Blue Origin is expanding Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station into a dual-pad facility to support its new heavy-lift rocket variants, following a May static-fire test explosion. Company chief executive Dave Limp confirmed that rebuilding the original pad remains the top priority for a 2026 return to flight.
Following an unexpected explosion during a May 28 static-fire test at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Launch Complex-36, the company is not only repairing the damage but fundamentally expanding the historic site to accommodate a second, larger rocket variant.
Rebuilding LC-36A and Adjusting Operational Concepts
The May explosion destroyed the fourth New Glenn rocket, known as NG-4, which was slated to carry a stack of Amazon Leo wireless internet satellites to orbit. The blast also inflicted extensive damage on the pad itself. That primary site is now designated as LC-36A and is undergoing extensive repairs.
Despite the setback, company leadership maintains that recovery is on track. In an Aug. 12 social media post, Blue Origin chief executive Dave Limp reaffirmed the timeline for getting the current vehicle configuration back in the air.
“Rebuilding LC-36A and flying again this year remains our priority.”
Dave Limp, chief executive of Blue Origin
The reconstruction work involves a shift in how the vehicle is handled on the ground. Rather than utilizing the previous approach of horizontal integration for the entire rocket, Blue Origin is moving to what Limp previously called a horizontal/vertical hybrid CONOPS,
or concept of operations. Under this new method, only the first stage rolls out to the pad horizontally before being raised upright, while the upper stage and payload are transported separately in a vertical orientation and hoisted into place by a crane.
To test these new mechanics, the team utilized another Cape Canaveral location, LC-11.
Adding LC-36B for the New Glenn 9×4 Vehicle
While LC-36A handles the current vehicle configuration, a separate team has initiated work on a brand-new adjacent pad: LC-36B. This second pad will serve as the operational home for the New Glenn 9×4, an upgraded and larger version of the heavy-lift vehicle.
The two rocket variants differ primarily in their engine configurations and payload capacity. The vehicle that flew its debut mission in 2025 is designated as the 7×2, flying with seven BE-4 engines on its first stage and two BE-3Us on its second stage. By contrast, the taller 9×4 variant will utilize nine BE-4 engines on the booster and four BE-3Us on the upper stage, enabling it to lift heavier payloads into space.
Infrastructure Expansion and Historical Legacy
Turning the site into a dual-pad facility requires substantial raw materials and support infrastructure. Limp noted that the addition will require as much as 2,500 tons of steel columns, a significant portion of which will support a towering 700-foot-tall launch tower. In addition to the pads themselves, the expansion project incorporates a Vertical Integration Facility for the 9×4 vehicle and a Payload Processing Facility.
This construction echoes the site’s deeper history. For roughly four decades starting in the 1960s, Launch Complex 36 operated as a dual-pad facility supporting the Atlas-Centaur rocket family, hosting NASA probes like Surveyor, Mariner, and Pioneer alongside national-security payloads. That era concluded when LC-36A hosted its final launch in 2004 and LC-36B launched its last rocket in 2005 before the complex was decommissioned and demolished. Blue Origin assumed the lease in 2015 and began construction on its own launch facilities the following year.
“LC-36 has served as a cornerstone of American spaceflight for decades, supporting a broad range of missions for NASA and commercial partners. Now, this historic site is entering a new era, furthering New Glenn operations.”
Blue Origin, in a statement reported by Space
Unresolved Timelines and What Lies Ahead
The May 28 explosion forced a drastic contraction in Blue Origin’s flight manifest. While the company had initially hoped for eight to twelve launches in 2026, the accident and subsequent repairs have reduced that expectation to a hopeful single flight before the year concludes.
What remains entirely unannounced is when the new LC-36B pad will achieve readiness or when the larger New Glenn 9×4 vehicle will make its maiden flight. While company leadership remains confident in hitting its end-of-year return-to-flight target for LC-36A, the broader schedule for the dual-pad complex’s full operational capability remains undefined.
