KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL — A comprehensive audit by the NASA Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has issued a stark warning: the agency’s primary launch infrastructure is rapidly hitting a breaking point.
Driven by a massive surge in commercial rocket operations, facilities at both the Kennedy Space Center (Kennedy) in Florida and the Wallops Flight Facility (Wallops) in Virginia are projected to operate near maximum capacity by the 2028–2029 time frame.
The report reveals that while private-sector space operations are skyrocketing, NASA’s foundational “common use” infrastructure (the power grids, commodity pipelines, and roadways that support every mission) is physically degrading under the strain of declining budgets, inefficient cost-recovery practices, and strict statutory barriers that legally block commercial partners from helping pay for repairs.
The Launch Surge: Outpacing Spaceport Capacity
The rapid transition of NASA launch complexes to commercial entities; including SpaceX, Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman, Firefly Aerospace, and Rocket Lab, has successfully advanced the goals of the National Aeronautics and Space Act. However, this commercial boom has placed unprecedented operational stress on shared assets.
LAUNCH VOLUMES: 2020 vs. 2025 vs. 2030 (Projected)
Kennedy Space Center & CCSFS
2020: [31 launches]
2025: [109 launches] ─── 252% increase
2030: [268 launches] ────────────────────────────────────────── Projected
Wallops Flight Facility
2020: [3 launches]
2025: [17 launches] ─── 467% increase
2030: [44 launches] ─────────────────── Projected
At Kennedy and the adjacent Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS), SpaceX dominated operations in 2025, accounting for 101 of the 109 total launches with its Falcon 9 vehicle; primarily deploying its Starlink satellite constellation. This cadence is expected to multiply exponentially with the full introduction of SpaceX’s Starship in 2026.
The company intends to launch Starship up to 44 times annually from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A (LC 39A) and an additional 76 times per year from CCSFS. Concurrently, Blue Origin expects New Glenn launches from CCSFS Space Launch Complex 36 to exceed 50 per year by 2030, and top 120 annually by 2035.
OIG auditors stressed that raw launch counts obscure the true operational toll. When accounting for Launch Equivalent Days (LEDs), which include actual launches, major testing milestones (like static firings and wet dress rehearsals), and scrubs; the spaceports are running out of calendar days.
In 2024, Kennedy and CCSFS logged 152 LEDs. As total LEDs approach 365, the system faces a fast-paced environment with zero flexibility for contingencies.
Compounding this, space for super heavy-lift launch vehicles is disappearing. Blue Origin has already approached NASA about exploring new launch pad options on agency property. While Kennedy officials identified a potential site north of LC 39A and LC 39B, the area is a protected wetland, requiring extensive and lengthy federal and local environmental reviews.
At Wallops, launches are projected to hit 44 per year by 2030, with the facility reaching its current capacity of 32 launches and 128 LEDs by 2028. Wallops is aggressively pursuing upgrades to reduce turnaround times and is undergoing a Southern Expansion Environmental Assessment (scheduled for final publication in December 2026) to evaluate the impacts of increasing its annual launch cadence.
Kennedy’s Crumbling Core Infrastructure
While Wallops’ common use infrastructure remains resilient due to recent upgrades, Kennedy’s foundational systems, originally built in the 1960s for the Apollo program are in poor condition.
Electrical Power Grid Cracking Under Strain
Kennedy’s critical electrical power distribution system, which routes high-voltage power from the utility company through the C-5 Substation to LC 39A and LC 39B, is operating far beyond its design life.
- Collapsed Duct Banks: The underground pipelines (duct banks) housing medium-voltage cables were built using Orangeburg pipe—a material made of wood fibers and coal tar. Having surpassed its 50-year lifespan, sections have collapsed. If a cable fails, the collapsed pipes make standard replacement impossible, forcing weeks or months of workarounds and leaving NASA or SpaceX without vital redundant power.
- Corroding Transformers: Two of the C-5 Substation’s three main transformers were installed in 1995 and have reached the end of their 30-year design life. Severe environmental corrosion threatens a failure that officials say could disrupt launches for at least a month.
Furthermore, upcoming operations are poised to exceed LC 39’s electrical capacity. The C-5 Substation provides 30 megawatts of total power, with only 9 megawatts shared jointly between LC 39A and LC 39B. A single Starship launch, depending on propellant loading times, could exceed this entire shared allocation.
While SpaceX plans to temporarily use Tesla Megapacks (storing up to 3.9 megawatts) as a workaround, its long-term concept of operations including on-site propellant generation will require completely upgraded electrical infrastructure from the local utility provider.
Gas Supply and Logistics Bottlenecks
Kennedy provides gaseous nitrogen (GN2) and gaseous helium (GHe) via a complex underground network to purge residual propellants and prevent catastrophic fires or explosions. However, the system is fundamentally bottlenecked:
- Nitrogen Limitations: Kennedy contracts 1.2 million cubic feet of GN2 annually from an external Airgas facility, distributing it via 40 miles of underground pipes to LCs 39A, 39B, 36, 37, 40, and 41. The current infrastructure cannot support high-flow operations from multiple users simultaneously.
For example, NASA cannot provide GN2 for an Artemis Space Launch System (SLS) launch at LC 39B while concurrently supporting a Blue Origin New Glenn launch at SLC 36. This limitation forced major scheduling headaches during the preparation for the New Glenn-1 mission launched in January 2025. Blue Origin officials fear future SLS campaigns could trigger 1- to 2-month pipeline blackout periods. A proposed $25 million backup liquid nitrogen system remains completely unfunded. - Helium Pressure Mismatches: While a recent $11.1 million project completed in January 2026 tripled GHe pipeline flow by installing six new pumps at the Converter Compressor Facility, a major technical obstacle remains. Once gas enters the 13 miles of pipeline, the entire line is uniformly pressurized.
Kennedy cannot support multiple simultaneous rockets with different pressure requirements. Blue Origin’s New Glenn, for instance, requires a lower helium pressure than NASA or other commercial providers. No equipment is currently installed to regulate individual pad pressures, and NASA has yet to determine who will foot the bill for an upgrade.
Roadway and Bridge Decay
Kennedy’s logistics network consists of 231 miles of paved roads and six automotive bridges, which are experiencing accelerated structural degradation. A comprehensive pavement condition study has not been conducted since 2011, leaving the true extent of the damage unknown.
Degradation is driven by an exponential rise in over-the-road transport trips; hauling flight hardware and propellants which surged 347 percent from 1,956 trips in 2019 to 8,752 trips in 2025.
This will be further exacerbated by an estimated 19,000 additional annual truck trips required to support SpaceX’s Starship. Officials noted that during a 2018 shoreline restoration project, 35,000 heavy truck trips rapidly tore apart local routes, forcing NASA to embed road repair costs directly into the project scope. No such mitigation plan exists for commercial launch traffic. Furthermore, Kennedy’s roads were physically too narrow for modern mega-rockets. To accommodate the side-by-side transport systems needed for Starship, NASA had to grant an easement to SpaceX in 2024, allowing the company to fund and complete an 8-foot widening of the 4-mile Saturn Causeway in 2025.
Bridges are facing a similar crisis. The critical Banana River Bridge, the main transit conduit between Kennedy and CCSFS, has exceeded its design life. A series of temporary $1 million band-aid repairs have stabilized it, but the bridge’s steep grade and narrow width make it entirely unsuitable for transporting large vehicles like Blue Origin’s New Glenn.
Until a full replacement is funded and built, oversized commercial vehicles must utilize a grueling 20-mile detour, introducing severe launch delay risks. Total roadway and bridge repairs are estimated to cost over $200 million over the next decade.
The Artemis Risk: While NASA has successfully completed significant upgrades to LC 39B (including new liquid hydrogen tanks, fiber lines, an emergency egress system, and lightning protection towers) to prepare for Artemis III in 2027 following the April 2026 launch of Artemis II, a failure in the common use power, gas, or transportation infrastructure supporting the pad could derail national timelines to return humans to the Moon and reach Mars.
Status of Launch Pads and Complexes
The audit detailed a highly uneven distribution of capability across NASA’s active and inactive launch pads:
| Launch Complex (LC) / Pad | Location | Current Status & Capabilities |
| LC 39B | Kennedy | Upgraded and active. Fully configured for NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) super heavy-lift vehicle for the Artemis campaign. |
| LC 39C | Kennedy | Inactive. Completed in 2015 for small-class commercial vehicles (under 200,000 lbs of thrust). Unused due to its close proximity to LC 39B. |
| LC 48 | Kennedy | Active status pending. A 10-acre site completed in 2020 for small-class commercial vehicles (under 500,000 lbs of thrust). No launches to date, but a lease announcement for proposals was issued in January 2026. |
| LC 39A | Kennedy | Active. Leased to SpaceX via a 2014 CSLA agreement. Supports Starlink, Commercial Crew, and is the future site for Starship operations. |
| Pads 0A & 0B | Wallops | Active. Operated by the Virginia Spaceport Authority via a 2025 Enhanced Use Lease. Pad 0A was modified with $20 million in state funding to support the Antares 330 and ECLIPSE vehicles; Firefly Aerospace plans an Alpha launch here in 2026. Pad 0B has supported Minotaur vehicles for 20 years. |
| Pads 0C & 0D | Wallops | Active / Upcoming. Pad 0C hosts Rocket Lab’s Electron. Pad 0D is a medium-class complex built in 2025 specifically for Rocket Lab’s reusable Neutron rocket. |
| Pads 1A, 2, & 3 | Wallops | Active specialized pads. Pad 1A launches military hypersonic rockets. Pad 2 hosts sounding rockets (using ARC and MRL launchers). Pad 3 hosts the MK7 launcher for U.S. Navy hypersonic missions. |
Funding Dry Spells and Statutory Hurdles
NASA’s ability to repair these foundational gaps is severely restricted by a combination of shrinking budgets and rigid federal legal frameworks.
Declining Infrastructure Budgets
Over the last five years, NASA’s construction and maintenance budgets for launch infrastructure have decreased substantially when adjusted for inflation. The Construction of Facilities (CoF) budget plummeted more than 47 percent, from $470 million down to $249 million. Concurrently, the Infrastructure and Technical Capabilities budget fell 11 percent, from $809 million to $716 million.
NASA INFLATION-ADJUSTED BUDGET DECLINES (FY 2021 – 2025)
Construction of Facilities (CoF)
FY 21: [$470M]
FY 25: [$249M] ─── (47% decrease)
Infrastructure & Technical Capabilities
FY 21: [$809M]
FY 25: [$716M] ─── (11% decrease)
While NASA’s target is to renew or repair its facilities every 66 years, current budget allocations have pushed that cycle to an astonishing 260 years.
This funding drought delayed critical upgrades to Kennedy’s electrical grid for over two decades after problems were first flagged in the early 2000s. Furthermore, while Phase 1 of a modernization project at the vital Converter Compressor Facility was completed in 2025, Phases 2 and 3 remain completely unfunded.
NASA’s total deferred maintenance backlog has ballooned to $4.7 billion, with Kennedy accounting for nearly $1 billion of that total. Compounding the issue, the fiscal year 2026 basic sustainment budget is already facing a $400 million deficit.
Statutory Funding Barriers
The most glaring systemic issue is that NASA is legally barred from accepting direct infrastructure investments from commercial partners. Even though commercial missions have made up roughly 70 percent of all launches supported by NASA since 2020, accepting corporate funds to upgrade NASA property is legally considered an “augmentation of appropriations,” which directly violates the federal Antideficiency Act.
The Act also restricts NASA from spending its own money on infrastructure projects that primarily benefit private entities, even if agency programs (like Commercial Crew or Artemis) derive indirect benefits. By comparison, the U.S. Space Force possesses explicit statutory authority to accept commercial funds for launch site upgrades.
To bridge this gap, Kennedy officials have spent a decade pushing for a legislative fix. In July 2025, the Space Ready Act was formally introduced in the U.S. Senate. If passed, it would establish a 10-year pilot program allowing Kennedy to accept public and private contributions into a dedicated Infrastructure Investment Fund to cover shared repairs and expansions. Wallops was excluded from the final text of the bill. Wallops officials argue that this exclusion creates an unfair funding landscape, leaving them with no mechanism to have their own commercial tenants equitably support the facility’s rapid growth.
Flawed Cost Recovery Practices
The OIG heavily criticized NASA’s internal financial policies, noting that its choice of agreements has actively prevented the agency from collecting substantial revenue.
For over a decade, NASA utilized a Commercial Space Launch Act (CSLA) agreement for SpaceX’s lease of LC 39A. While highly successful operationally, CSLA agreements legally dictate that NASA can only charge the partner for the direct costs of launch and reentry services. Consequently, NASA collected zero fair-market-value rent for the land or the pre-existing launch pad infrastructure.
Had NASA utilized an Enhanced Use Lease (EUL), it could have legally pocketed fair-market-value rental proceeds and funneled that money directly back into repairing the common use utilities supporting the entire center. In 2023, NASA revised its policy to limit long-term CSLA agreements.
Kennedy is currently appraising the LC 39A perimeter to transition it to an EUL, mirroring a recent successful shift at Wallops, where moving Pads 0A and 0B to an EUL with the Virginia Spaceport Authority has finally allowed the facility to retain and reinvest lease proceeds.
Furthermore, the indirect cost rates NASA charges commercial entities via reimbursable Space Act Agreements are insufficient. NASA calculates these charges using a fixed Agency Agreement Indirect Rate set by the Chief Financial Officer. Because of a shrinking Safety, Security, and Missions Services budget, this rate dropped from 15 percent to 13.9 percent in fiscal year 2025. As a result, commercial partners are being charged less for indirect spaceport upkeep even as their launch cadences—and the resulting wear and tear—hit historic highs.
While NASA policy allows centers to charge an additional “Other Approved Indirect Rate” to cover common use assets, Kennedy does not utilize it for its shared power grids, pipelines, or roads. Conversely, Wallops successfully levies a 9.5 percent additional indirect rate on its partners to fund operational support and ongoing facility maintenance.
OIG Recommendations and Next Steps
To safeguard the operational integrity of America’s primary multi-user spaceports, the OIG issued three urgent recommendations to the Kennedy Space Center Director:
- Traffic Impact Study: Execute a formal study to assess the structural damage caused by heavy vehicle traffic from sustained launch increases on Kennedy roadways and establish an official mitigation plan.
- Prioritize H.R.1 Funding: Strategically allocate the $250 million injection from the July 2025 H.R.1 reconciliation bill directly toward fixing the most critical common use failures, prioritizing the crumbling electrical grid, gas pipelines, and bridges. (NASA officials currently plan to spend at least $125 million of this on the electrical system).
- Revise Cost Recovery: Assess and implement an “Other Approved Indirect Rate” on commercial launch service agreements specifically earmarked to pay for the maintenance and upgrade of shared common use infrastructure.
NASA management has formally concurred with all three recommendations and provided a framework of planned corrective actions. While the OIG considers these items resolved, they will remain under oversight until verification of the corrective actions is complete. However, given that completely modernizing Kennedy’s launch infrastructure will require an estimated $1 billion, the $250 million down payment from H.R.1 is only a temporary fix.
Until systemic statutory funding barriers like the Space Ready Act are resolved, America’s multi-user spaceports will remain highly vulnerable to infrastructure driven delays.