White House targets 1,000 launches per year by 2030 under new space transportation policy

The White House released an updated National Space Transportation Policy on August 20, the first revision since 2013. The document sets an ambitious goal: enabling at least 1,000 launches and reentries per year from U.S. facilities by 2030. For context, in 2024, the number of launches by U.S.-owned vehicles was just under 200.

The policy shifts focus from launch vehicles to launch infrastructure. It directs the Department of Defense and NASA, which operate federal launch ranges, to "regularly consider and evaluate opportunities to improve launch and reentry infrastructure" and access to it. This includes co-development of launch infrastructure with the private sector.

The policy also opens the door for additional launch sites. It instructs the Pentagon, NASA, and the Department of Transportation to work with state and local officials to identify "potential locations for additional launch facilities and targeted development or improvement of launch infrastructure." The document does not specify whether these new facilities would be federal ranges or spaceports operated by other entities.

Furthermore, the policy mandates the Pentagon, NASA, and other agencies to develop scheduling criteria to ensure efficient use of existing and future launch infrastructure. The overarching goal is to establish and maintain U.S. space transportation capabilities that ensure access to the full range of orbital regimes, from suborbital and very-low Earth orbit to the lunar surface, Lagrange points, and deep space.