Figure 2 of June 2026 Inspector General report,
annotated further by me.

The Federal Aviation Administration yesterday released the draft environment assessment reviewing the consequences of Blue Origin’s request to increase its New Glenn launch rate at its complex 36A launchpad from 12 to 50 launches per year, and determined that the increase would cause “no significant impact.”

Under the Proposed Action addressed in the Draft EA, the FAA would modify Blue Origin’s vehicle operator license to authorize:

• The increase of the maximum annual New Glenn launch cadence at Space Launch Complex 36A from 12 to 50 launches per year, including associated static fire engine testing, downrange first-stage ocean platform landings, and payload fairing recovery; and
• The issuance of temporary airspace closures associated with New Glenn launches and associated operations at Space Launch Complex 36A.

You can read the report here [pdf]. It is only a draft, subject still to public comment through October 30, 2026.

This assessment is the kind of environmental red tape that the Trump administration wishes to exempt rocket companies from undergoing. The report spends 69 pages basically repeating what every other FAA assessment has said for all the Florida launchpads listed in the graphic above: that rocket launches have little or no impact on the environment, and in fact have helped the wildlife in the region because the spaceport limits development nearby.

It is certain the FAA will approve this increased launch rate, though under present regulations it has to do this stupid dance over and over, while delaying development and costing private companies unnecessary expense. Hopefully the proposed exemption order will soon take effect and stop this idiocy.

The request by Blue Origin meanwhile once again indicates the changes that CEO David Limp is bringing to the company. He wants it to up its launch cadence, and getting the FAA’s approval is the first step in doing so.