VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. — Marking a half-decade of rapid expansion, Space Launch Delta 30 celebrated its fifth birthday this week as the U.S. Space Force’s primary West Coast hub for space launch and strategic testing. The milestone highlights a fundamental transformation since 2021, as the base evolved from a legacy wing into a multi-nodal platform capable of sustaining a record-breaking operational pace.
While Vandenberg SFB’s host unit officially became Space Launch Delta 30 May 9, 2021, its roots stretch back to the dawn of the Space Race. Originally established in 1941 as the U.S. Army's Camp Cooke, the installation transferred to the Air Force in 1957. Since the first Thor missile launch in 1958 and the launch of the world’s first polar-orbiting satellite in 1959, the base has served as the nation's only high-capacity gateway to orbit on the West Coast for nearly seven decades.
The redesignation of Space Launch Delta 30 was more than a symbolic change; it signaled a massive operational pivot for the installation.
“We have gone from a base known primarily for launch to a base recognized as a national security platform,” said Col. James T. Horne III, Space Launch Delta 30 commander. “That is the evolution of SLD 30: launch is still central — but it is no longer the whole story.”
The base is now home to more than 54 mission partners, including units from the Department of War, the intelligence community, and commercial industry. Together, these organizations support orbital tracking, advanced air and space testing, and homeland defense. Highlighting its strategic posture, Vandenberg is also the sole U.S. Space Force installation serving as a NORAD and U.S. Northern Command alert base.
Increasing Operational Tempo
This expanded mission scope has triggered a surge in operations, powered by a 20-year strategy to lower launch costs and harness American innovation through the U.S. Space Force’s Commercial Space Strategy.
Following single-digit annual launch activity in 2020, the base supported 51 launches in 2024, its highest in 50 years.
In 2025, Vandenberg achieved its highest operational tempo since the 1970s and breaking 2024’s historic level, supporting 77 total space launches, missile tests, and aeronautical operations.
During its first five years as a Space Force Delta, the installation enabled a diverse portfolio of historic missions, including:
Expanding Organizational Footprint
Beyond serving as a spaceport and test range, Vandenberg has significantly expanded its organizational footprint to become a central nexus for the command, control, and training of space forces.
Since being redesignated Space Launch Delta 30, the installation has become host to all three U.S. Space Force Field Commands: Space Systems Command, Combat Forces Command, and Space Training and Readiness Command.
Under this expanded umbrella, the base over the last five years has become home to Space Delta 1, which trains and develops Guardians, and U.S. Space Forces–Space, which provides combat-relevant space effects for the joint force. SLD 30 has also seen cyber units realign under its command and supported the advancement of Sentinel modernization efforts, reflecting a mission partner ecosystem that continues to grow in both scope and significance.
Managing this massive organizational and operational expansion comes down to one constant: the workforce.
“Every launch, every test, every visit, every emergency response and every mission success rests on the shoulders of the Guardians, Airmen, civilians, and families who ensure the excellence of this spaceport and test range,” Horne said. “You are the ones who turn national strategy into real-world capability.”
The Next Five Years
Looking to the future, base leadership anticipates that launch cadences will continue to rise and infrastructure will need to modernize to support heavy and super-heavy launch capabilities.
“What happens here matters,” Horne said. “It matters to national defense. It matters to our allies and partners. It matters to the future of space access.”
As the installation prepares for increasing complexity and deepening partnerships with industry and the joint force, Horne emphasized the historic weight of the Space Launch Delta's first five years.
“We celebrate five years of transformation. Five years of growth. Five years of mission success,” Horne said. “Five years of proving that Vandenberg is not simply keeping pace with the future of space — Vandenberg is helping define it.”