VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. - The U.S. Space Force (USSF) invites industry to learn more about its vision to support the proliferation of commercial and national security space launches at its upcoming "Spaceport of the Future" industry day. The event will take place on 29 July 2026 starting at 8 a.m. at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in Santa Barbara County, Calif.
The Space Force says that VSFB is undergoing a fundamental shift in operations as it transitions into a high-capacity spaceport to support the proliferation of spacecraft launches across the national security and commercial sectors.
Growing demand
Since the start of the decade, launch attempts have increased globally by 184%, from 114 in 2020 to 324 in 2025, with 2026 trending even higher. In the Space Force's report, Objective Force 2040, the branch expects that number to jump an order of magnitude in the next decade, with up to 3,000 launches per year by 2036.
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"In 2025, the Space Force saw a drastic increase in mission requirements across space access, global mission operations, and space control. This trend shows no signs of slowing," USSF Gen. Chance Saltzman told House lawmakers in April. "The Space Force we have today is not the Space Force we will need in the future."
The Space Force envisions VSFB's Space Launch Delta (SLD) 30 Spaceport of the Future (SOTF) as integral to the growing hybrid commercial-national security model. According to the Department of Defense (DoD), the SOTF program "represents a massive, multi-phase investment portfolio aimed at completely overhauling base infrastructure to eliminate operational bottlenecks and enable 'launch on demand' capabilities."
The DoD says the industry day aims to inform potential partners of its vision and anticipated strategic investments. Given the "unprecedented" scale of the infrastructure projects, the DoD notes that executives, site leads, and organizations with capabilities relevant to large-scale infrastructure modernization; design, engineering and/or construction services; utilities, power grid expansion and energy resilience; environmental planning and state regulators; transportation and logistics; spaceport operations; launch support; commodity providers; venture capital; and public-private partnership entities are welcome at this event.
Topics of discussion
The DoD says that topics of discussion are likely to include:
- Mission & Growth Overview: An overview of SLD 30's core mission to provide access to space, alongside the projected growth in commercial and national security launch cadence.
- Infrastructure & Bottlenecks: Identification of current base-wide bottlenecks and a look at the massive future infrastructure requirements needed to resolve them.
- Procurement & Delivery: Strategies for streamlining contract procurement timelines and accelerating delivery schedules for critical infrastructure.
- Partnership Models: Insights into authorized public-private collaboration models, innovative leasing authorities, and shared-use infrastructure strategies.
- Leadership Panel Discussion: A session featuring SLD 30 Leadership, SOTF, strategic planning, and civil engineering (CE) on how commercial partners and the base will coordinate during high-tempo launch surges.
- Open Q&A: Direct engagement with SLD 30 leadership and subject matter experts to clarify requirements, discuss infrastructure plans, and address specific challenges.
- One-on-One Sessions: Structured, individual meetings between industry partners and base leadership to capture market capabilities and immediate requirements.
Registration for this industry day is required by 10 July 2026 at 7:30 p.m. Eastern. The primary point of contact for this event is Ainsley Allen, deputy chief, SOTF. They can be contacted via email at [email protected]. More information is available at https://sam.gov/workspace/contract/opp/91f70795438944e7af05feed6f868dc4/view. Registration is available at https://forms.osi.apps.mil/r/f5dv7H0AA5.
