News
SpaceX rocket boosters line up in port for the first time after back-to-back launches
For the first time ever, two SpaceX Falcon 9 boosters – fresh off of two successful Starlink launches and landings – have met back at Port Canaveral, creating the first rocket ‘traffic jam’ of its kind.
On March 11th, Falcon 9 booster B1058 stuck its sixth launch and landing after supporting SpaceX’s sixth dedicated Starlink launch (Starlink-20) this year. 74 hours later, a separate Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from SpaceX’s second East Coast launch pad, successfully sending another batch of 60 Starlink satellites (Starlink-21) on their way to orbit. For its role in the mission, booster B1051 became the first Falcon first stage to launch and land nine times – just one shy of a ten-flight rocket reusability goal SpaceX has been chasing for years.
Now, aside from setting the new standard for Falcon reusability, placing 120 satellites into orbit in three days, and breaking SpaceX’s record for the shortest turnaround between two East Coast launches, the back-to-back Starlink launches have left both Falcon 9 boosters in the right place and right time to cross paths as they prepare for future flights.
As SpaceX began to ramp up its orbital launch cadence – largely thanks to Starlink – throughout 2020, it become clear that the company would eventually start to find new pressure points as it pushed its fleet of reusable rockets and their recovery assets to new limits. In 2021, that intentional exertion of stress across the broader SpaceX launch ‘pipeline’ has become even clearer.
A mere 10 weeks into 2021, SpaceX has already completed eight orbital launches, averaging one mission every nine days or 40 launches per year if extrapolated through the end of 2021. Just two days prior to Falcon 9 booster B1058’s arrival back at Port Canaveral after its successful Starlink-20 launch, Falcon 9 booster B1049 – last tasked with launching Starlink-17 on March 4th – wrapped up its port processing and was transported by road back to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) or Kennedy Space Center (KSC) to prepare for its ninth flight.
At that point, it became clear it was just a matter of time before two boosters would simultaneously occupy SpaceX’s Port Canaveral berths. Two days later, record-breaking Falcon 9 booster B1051 arrived back in port and was greeted by booster B1058 – legs retracted, standing vertical, and waiting to be ‘broken over’ (brought horizontal) for transport.
It’s hard to imagine a better or (pardon the buzzword) more synergistic pair of boosters to appear in port together. On their separate launch debuts, Falcon 9 B1051 supported Crew Dragon’s spectacularly flawless uncrewed launch debut, while Falcon 9 B1058 became the first private rocket in history to launch US astronauts 14 months later. Known as Demo-1 and Demo-2, those two missions collectively mark arguably the most significant milestone in the history of modern US spaceflight, ending a decade-long period where the US was unable to launch its own astronauts.
Just a week after the rocket’s 2019 Demo-1 launch debut, Falcon 9 B1051 is SpaceX’s new booster fleet ‘life leader’ (the most-flown rocket) after averaging one launch ever 11 weeks for the last two years. Aside from supporting Cargo Dragon 2’s launch debut last December, Falcon 9 B1058 has flown six times, averaging an even more impressive one launch every eight weeks. Together, the two boosters have aced 15 orbital-class launches roughly 190 metric tons of satellites and Dragon spacecraft into orbit in their two-year career, significantly more than the maximum payload of Saturn V – the largest rocket to successfully launch.
Falcon 9 B1051 could reportedly fly for the tenth time as early as April 2021.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed today on the social media platform X that legacy automakers, such as Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis, do not want to license the company’s Full Self-Driving suite, at least not without a long list of their own terms.
“I’ve tried to warn them and even offered to license Tesla FSD, but they don’t want it! Crazy,” Musk said on X. “When legacy auto does occasionally reach out, they tepidly discuss implementing FSD for a tiny program in 5 years with unworkable requirements for Tesla, so pointless.”
I’ve tried to warn them and even offered to license Tesla FSD, but they don’t want it! Crazy …
When legacy auto does occasionally reach out, they tepidly discuss implementing FSD for a tiny program in 5 years with unworkable requirements for Tesla, so pointless. 🤷♂️
🦕 🦕
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 24, 2025
Musk made the remark in response to a note we wrote about earlier today from Melius Research, in which analyst Rob Wertheimer said, “Our point is not that Tesla is at risk, it’s that everybody else is,” in terms of autonomy and self-driving development.
Wertheimer believes there are hundreds of billions of dollars in value headed toward Tesla’s way because of its prowess with FSD.
A few years ago, Musk first remarked that Tesla was in early talks with one legacy automaker regarding licensing Full Self-Driving for its vehicles. Tesla never confirmed which company it was, but given Musk’s ongoing talks with Ford CEO Jim Farley at the time, it seemed the Detroit-based automaker was the likely suspect.
Tesla’s Elon Musk reiterates FSD licensing offer for other automakers
Ford has been perhaps the most aggressive legacy automaker in terms of its EV efforts, but it recently scaled back its electric offensive due to profitability issues and weak demand. It simply was not making enough vehicles, nor selling the volume needed to turn a profit.
Musk truly believes that many of the companies that turn their backs on FSD now will suffer in the future, especially considering the increased chance it could be a parallel to what has happened with EV efforts for many of these companies.
Unfortunately, they got started too late and are now playing catch-up with Tesla, XPeng, BYD, and the other dominating forces in EVs across the globe.
Tesla is backtracking on a strange adjustment it made to its in-car Navigation feature after numerous complaints from owners convinced the company to make a change.
Tesla’s in-car Navigation is catered to its vehicles, as it routes Supercharging stops and preps your vehicle for charging with preconditioning. It is also very intuitive, and features other things like weather radar and a detailed map outlining points of interest.
However, a recent change to the Navigation by Tesla did not go unnoticed, and owners were really upset about it.
For trips that required multiple Supercharger stops, Tesla decided to implement a naming change, which did not show the city or state of each charging stop. Instead, it just showed the business where the Supercharger was located, giving many owners an unwelcome surprise.
However, Tesla’s Director of Supercharging, Max de Zegher, admitted the update was a “big mistake on our end,” and made a change that rolled out within 24 hours:
The naming change should have happened at once, instead of in 2 sequential steps. That was a big miss on our end. We do listen to the community and we do course-correct fast. The accelerated fix rolled out last night. The Tesla App is updated and most in-car touchscreens should…
— Max (@MdeZegher) November 20, 2025
The lack of a name for the city where a Supercharging stop would be made caused some confusion for owners in the short term. Some drivers argued that it was more difficult to make stops at some familiar locations that were special to them. Others were not too keen on not knowing where they were going to be along their trip.
Tesla was quick to scramble to resolve this issue, and it did a great job of rolling it out in an expedited manner, as de Zegher said that most in-car touch screens would notice the fix within one day of the change being rolled out.
Additionally, there will be even more improvements in December, as Tesla plans to show the common name/amenity below the site name as well, which will give people a better idea of what to expect when they arrive at a Supercharger.
News
Dutch regulator RDW confirms Tesla FSD February 2026 target
The regulator emphasized that safety, not public pressure, will decide whether FSD receives authorization for use in Europe.
The Dutch vehicle authority RDW responded to Tesla’s recent updates about its efforts to bring Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in Europe, confirming that February 2026 remains the target month for Tesla to demonstrate regulatory compliance.
While acknowledging the tentative schedule with Tesla, the regulator emphasized that safety, not public pressure, will decide whether FSD receives authorization for use in Europe.
RDW confirms 2026 target, warns Feb 2026 timeline is not guaranteed
In its response, which was posted on its official website, the RDW clarified that it does not disclose details about ongoing manufacturer applications due to competitive sensitivity. However, the agency confirmed that both parties have agreed on a February 2026 window during which Tesla is expected to show that FSD (Supervised) can meet required safety and compliance standards. Whether Tesla can satisfy those conditions within the timeline “remains to be seen,” RDW added.
RDW also directly addressed Tesla’s social media request encouraging drivers to contact the regulator to express support. While thanking those who already reached out, RDW asked the public to stop contacting them, noting these messages burden customer-service resources and have no influence on the approval process.
“In the message on X, Tesla calls on Tesla drivers to thank the RDW and to express their enthusiasm about this planning to us by contacting us. We thank everyone who has already done so, and would like to ask everyone not to contact us about this. It takes up unnecessary time for our customer service. Moreover, this will have no influence on whether or not the planning is met,” the RDW wrote.
The RDW shares insights on EU approval requirements
The RDW further outlined how new technology enters the European market when no existing legislation directly covers it. Under EU Regulation 2018/858, a manufacturer may seek an exemption for unregulated features such as advanced driver assistance systems. The process requires a Member State, in this case the Netherlands, to submit a formal request to the European Commission on the manufacturer’s behalf.
Approval then moves to a committee vote. A majority in favor would grant EU-wide authorization, allowing the technology across all Member States. If the vote fails, the exemption is valid only within the Netherlands, and individual countries must decide whether to accept it independently.
Before any exemption request can be filed, Tesla must complete a comprehensive type-approval process with the RDW, including controlled on-road testing. Provided that FSD Supervised passes these regulatory evaluations, the exemption could be submitted for broader EU consideration.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk sends rivals dire warning about Full Self-Driving
Tesla backtracks on strange Nav feature after numerous complaints
