14 DAY TRIAL // Officials with the US Air Force's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) announce plans to support no less than 21 rocket launches from the seaside facility in 2014. This number represents a 50 percent increase when compared to 2013 launches, even if funds for the installation have been slashed.
The Air Force also revealed that 9 of the launch slots are reserved for Hawthorne, California-based Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX), which has already launched the THAICOM 6 communications satellite from Florida on January 6. An option for a 10th launch has been reserved too.
In addition to SpaceX – which will launch both commercial satellites and resupply missions to the International Space Station – the CCAFS launch pads will also be used by the USAF and NASA. SpaceX is scheduled to launch 2014's first ISS flight no earlier than February 22, Space News informs.
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) also has 10 launch slots reserved in Florida, four to be filled with the Delta IV rocket, and six with the workhorse Atlas V delivery system. It is entirely possible that this hectic schedule, of nearly 2 launches monthly, will not be kept but, either way, 2014 will undoubtedly be a busy year for the spaceport.