The launch was originally scheduled for December 7, then it was postponed to the 10th, but due to unfavorable weather conditions, the launch was postponed for another day – December 11. Then, due to technical problems, it was postponed to the 12th, after which it was moved to December 28.

The secretive X-37B aircraft, which will launch on its seventh mission since its maiden flight in 2010, is designed for experiments, including flights in “new orbital modes” and testing of information transmission in space.