Next week's SpaceX Starship test still needs FAA authorization

Aiming for the stars, but sometimes hitting the Caribbean

SpaceX supremo Elon Musk says the next Starship will launch next week, however, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) hasn't yet given it the green light.

Posting on X, Musk claimed the next launch will happen on the week beginning May 19. "Not earlier than May 21" is the date currently bandied about – we asked SpaceX for confirmation, but the company did not respond.

Musk demonstrates the planned trajectory for the next Starship test flight

The FAA, which grants permission for commercial space activities, has to give SpaceX the go-ahead before it's rocket can get off the ground next week, so the clock is ticking. A spokesperson told El Reg, "The FAA has not authorized the SpaceX Starship Flight 9 launch, in part due to outstanding issues regarding the Flight 8 mishap."

For Starship to launch again, the SpaceX-led investigation into what went wrong on Flight 8 must be accepted and closed by the FAA, or else the agency must decide that going ahead won't affect public safety and sign off to let the mission to proceed.

The FAA, which is overseeing the investigation, told The Register, "SpaceX may not launch Starship again until one of the two options is completed for the Flight 8 mishap and SpaceX meets all other licensing requirements.

Musk's expectation appears to be that the FAA will authorize a launch next week, which will feature a reuse of the Super Heavy booster used during Flight Test 7. Despite a second-stage failure on Flight Test 7, the first-stage booster returned to the launch site and was caught by arms on the launch tower.

The first-stage booster for Flight Test 8, which launched on March 7, was also successfully caught, although the second stage once again failed in what appeared to be a similar fashion to Flight Test 7. SpaceX blamed the loss of the Flight Test 8 Starship on "an energetic event in the aft portion of Starship."

Flight Test 7's Starship was lost at around the same point in its flight, which SpaceX attributed to an unexpectedly large "harmonic response", which put increased stress in the propulsion system and... boom.

On both occasions, debris fell back to Earth, and aircraft were diverted from the danger zone. There were no reported injuries.

What went wrong with Flight 8 is still unclear. It could be that SpaceX's fixes following Flight Test 7 were inadequate. Or an entirely new and unconnected problem occurred. It will be up to the FAA to decide if the company's investigation and modifications are sufficient before allowing another launch attempt. Since the agency regards public safety as a priority, a cheerful "third time lucky!" won't cut it. ®