3D render of planet Earth viewed from space, with night lights in Europe and sun rising over Asia. Blue hue treatment. Elements from NASA (https://eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/images/imagerecords/57000/57752/land_shallow_topo_2048.jpg)

Part of the Department of the Air Force's $13.6 billion operations and maintenance (O&M) budget in fiscal 2027 for facility improvements--a $7.2 billion increase from last year's appropriation--is to bolster support infrastructure to handle an expected increase in launches. The $13.6 billion includes $7.5 billion in discretionary funding and another $6.1 billion in a future reconciliation bill. As part of that O&M investment, $1.8 billion is to "modernize aging spaceport infrastructure at Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., and Cape Canaveral…