SpaceX reschedules the 8th Starship/Superheavy orbital test flight to March 3, 2025
SpaceX has rescheduled the 8th Starship/Superheavy orbital test flight from today to March 3, 2025, with the launch window opening at 5:30 pm (Central).
The company gave no reason for the delay, but it also indicated that the FAA has still not closed out the investigation of the Starship failure on the last test in January, nor issued the launch license.
That SpaceX is pushing for this quick launch date suggests it either expects the FAA to issue the permit momentarily, or it is purposely highlighting continuing delay tactics and is applying pressure on the agency. Unlike the Biden administration, which was very hostile to Musk and SpaceX and worked to harass it with lawfare, Trump will not take kindly to such tactics. By making such tactics patently obvious Musk and SpaceX will force Trump to step in.
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“the FAA has still not closed out the investigation”
Surprisingly it may not be all corruption. There may be an element of incompetence involved.
I worked for Verizon cellular for a few years. Their cellphone system is cobbled together mess from all the companies they’ve acquired.
“’Extremely Dire’: FAA Assesses Communication System Close To Catastrophic Failure, SpaceX Sends Starlink Terminals at NO COST to Taxpayer”
“To be clear here, the Verizon communication system to air traffic control is breaking down very rapidly. The FAA assessment is single digit months to catastrophic failure, putting air traveler safety at serious risk.”
“The Starlink terminals are being sent at NO COST to the taxpayer on an emergency basis to restore air traffic control connectivity.”
“The FAA is on the verge of canceling Verizon’s bloated $2.4 billion contract and handing it to Starlink—a move that would bring faster, safer, and more reliable air traffic control services.”
“Musk’s move raises questions about possible conflicts of interest”
https://gellerreport.com/2025/02/elon-air-safety.html/
Regardless of any FAA permitting issues, neither the SuperHeavy nor Starship were ready for today. Starship is still in the hangar having tiles installed, and the staging ring isn’t installed on the booster. And it doesn’t look like “we’ve got extra time waiting for a permit, might as well…” kind of work, but stuff that had to be done and wasn’t quite done on time.
They do have the license now, though. At least the mishap report being “open” is not getting in the way of that this time around.
https://drs.faa.gov/browse/excelExternalWindow/DRSDOCID173891218620231102140506.0001%3FmodalOpened%3Dtrue%3FmodalOpened%3Dtrue?modalOpened=true
It may well be, too, that the Starbase team was having last moment snafus to sort out, since they removed and then restored the hot stage ring today. They were awfully late getting the FTS installed, too.
Here’s hoping there won’t be any more delays in the date.
Agree with Richard, the license is in hand. Visibly, the Ship has not left the build site, indicating that they are still working on it. Otherwise, it would have been stacked already.
This is only the second flight of the Ship V2, and we all know what happened to the first flight of the V2. So I’d say it’s safe to assume that lots of little tweaks and mods are ongoing.