Washington DC: American aerospace company SpaceX marked a major operational milestone after launching two Falcon 9 rockets from opposite coasts of the United States just 38.5 minutes apart, setting a new company record for the shortest duration between orbital missions.

The dual launches, conducted on Saturday evening, broke SpaceX's previous record of 65 minutes set in August 2024, demonstrating the firm's accelerating launch cadence and reusable rocket capabilities.

The first mission lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 9:12 p.m. EDT (0112 GMT Sunday), delivering eight low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites for communications company Globalstar. The satellites successfully deployed over a six-minute window starting roughly 56 minutes after liftoff, expanding Globalstar's constellation network.

Just 38.5 minutes later, at 9:50 p.m. EDT (0150 GMT Sunday), a second Falcon 9 rocket launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, carrying the classified USSF-366 payload for the U.S. Space Force.

Both missions included precision landings of the Falcon 9 first-stage boosters, adding to SpaceX's booster recovery record.

The booster supporting the Globalstar mission (B1090) completed its 14th flight before executing a vertical touchdown at Cape Canaveral's Landing Zone 40 approximately eight minutes after liftoff.

Meanwhile, the USSF-366 booster (B1088) completed its 18th flight, touching down on the autonomous droneship "Of Course I Still Love You" stationed in the Pacific Ocean. The touchdown marked the 650th successful Falcon booster landing in SpaceX history.

The Globalstar deployment, which was postponed from an earlier May date to complete satellite preparations, provides vital network continuity for direct-to-device communications services.

Globalstar Chief Executive Paul E Jacobs praised the successful deployment as an essential step in strengthening the infrastructure supporting global consumer and commercial communications. The launch comes as Globalstar advances toward a planned acquisition agreement with Amazon to support its satellite broadband projects.

Saturday night's dual launches brought SpaceX's total mission count for 2026 to 96 orbital flights, cementing its leading position in the global commercial launch industry.

ANI