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SpaceX wraps up Falcon 9 launch, sends drone ship to sea for the next one
SpaceX’s two East Coast drone ships have passed each other by as one returned from the company’s most recent Falcon 9 launch and the other headed to sea for the next one.
An unsurprising consequence of SpaceX’s extraordinary 2022 launch cadence goal, it just so happened that the company’s next launch was scheduled such that the upcoming Starlink mission’s drone ship left Port Canaveral at almost the exact moment that another drone ship was returning from its last launch. The timing was so perfect that the two converted barges sailed past each other just a thousand or so feet apart and just a few thousand feet outside of the mouth of the port both call home.
Drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI) was returning to port after about a week at sea with Falcon 9 booster B1062, which successfully launched Egypt’s Nilesat-301 communications satellite into a supersynchronous geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) on June 8th. Heading in the opposite direction, drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas (ASOG) – towed by support ship Doug – left port and began its journey about 650 kilometers (~400 mi) downrange to support Starlink 4-19, SpaceX’s next launch.
Nilesat-301 was SpaceX’s 23rd launch of 2022 and Falcon 9 B1062’s seventh launch overall, as well as the booster’s sixth launch in less than 12 months. In early 2022, CEO Elon Musk announced that SpaceX was targeting an average of one launch per week throughout the calendar year. He later revised that target to 60 launches or 1.15 launches per week after a few months of undeniable success. Set in 2021, SpaceX’s annual record is 31 Falcon launches, followed by 26 in 2020. In 2022, SpaceX is on track to launch more than 26 times in the first half of the year. In fact, after Nilesat-301, the company has another five missions tentatively scheduled to launch in June for a total of 28 in H1 2022 if all manage to avoid significant delays.
Starlink 4-19 is scheduled to launch from SpaceX’s NASA Kennedy Space Center LC-39A pad no earlier than (NET) 10:50 am EDT (14:50 UTC) on Friday, June 17th. SpaceX’s schedule for the mission will be exceptionally tight and likely offer few – if any – backup opportunities before the end of the month, owing to the company’s need to launch Cargo Dragon on a NASA space station resupply mission as early as June 28th. Unless CRS-25’s launch date has slipped again, the current schedule leaves SpaceX only a handful of days to convert Pad 39A back into its Dragon configuration immediately after Starlink 4-19.
While merely the 48th in a long line of dedicated Starlink internet satellite launches, Starlink 4-19 will be an important mission for SpaceX for a number of other reasons. First, it will be the 100th reuse of a Falcon booster since the first in March 2017. If all goes well, it will also mark SpaceX’s 50th consecutively successful Falcon booster landing. Perhaps most significantly, Starlink 4-19 could be Falcon 9’s 130th consecutively successful launch campaign – just four successes away from breaking the world record of 133 consecutive successes set by variants of Russia’s Soyuz/R-7 rocket.
SpaceX is also scheduled to launch Germany’s SARah-1 radar satellite and a group of rideshare payloads out of California no earlier than (NET) June 18th. Another mysterious launch is scheduled out of SpaceX’s LC-40 Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) pad as early as June 19th. Finally, two more Falcon 9 rockets are scheduled to launch the SES-22 geostationary communications satellite on June 27th or 28th and Cargo Dragon’s CRS-25 resupply mission on June 28th.
Tesla is planning for a new 300+ stall Supercharger station that will be an expansion of an existing facility, and the company is planning to add a surprise for the Semi.
The Firebaugh, California Supercharger is currently 72 Superchargers, but Tesla filed for an expansion that will add 232 additional plugs for passenger vehicles, and it also plans to add 16 Semichargers.
This will be the biggest Supercharger station Tesla will have to date, just months after it finished the Supercharger Oasis in Lost Hills, California, which has 168 stalls. This will have 304 total Supercharger stalls, and then the additional 16 Megachargers.
🚨 This Supercharger station will have 304 total stalls and 16 Semichargers following this expansion
Absolutely INSANE size 🔥
This is located on I-5, so many semis will be traveling along this route https://t.co/hM9hdLcWwg
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 13, 2026
The Firebaugh Supercharger is located on I-5, which is a major reason for why Tesla has chosen the location for additional Megacharger plug-ins, as Tesla Semi Program Manager Dan Priestley said on X earlier today.
Lots of trucks to electrify on I-5
— Dan Priestley (@danWpriestley) January 13, 2026
The project was revealed by MarcoRP, a Supercharger tracker.
The expansion is a massive signal for charging demand, especially as Tesla’s Superchargers are opened to numerous automakers and are no longer exclusive to the company’s EVs. Additionally, the installation of Megachargers is a good sign to come for the Tesla Semi program, which aims to truly ramp up this year.
Tesla plans to launch production of the Semi later this year.
It could also mean Tesla is going to expand its footprint of large-scale Supercharger projects in the coming years, which would be a big boost as EV adoption continues to soar in the United States.
Tesla has made two big interior changes to several Model Y vehicles in its lineup, and the changes come just as the new model year begins production.
Last year, Tesla launched the Model Y Standard, which separated the previous models into the “Premium” category. The Standard vehicles lack several features, including more premium interior materials, acoustic-lined glass, and storage.
@teslarati There are some BIG differences between the Tesla Model Y Standard and Tesla Model Y Premium #tesla #teslamodely ♬ Sia – Xeptemper
The Model Y “Premium” trims are now getting several new upgrades, which come after the company launched a seven-seat configuration of the vehicle last night in the North American market for an upcharge of $2,500.
The new Model Y seven-seat configuration did not come with just an additional row of seating; it also came with a slew of other goodies that now come standard and were previously only available on the Model Y Performance, which was launched late last year.
All Black Headliner
The new Tesla Model Y Premium trims will now come standard with a black headliner, something that many owners have been requesting for some time.
The previous grey headliner and trim within the vehicle is now gone; it will be all black on all of the Premium trims from here on out, a welcome change:
Credit: Tesla
Larger and Higher Resolution Center Touchscreen
The center touchscreen in the new Model Y Premium configuration is now larger and has a higher resolution than the previous version.
In last year’s Model Y configurations (apart from the Performance), the center touchscreen was 15.4″. Now, Tesla has decided to go with the 16″ version across all Premium trims, which is a nice step up. It was nice to see this in the Performance, but it is really great to see Tesla include this in the Model Y’s more Premium trim levels.
Tesla Model Y Seven Seater
Tesla launched the latest iteration of the seven-seater for the Model Y on Monday night. Traditionally, the Model Y seats five passengers in total, but there were calls for a more spacious version several years ago.
Tesla released it, but it was extremely tight in the back, basically reserving those back seats for only small people or children.
Credit: Tesla
The new configuration looks to be slightly more spacious in the third row, but not as much space as most would require or want. Instead,
Elon Musk
Lufthansa Group to equip Starlink on its 850-aircraft fleet
Under the collaboration, Lufthansa Group will install Starlink technology on both its existing fleet and all newly delivered aircraft, as noted by the group in a press release.
Lufthansa Group has announced a partnership with Starlink that will bring high-speed internet connectivity to every aircraft across all its carriers.
This means that aircraft across the group’s brands, from Lufthansa, SWISS, and Austrian Airlines to Brussels Airlines, would be able to enjoy high-speed internet access using the industry-leading satellite internet solution.
Starlink in-flight internet
Under the collaboration, Lufthansa Group will install Starlink technology on both its existing fleet and all newly delivered aircraft, as noted by the group in a press release.
Starlink’s low-Earth orbit satellites are expected to provide significantly higher bandwidth and lower latency than traditional in-flight Wi-Fi, which should enable streaming, online work, and other data-intensive applications for passengers during flights.
Starlink-powered internet is expected to be available on the first commercial flights as early as the second half of 2026. The rollout will continue through the decade, with the entire Lufthansa Group fleet scheduled to be fully equipped with Starlink by 2029. Once complete, no other European airline group will operate more Starlink-connected aircraft.
Free high-speed access
As part of the initiative, Lufthansa Group will offer the new high-speed internet free of charge to all status customers and Travel ID users, regardless of cabin class. Chief Commercial Officer Dieter Vranckx shared his expectations for the program.
“In our anniversary year, in which we are celebrating Lufthansa’s 100th birthday, we have decided to introduce a new high-speed internet solution from Starlink for all our airlines. The Lufthansa Group is taking the next step and setting an essential milestone for the premium travel experience of our customers.
“Connectivity on board plays an important role today, and with Starlink, we are not only investing in the best product on the market, but also in the satisfaction of our passengers,” Vranckx said.
Tesla plans for new 300+ stall Supercharger with a special surprise for Semi
Tesla makes two big interior changes to several Model Y vehicles
