of the countdown, they stop the launch automatically so engineers can review the data. SpaceX did not say what triggered this abort, and last-second scrubs often clear after a data review with no hardware changes needed.

The scrub follows a busy stretch on SpaceX’s manifest. The company rolled out its Falcon Heavy for the classified NROL-97 mission on October 1, and last week Starship Flight 14 placed the first 26 Starlink V3 satellites into operational orbit, a flight SpaceX later recapped in detail.

SpaceX has not announced a new target liftoff time. Expect an updated launch window later today, since the company said teams are already resetting for an attempt no earlier than October 6.