SpaceX delays next Starship/Superheavy orbital test flight by about a month
According to a tweet by Elon Musk today, the 12th orbital test flight of Starship/Superheavy is not going to happen in mid-April as previously hoped.
Instead, it is now pushed back to early to mid-May.
Next flight of Starship and first flight of V3 ship & booster is 4 to 6 weeks away.
In his tweet, “V3” refers to the third version of both Starship and Superheavy, incorporating many upgrades learned from the first eleven test flights. Version three will also be the first to use SpaceX’s Raptor-3 engine, the most powerful rocket engine ever built but with a much simplified design.
It is not clear what has caused this delay. The last test flight was in October 2025, which means there will be eight month gap between test launches, a much longer gap than desired by the company. Part of the delay was because the company was building a whole new launchpad for the rocket. Also, there were two tank failures during static fire tests of Superheavy that needed investigation and as well as pad repairs.
Still, time is marching on. SpaceX needs to launch this rocket, and begin doing it at a much faster pace. It can no longer complain about red tape, as under Trump that issue has been squashed quite effectively.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
According to a tweet by Elon Musk today, the 12th orbital test flight of Starship/Superheavy is not going to happen in mid-April as previously hoped.
Instead, it is now pushed back to early to mid-May.
Next flight of Starship and first flight of V3 ship & booster is 4 to 6 weeks away.
In his tweet, “V3” refers to the third version of both Starship and Superheavy, incorporating many upgrades learned from the first eleven test flights. Version three will also be the first to use SpaceX’s Raptor-3 engine, the most powerful rocket engine ever built but with a much simplified design.
It is not clear what has caused this delay. The last test flight was in October 2025, which means there will be eight month gap between test launches, a much longer gap than desired by the company. Part of the delay was because the company was building a whole new launchpad for the rocket. Also, there were two tank failures during static fire tests of Superheavy that needed investigation and as well as pad repairs.
Still, time is marching on. SpaceX needs to launch this rocket, and begin doing it at a much faster pace. It can no longer complain about red tape, as under Trump that issue has been squashed quite effectively.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
This delay should not be surprising or cause any serious anxiety, other than perhaps to the Artemis 4 or 5 schedule. minders.
This flight involves a completely new booster design, completely new ship design, completely new launch pad and tank farm infrastructure, and the first use of the Raptor 3 engine in a launch vehicle. So basically everything is new so being diligent to check all the boxes getting everything certified as flight ready is completely appropriate.
This is no longer a “prototype” vehicle. This is serial number l of their first “production” class vehicle, and you proceed more diligently from this point on because now the job is validation, not experimentation.
MHO.
MDN,
That seems a good and reasonable take on the situation, to me at least.
I cannot claim to know all the details of this launch platform, but given the changes that have been made since the last test, the delay seems reasonable.
There’s some speculation that the impending IPO is shaping the test flight schedule. I really tend to doubt that, though no doubt it is going to create some additional pressure for a successful Flight 12.
One thing that has struck me is just how much more pre-launch testing they have been doing on Booster 19 and Starship 39. I mean, just the cryo proofing on B19 was way beyond anything we have ever seen before.
I think MDN has part of the reason for that: It’s a brand new, radically different launch pad with a lot of new ground systems and the tests we have seen *that* undertake in the last week suggest it’s not quite ready operationally just yet. But yes, also, Starship V3 only has about 20% commonality of parts and systems with Starship V2, so it seems natural that it, too, would merit additional testing.
But I also think that SpaceX really, really wants this test flight to succeed. I think the mindset and expectations are shifting now, and they’re less cavalier than they were previously. So they are taking their time and doing a lot more testing before they launch.
I’ll chime in for the sake of completeness, but I have nothing, really, to add to what everyone else has already said. Ditto to all.
MDN wrote: “This is no longer a “prototype” vehicle. This is serial number l of their first “production” class vehicle, and you proceed more diligently from this point on because now the job is validation, not experimentation.”
I’m not so sure that this is a production vehicle. My understanding is that they expect a fourth version, V4, but that they are planning to begin Starlink launches once they have the V3 Starship orbiting successfully. We may be able to consider V3 operational, at that point, but V4 may be the production version.
Starship is getting close to the end of its development phase, but it must end this phase in order to be able to perform its contractual obligations in the next couple of years. V3 may be intended to verify much of what SpaceX has learned, but I suspect that they have a little more learning to do, especially when it comes to the heat shield and orbital tanking. If they are to maximize the payload to space, then they may have to do a little more optimization.
Edward: We should use what SpaceX did with Falcon 9 as a guide. There were five “blocks”, with #5 being the final iteration (still in use). The company however began commercial operations with one, but in reality the first truly operational version was block 3. Starship/Superheavy is in block 3, with intentions of doing some basic unmanned operational flights as it is upgraded.
I think we shall see at least two more versions before it is considered fully operational, with 4 the operational unmanned version leading to 5, the manned version.
SpaceX is making the difficult transition between “Failing faster” and “Failure is not an option”, while wearing new mantle that weighs a bit heavily: they are now America’s space program.
The delay seems like a big deal in that orbital refueling, Starship surviving reentry and Starship returning to the launch pad have yet to be accomplished. None of these are dependent on Raptor 3 engines. Now what would make the delay worthwhile is if the explosion issue is being solved.
Ray Van Dune wrote, “They are now America’s space program.”
As I noted almost a year ago, and predicted that, in about a year, people will begin noticing that reality. You get it of course, but most of the U.S. still thinks this Artemis-2 mission is the real deal, when it is merely a silly blip that will be long forgotten.
Edward, I will grant your point wrt Starship as V4 is projected to evolve to a 9 engine configuration and that will be a quite significant change from the V3 design.
However the only change of note expected in moving to Super Heavy V4 is its increased height to accommodate more fuel. It will likely be rated at higher thrust as well, but through a thrust increase of Raptor 3 from its current 280MT rating to more like 300MT. The overall design of the airframe however is unlikely to change and has only been delayed because they need the taller Gigabay facility in order to assemble it.
There is no doubt that SpaceX will pursue further refinements, but at this point I think they are quite locked in on what their “production” configurations are going to look like and building out an entire factory infrastructure optimized to build it faster and cheaper than almost any orbital class rocket ever designed regardless of size.
MHO.
A major V4 improvement is intended to be not only more propellant but Raptor 4 engines with higher ISP. That could mean the ability for Starship to go to the moon with 4 or 5 fill-ups instead of 10 or 12. Put “-ish” after all those numbers.
Anyway, that will be a major capability increase, leading to greatly streamlined operations!
Robert Zimmerman,
“We should use what SpaceX did with Falcon 9 as a guide. There were five “blocks”, with #5 being the final iteration (still in use). The company however began commercial operations with one, but in reality the first truly operational version was block 3.”
I guess I wasn’t clear enough. This is essentially what I meant. They will start to launch payloads, but they will also continue improvements until they get close enough to their goal that they can abandon the effort and produce Starships in quantity. As the saying goes, the last ten percent of the project takes ninety percent of the effort.
“You get it of course, but most of the U.S. still thinks this Artemis-2 mission is the real deal, when it is merely a silly blip that will be long forgotten.”
But, Robert, it is the first woman and the first person of color! Isn’t that just as important as the first person to step onto the Moon? I mean, no one is ever going to remember Harrison Schmitt or that other guy, Buzz Aldrin, when there’s whatshername and whatshisname to remember.
By the way, does anyone here at Behind The Black remember her name or his name off the top of your head? I don’t.
Instead of just grid fins, might the top of SuperHeavy be strong enough for very simple methane ramjets?
” . . . but most of the U.S. still thinks this Artemis-2 mission is the real deal, when it is merely a silly blip that will be long forgotten. . . . ”
Ouch. It *is* the first return of Humans to Pretty-Close-To-Lunar-Orbit (PCTLO, or, as it is known, ‘piccolo’) “Yeah, Kathy, we’re pretty close to piccalo, just cruisin’ along.”). Even remembered as a last gasp of a dying dynamic, I don’t think Artemis II will be ‘long forgotten’.
If we’ve got lunar industrialization, bases on Mars, and mining missions among the NEOs (and perhaps the Main Belt) twenty years from now, I think Artemis 2 will be completely forgotten except among a very niche audience. Most space launches will be forgettable by then, which is as it should be.
Edward-
Valentina Tereshkova. Solo flight.
Oh, you meant American. Sorry. Not off the top of my head.
I wonder if this delay was long expected, as it seems to explain the shift in focus from Mars to the moon. With this schedule I don’t think they make the Dec 26 launch window to Mars. Flying enough of these beasts to go operational with Starlink and refueling flights in time to support a lunar base / Artemis is still within reach. Still hopeful of at least a few operational missions toward the end of the year as launch cadence increases both at Boca Chica and at the Cape. Cheers –
The Dec 26 launch window was set aside a few months ago. I think the delay might be using time to address problems that couldn’t be worked into a soon to be obsolete machine on a fast cadence. I think of the 2015 stand down of the F5 that resumed with the first landing of a new set of upgrades.
Blast
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ygvL1hrWuIg&pp=ugUHEgVlbi1VUw%3D%3D