Falcon 9 finally launched the Space Development Agency’s fourth Tranche 1 data-transport mission early Saturday, Oct. 10, on its fourth try. KLM and Royal Air Maroc picked Starlink for in-flight Wi-Fi, Banglalink switched on Starlink Mobile in Bangladesh and Starlink halved Residential prices around Starbase. Starlink also says its India ground network is built, and SpaceX’s Florida Starship pad is moving into testing.
SDA Tranche 1 Transport Layer A Lifts Off on the Fourth Try
Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base at 12:39:44 a.m. PT (3:39:44 a.m. ET) on Saturday, carrying SDA’s fourth Tranche 1 data-transport mission to low-Earth orbit. The first stage, on its sixth flight, landed on Landing Zone 4 at Vandenberg. It is one of nine Tranche 1 missions Falcon 9 is flying for the SDA.
Liftoff! pic.twitter.com/U1JgK60VXM
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 10, 2026Getting there took five days. Falcon 9 auto-aborted just before T-0 on Oct. 5, SpaceX passed on Oct. 6, and it then slipped Oct. 8 to allow double checks on vehicle systems and range deconfliction. SpaceX has not said what caused the first abort. You can check out our live SDA launch story for the full timeline.
Falcon 9’s first stage lands on LZ-4 pic.twitter.com/GfEeoDu420
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 10, 2026Starlink Halves Residential Prices Around Starbase
Starlink is taking 50% off Residential service for homes in the Cameron County, Texas, area, home to SpaceX’s Starbase headquarters. It announced the Cameron County Area Discount on X on Oct. 5.
Starbase, Texas is home to @SpaceX’s headquarters, and the Rio Grande Valley is where thousands of our team members and their families live.
As SpaceX continues to build an exciting future for humanity, we are offering our neighbors in the Cameron County area a 50% discount on Starlink Residential service plans
— Starlink (@Starlink), Oct. 5, 2026
Under the Cameron County Area Discount terms, the discount comes off the standard monthly price at eligible addresses automatically. Existing customers see it on their next bill, and new customers pay $0 for the Residential kit.
The deal has no end date. Starlink will give existing customers at least six months’ notice before ending it and can stop offering it to new customers at any time. Moving out of the zone ends it.
U.S. Residential plans start at $55 a month for Residential 100 Mbps, $85 for Residential 200 Mbps and $130 for Residential Max. Starlink has not said what the discounted price is or which towns qualify. Its address checker shows whether a home is in the zone, and the price appears at checkout.
It is Starlink’s third local half-price deal near a SpaceX site, after Memphis and Southaven in June and Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, in August.
KLM and Royal Air Maroc Pick Starlink
KLM said on Oct. 8 that it will offer free Starlink Wi-Fi on intercontinental flights in all cabins from mid-2027, rolled out in phases. It is free for Flying Blue members, who can sign up before or during the flight. KLM already offers free Wi-Fi in Europe, and its long-haul fleet has flown SES’s 2Ku system for nearly a decade. KLM has not given a completion date.
Royal Air Maroc said on Oct. 7 it will equip 41 aircraft with Starlink starting in early 2027, free for Safar Flyer members, and calls itself the first African airline to offer Starlink onboard. Royal Air Maroc has not given routes or pricing for non-members.
Starship’s Florida Pad Moves Into Testing
SpaceX has finished much of the Starship structures and systems at Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A and is moving into acceptance and activation testing, Julianna Scheiman told Space.com on Oct. 1. “Things are going super well at 39A,” said Scheiman, SpaceX’s director of NASA science and Dragon programs.
We’ve essentially done a lot of the initial build of the structures and the systems needed for launching Starship.
Julianna Scheiman, SpaceX, Oct. 1
SpaceX plans at least one more Starship flight from Starbase first, so Flight 16 is the earliest that could fly from 39A. Starship tower work is also under way at Space Launch Complex 37.
Starlink Mobile Reaches Bangladesh; India Ground Network Built
Banglalink launched Starlink-powered satellite-to-mobile service on Oct. 7, making Bangladesh the first country in South Asia with it. A 4G phone and a Banglalink SIM get essential apps and location services outside ground coverage. Starlink data is free with any internet or mixed bundle for the first month, then included with selected monthly packs, plus five free satellite texts a month.
In India, Starlink has built 20 gateway sites with hundreds of antennas and keeps Indian user data in the country, Lauren Dreyer, its VP of business operations, said at India Mobile Congress on Oct. 7. Commercial service still waits on government clearances, including security approval, and Starlink has not given a start date.
We’ve already made the investment and built the existing ground infrastructure here, 20 gateway sites comprising hundreds of antennas, and we’ve established the operations to be ready to serve India.
Lauren Dreyer, Starlink, India Mobile Congress 2026
Starlink Mobile also went commercial with Beeline in Kazakhstan on Sept. 28 and CNT in Ecuador on Sept. 29.
Also This Week
- American Airlines will put Starlink on its entire mainline fleet of 1,030+ jets, starting in early 2027.
- The FCC licensed SpaceX’s 15,000-satellite Starlink Mobile constellation.
- SpaceX is buying Grain Management’s nationwide 800 MHz spectrum for Starlink Mobile.
Coming Up
- Starlink: Falcon 9 from SLC-4E, Vandenberg, Monday, Oct. 12, 4:00–8:00 p.m. PT (7:00–11:00 p.m. ET), with a droneship landing.
- CRS-35: Dragon cargo to the ISS on Falcon 9 from SLC-40, Cape Canaveral, Tuesday, Oct. 13 at 6:33 a.m. ET (backup Oct. 14 at 6:08 a.m. ET). Docking is set for about 11:00 a.m. ET Thursday, Oct. 15. It is this Dragon’s fourth flight and the booster’s eighth, landing at Landing Zone 40.
- USSF-481: Falcon 9 from SLC-4E, Vandenberg, Thursday, Oct. 15, with a four-hour window opening at 4:44 p.m. PT (backup Oct. 16 at 4:35 p.m. PT). The booster flies for the 28th time and lands on Of Course I Still Love You. Sonic booms are possible in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura counties.
