SpaceX is facing potential delays for its fifth Starship flight as it seeks Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval for landing its Super Heavy booster on land rather than the Gulf of Mexico, as previously planned. The switch to a land-based landing at its Boca Chica Beach launch tower could mean a missed target date for the company's next foray into the skies. This proposed change has triggered an FAA review, which is currently considering the space company's request for modifications to its current launch license.
According to Express News, the launch originally penciled for early August by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk might be pushed back, with the FAA’s spokesperson emphasizing that safety drives the timeline in an email, but declined to state how long the review might extend, even though SpaceX is concurrently preparing for the next mission testing both the booster and upper-stage Starship.
On the other hand, MySA reports that any significant alterations to the mission profile or other changes that impact the safety analyses necessitate a license modification request, as shared by an FAA spokesman.
The towering 232-foot-tall Super Heavy booster would have to be captured by two large "chopsticks" on the launch tower, an untried technology in real-world conditions, diverging significantly from previous water landings. The potential for an explosion at the tower that could harm the environment and damage SpaceX's infrastructure is a concern that requires thorough safety evaluation before proceeding with a ground landing maneuver probably why the company is also building a second tower at its Starbase facility to safeguard test launch capabilities and facilitate the cadence of future launches.
In light of these changes, the FAA will also be gathering public input in August regarding an environmental assessment tied to SpaceX's request to increase the number of launches and landings at its South Texas site to up to 25 times, while the SpaceX team presses on with their preparation for the upcoming launch despite the looming regulatory procedure. "When the FAA reviews an application for a new or modified commercial space license, we will evaluate as appropriate policy, payload, safety, financial responsibility, and environmental impacts," further elucidated the FAA spokesman to MySA. Neither SpaceX, nor the FAA, has publicly provided a revised schedule for the company's next launch attempt, following the fourth flight's successful landing in the Indian Ocean, a mission achieving a "soft landing" for the upper-stage Starship.
.jpg){kind=link}