Blue Origin New Glenn at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Project

Blue Origin currently has an FAA AST vehicle operator license (VOL 24-133) to conduct New Glenn launches at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) Space Launch Complex 36 (SLC-36). Blue Origin’s vehicle operator license authorizes up to 12 New Glenn launches per year at SLC-36. The New Glenn launch vehicle is a two-stage orbital rocket (with an optional third stage) with a reusable first stage that can land on an platform at sea in the Atlantic Ocean. Blue Origin is proposing to increase its New Glenn launch operational cadence.

In Progress: Environmental Assessment for Blue Origin New Glenn Launch Cadence Increase at CCSFS SLC-36

The FAA is announcing the availability of the Draft Environmental Assessment for the Blue Origin New Glenn Cadence Increase at Space Launch Complex 36A, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida (Draft EA). The FAA is the lead agency on this Draft EA. 

An electronic version of the Draft EA is available on this website for download. 

• Draft EA – Main Body
• Appendix A.1.1
• Appendix A.1.2 Part 1
• Appendix A.1.2 Part 2
• Appendix A.2 – A.3
• Appendices B-D

Under the Proposed Action addressed in the Draft EA, the FAA would modify Blue Origin’s vehicle operator license to authorize:

• The increase of the maximum annual New Glenn launch cadence at Space Launch Complex 36A from 12 to 50 launches per year, including associated static fire engine testing, downrange first-stage ocean platform landings, and payload fairing recovery; and
• The issuance of temporary airspace closures associated with New Glenn launches and associated operations at Space Launch Complex 36A.

The FAA encourages all interested parties to provide comments concerning the scope and content of the Draft EA by October 30. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, be advised that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask the FAA in your comment to withhold from public review your personal identifying information, the FAA cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so. All comments received during the comment period will be given equal weight and be taken into consideration in the preparation of the Final EA.

The FAA will hold a virtual public meeting on the Draft EA on:

Thursday, October 22, 2026, at 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Eastern time.
Registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_3pciaV6iQbegKLgBzqIgFA.
Dial-in phone number: 1-888-788-0099 (Toll Free), Webinar ID: 833 9840 7316, Passcode: 639439

The public meeting will include a presentation by the FAA on the Proposed Action and Draft EA, followed by a public comment period in which members of the public may provide up to a 3-minute oral comment. The FAA will transcribe oral comments. All comments received during the comment period will be given equal weight and be taken into consideration in the preparation of the Final EA.

If any accommodation for the public meetings is needed (such as translation services), please submit a request by October 8, 2026 to the project email address: BlueOriginNewGlenn@icf.com

For any media inquiries, please contact the FAA Press Office at pressoffice@faa.gov.

Completed: Environmental Assessment for Blue Origin Orbital Launch Site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

The U.S. Air Force (now the U.S. Space Force [USSF]) was the lead agency, and FAA was a cooperating agency, in the preparation of the 2016 Final Environmental Assessment for Blue Origin Orbital Launch Site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida (2016 EA). The 2016 EA analyzed the potential environmental impacts of Blue Origin constructing and operating a commercial launch site at the combined areas of Launch Complexes 11 and 36 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (now the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station). The Proposed Action analyzed in the 2016 EA included engine testing and up to 12 launches per year of a heavy-lift class orbital vehicle, which was later named New Glenn. Following an independent review and consideration of the 2016 EA, FAA issued a Finding of No Significant Impact and Record of Decision (FONSI/ROD) concurring with, and formally adopting, the analysis of impacts and findings in the 2016 EA.

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