First Flight Of Next-Generation Starship Postponed Again
Credit: SpaceX
In the first half of March, SpaceX founder Elon Musk announced that the first test flight of the new version of the Starship spacecraft had been postponed to early April, although it was originally scheduled for March 9. Now, the deadline has been pushed back by another month or even a month and a half, according to new statements from the billionaire.
Thus, the launch, previously expected in April 2026, has been pushed back again, now tentatively to May. I posted a similar message about 4-6 weeks four weeks ago.
The third-generation version of Starship has been significantly improved. Super Heavy V3 is equipped with 33 Raptor 3 engines with increased thrust and a simplified design (many components are integrated directly into the engine). The number of grid stabilizers has been reduced from four to three, but each one has become approximately 50% larger and stronger.
The booster received an optimized fueling system, simplified pipelines, and an improved “hot” stage for stage separation. The Starship itself has also become slightly taller and can carry more propellant. These changes are aimed at increasing reliability, reducing weight, and accelerating production and flight times.
Starship’s previous test flight, the eleventh in its development lifecycle, took place on October 11th of last year, but it involved a second-generation vehicle. Considering SpaceX recently filed for an IPO, aerospace setbacks are certainly not an option for the company, in terms of protecting its reputation. The Artemis 3 mission, scheduled for mid-2027, involves docking the Orion spacecraft with a lander in low-Earth orbit. The latter will be provided by either SpaceX or Jeff Bezos’s rival Blue Origin, so the success of the third version of Starship is crucial for Elon Musk in terms of realizing his personal ambitions.
