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SpaceX’s fourth Falcon booster delivery this year hints at rare production uptick
For at least the fourth time in 2021, SpaceX has shipped a new Falcon booster from its Hawthorne, California headquarters and factory to an expansive test and development campus in Central Texas.
By all appearances, SpaceX’s latest delivery could imply that the company is on track to experience its first Falcon booster production uptick in four years. Thanks almost exclusively to the overwhelming success of Falcon reusability, SpaceX has been decreasing booster production year over year since 2017 while (on the whole) still significantly increasing its annual launch cadence. However, that downward booster production trend may have finally come to an end in 2021.
On July 21st, spaceflight journalist Eric Berger spotted a SpaceX Falcon booster – almost impossible to miss on the road – traveling eastbound towards El Paso on a Texas highway. Designed from the start with a maximum diameter (3.6m/12′) explicitly limited to allow Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy stages to be easily and cheaply transported by road, SpaceX has taken advantage of that capability by making Falcon rockets some of the most extensively tested launch vehicles on Earth.
Most notably, every single Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy booster and upper stage SpaceX has ever built at its Hawthorne HQ has shipped to McGregor, Texas for qualification testing before being cleared to launch. The exact nature of that qualification testing is unknown but, at minimum, every SpaceX-built stage must eventually complete a clean static fire test before the company deems it qualified for flight and ships it to one of three launch pads.
Before integrated static fire testing, SpaceX also separately tests every single Merlin 1D, Merlin Vacuum, Draco engine, and cold gas thruster before they’re installed on their respective Falcon first stage, second stage, fairing, or Dragon spacecraft back in California. However, Falcon engines, fairings, second stages, and Dragon spacecraft are all small or well-packaged enough to be unassuming on the road. Only Falcon boosters – measuring some 4m (~13 ft) wide and 56m (~190 ft) long and usually wrapped in solid white or black plastic – are routinely spotted in the wild by members of the public.
Those regular public spottings provide the only real glimpse available behind the curtain of SpaceX’s prolific rocket production. Beyond a mishmash of observations from members of the public and the occasional tidbit from CEO Elon Musk, SpaceX – a private company in a very competitive industry – provides no official information about how many Falcon stages it produces each year. That leaves it up to unaffiliated fans to collate and track that activity.
In particular, one Reddit user went to the effort of combing through a decade of those observations to tabulate SpaceX’s annual Falcon first stage production – including Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy boosters – since 2010. From 2010 to 2017, booster production consistently grew year over year, ultimately peaking at 13 – more than one booster per month – in 2017. Since 2017, booster production has consistently declined, dropping to just five boosters completed in 2020 – the lowest figure since 2013.
Of course, despite building just five new boosters in 2020, SpaceX completed a record 26 Falcon 9 launches, demonstrating just how much of a paradigm shift booster reusability has been for the company. Notably, while booster production has drastically decreased, SpaceX still has to manufacture a new expendable upper stage for every Falcon launch, meaning that – for the most part – Hawthorne is likely as busy as – and soon to be busier than – it was around the 2016-2018 peak.
In a bit of twist, though, that booster production downtick may have bottomed out in 2020. Since May 2020, SpaceX appears to have shipped at least 8 or 9 boosters* from Hawthorne to McGregor. Less than a month ago, a new booster – believed to be Falcon 9 B1069 – went vertical in McGregor ahead of its first wet dress rehearsal and static fire. Less than three weeks later, another new Falcon booster was spotted ready for transport outside of Hawthorne – likely the same booster spotted on its way to McGregor on July 21st.
*Including F9/FH boosters B1061, B1062, B1063, B1064, B1065, B1066, B1067, and B1069
In 2021, SpaceX has delivered one Falcon Heavy (likely B1066) and two Falcon 9 boosters (B1067 and B1069) to McGregor. The mystery booster seen in Hawthorne on July 18th – now likely inside a McGregor hangar as of publishing – is the fourth Falcon first stage to roll out of Hawthorne this year. If SpaceX maintains that average over the next five months, it could ship 6 or even 7 Falcon boosters in 2021 – marking the first apparent production uptick since 2017.
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Tesla Model Y L six-seater approved for Australia ahead of launch
The variant was listed as YL5NDB on the Australian government’s ROVER approval website.
Tesla’s six-seat, extended-wheelbase Model Y L has been approved for sale in Australia, as per newly published government documents.
The variant, listed as YL5NDB on the Australian government’s ROVER approval website, has confirmed that Tesla has received regulatory clearance to offer the extended Model Y to domestic customers.
Documents seen by Drive show that the Model Y L has been approved in Australia in a single dual-motor, all-wheel-drive configuration. While Tesla has not formally announced a launch date, vehicles are typically approved for Australian sale several months before arriving in showrooms.
The Model Y L is a longer version of the regular Model Y, designed to accommodate a six-seat layout with two seats in each row. It measures 177mm longer overall than the regular Model Y, at 4969mm, and features a 150mm longer wheelbase at 3040mm.
Australian approval documents list the Model Y L with the same nickel-manganese-cobalt battery pack used in the regular Model Y Long Range, which is expected to have a gross capacity of about 84kWh and a usable capacity of about 82kWh. Output is officially listed at 378kW in government filings, though real-world peak output may differ.
The Model Y L replaces the regular Model Y’s second-row bench with two captain’s chairs featuring heating, ventilation, and power adjustment. Heated third-row seats are also included.
Additional upgrades reported by Drive include an 18-speaker sound system, new front seats with single-piece backrests, and continuously variable shock absorbers. The only wheel option listed for the Australian model is 19-inch wheels.
In Europe, where the Model Y L has also received approval but has not yet launched, the variant is expected to claim up to 681km of WLTP range.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk highlights one of Tesla FSD Supervised’s most underrated features
In his post on X, Musk wrote, “Tesla self-driving now recognizes hand signals.”
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) is able to recognize and respond to hand signals, as highlighted recently by CEO Elon Musk.
In his post on X, Musk wrote, “Tesla self-driving now recognizes hand signals.”
Musk shared the update in a quote reply to a video posted by Tesla Europe, which showed a vehicle operating with Full Self-Driving (Supervised) navigating a tight lane in the Netherlands while responding to hand gestures from a person directing traffic.
Hand signal recognition is an important capability for advanced driver-assistance and autonomous systems. In real-world driving, pedestrians, construction workers, parking attendants, and other drivers frequently use hand gestures to direct traffic, yield right of way, or indicate when it is safe to proceed. For a self-driving system operating in mixed environments, interpreting these non-verbal cues is critical.
Musk’s post comes as Tesla owners have surpassed 8 billion cumulative miles driven with FSD (Supervised) engaged. “Tesla owners have now driven >8 billion miles on FSD Supervised,” the company wrote in a post on X.
Annual FSD (Supervised) miles have increased sharply over the past five years. Roughly 6 million miles were logged in 2021, followed by 80 million in 2022, 670 million in 2023, 2.25 billion in 2024, and 4.25 billion in 2025.
In the first 50 days of 2026 alone, Tesla owners logged another 1 billion miles. At the current pace, the fleet is trending toward approximately 10 billion FSD (Supervised) miles this year.
Tesla’s latest North America safety data, covering all road types over a 12-month period, also indicates that vehicles operating with FSD (Supervised) were recorded one major collision every 5,300,676 miles. By comparison, the U.S. average during the same period was one major collision every 660,164 miles.
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Tesla hiring for Commercial Charging role hints at Semi push in Europe
The job opening was highlighted by David Forer, Senior Project Developer for Charging at Tesla, on LinkedIn.
Tesla appears to be expanding its Commercial Charging efforts in Central Europe. The job opening was highlighted by David Forer, Senior Project Developer for Charging at Tesla, on LinkedIn.
In a post on LinkedIn, Forer stated that Tesla is looking for a “high-energy executer to own Commercial Charging Sales in Central Europe.” He added that the role will involve closing commercial deals across Tesla’s “entire product range (Supercharging & Megacharging).”
The job listing specifies that the hire will lead the sale of Tesla’s high-power charging products, including Supercharger and Heavy Duty Charging, to major partners such as charge point operators, real estate owners, and retail companies. The role requires fluency in German and English and is based onsite in Munich.
Tesla already operates more than 75,000 Superchargers globally, though the Semi’s Megacharger network is still in its early stages. The inclusion of Heavy Duty Charging in the job description is notable, then, as it aligns with Tesla’s Megacharger infrastructure, which is designed to support the Tesla Semi.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently confirmed that the Tesla Semi is moving into high-volume production this 2026. In a post on X, Musk noted that “Tesla Semi starts high volume production this year.”
Aerial footage of the Tesla Semi Factory near Giga Nevada also shows that the facility looks nearly complete, with work now underway inside the facility.
Tesla has also refreshed the Semi lineup on its official website, listing two variants: Standard and Long Range. The Standard trim offers up to 325 miles of range with an energy consumption rating of 1.7 kWh per mile, while the Long Range version provides up to 500 miles.
Both variants support fast charging and can recover up to 60% of range in 30 minutes using compatible infrastructure such as the Megacharger Network.
The presence of Heavy Duty Charging in a Central Europe-focused sales role could indicate that Tesla is preparing charging infrastructure ahead of wider Semi deployment in the region. While Tesla has not formally announced a European launch timeline for the Semi, the vehicle, particularly its range, makes it an ideal fit for the area.
Tesla Model Y L six-seater approved for Australia ahead of launch
Elon Musk highlights one of Tesla FSD Supervised’s most underrated features
