SpaceX drone ship retires, what it means for launches
Florida Today • • science
Key Points:
- SpaceX has retired its East Coast drone ship, Just Read the Instructions, from Falcon 9 booster recoveries and will repurpose it to support upcoming Starship rocket launches from Florida.
- The drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas will now be the sole vessel handling Falcon 9 sea recoveries from Florida, with additional landings occurring at Cape Canaveral landing zones.
- This transition aligns with SpaceX's preparations for Starship launches from Kennedy Space Center Pad 39A and ongoing work at Launch Complex 37, signaling a shift in recovery operations to accommodate the larger rocket.
- Falcon 9 remains the dominant launch vehicle in Florida, accounting for 101 of 109 launches in 2025, but the company has paused Falcon 9 launches from Pad 39A to focus on Starship development.
- Starship and its Super Heavy booster, critical for NASA's Artemis lunar missions, are expected to launch from Florida by the end of the year, with Just Read the Instructions and a new drone ship, You'll Thank Me Later, facilitating transport from Texas to Cape Canaveral.
