SpaceX targets September 22 for first Starship orbital attempt

SpaceX has announced that it intends to attempt to place the upper stage of its Starship vehicle into Earth orbit for the first time during the 14th test flight of the system. The company confirmed the plans on Tuesday, stating that the launch is scheduled for September 22. A 75-minute launch window will open at 7:15 a.m. Central Time for the mission. This marks a significant step in the development of the mega-rocket, as previous test flights have focused on other aspects of the vehicle’s performance without achieving a stable orbit for the upper stage.

During this test launch, SpaceX plans to deploy the first batch of third-generation Starlink satellites into its existing network of 10,000 internet satellites. The company expects to launch 26 V3 satellites into orbit during this specific flight. If the mission is successful, it will represent the first Starship launch to generate revenue for SpaceX’s launch division. Although the revenue will technically come from another division of the company, the milestone signifies a move towards commercial viability for the Starship programme. This follows a period of increased public scrutiny and investment interest in the company’s operations.

This will be the second Starship test launch since SpaceX became a publicly traded company in June, a move that marked the largest initial public offering in history. The first of these post-IPO launches took place in July, during which SpaceX successfully deployed V3 Starlink satellites for the first time. However, those satellites were intended solely to test the deployment capability of Starship and subsequently burned up in Earth’s atmosphere after roughly 20 minutes. The upcoming flight aims to extend the duration and success of the upper stage’s trajectory, moving beyond simple deployment tests to full orbital insertion.

Achieving orbit for Starship’s upper stage is considered a major milestone for the company, which has invested billions of dollars in the programme. SpaceX is currently looking to retire its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets in favour of Starship. Founder and CEO Elon Musk has stated that this transition will occur once Starship is flying reliably several times per week. This frequency is necessary to save scarce SpaceX engineering and production resources. The company needs Starship to reliably reach orbit, return to Earth, and be quickly reused to fulfil the massive launch cadence promises made during the IPO process.

The 14th test flight will only test the first part of that equation. Musk recently walked back previous claims that SpaceX might try to use its launch tower to catch the Starship upper stage during this flight. He indicated that an explosion would be too significant a setback for the company at this stage of development. SpaceX also will not attempt to catch the Super Heavy booster during this mission. The company has struggled with the booster during its last few test flights and has made multiple changes to try to prevent failures.

Despite these efforts, the booster still struggled to properly relight its engines after separating from the Starship upper stage on Flight 13 in July. For this mission, SpaceX said on Tuesday that it made another round of several modifications to the booster’s hardware and software to address issues seen on the previous flight. In contrast, SpaceX had far more success with the upper stage of Starship on Flight 13. While it did not reach orbit, it had a smooth flight through a simulated landing in the Indian Ocean. The upper stage did not explode when it tipped over into the water, allowing SpaceX to spend the last few months capturing and slowly towing it back to its Texas headquarters.

SpaceX said on Tuesday that it has made additional changes to the Starship heat shield based on what it learned from studying the recovered upper stage from Flight 13. These modifications are part of a broader effort to ensure the vehicle can withstand the stresses of reentry and orbital operations. The company continues to refine its systems in preparation for the upcoming launch, aiming to demonstrate the full capabilities of the Starship platform.