Varda flies W-8 and W-9 together on Transporter-18

Varda lofted W-8 and W-9 together on SpaceX Transporter-18 from Vandenberg on Oct. 1, 2026, the first time it has put two W-series vehicles on one rocket. SpaceX confirmed the rideshare deployment sequence at 3:41 p.m. ET; Via Satellite said the flight carried two Varda reentry vehicles among 130 payloads. Varda said both capsules carry commercial and government hypersonic-test payloads, including Canopy Aerospace Smart TPS-F on W-8 and Syensqo heatshield samples on W-9.