On March 14, 2024, SpaceX’s next-generation Starship spacecraft, equipped with the powerful Super Heavy rocket, conducted its third unmanned test flight at the Boca Chica launch pad near Brownsville, Texas, USA.
Cheney Orr | Reuters
The Federal Aviation Administration may issue SpaceX its next Starship license in time for Sunday’s launch attempt, CNBC has learned.
SpaceX and its CEO, Musk, have been publicly critical of the FAA in recent weeks, urging federal regulators to expedite a license review for Starship’s fifth test flight. Just last week, the FAA said it did not expect to issue a license before “the end of November.”
Despite ongoing review, SpaceX releases statement on Monday It said that the fifth “Starship” space flight “will be launched as soon as October 13, pending regulatory approval.” The company did not say whether it expected to receive the license before Sunday.
But SpaceX’s seemingly aggressive goals are possible because the FAA’s review process has been expedited, a person familiar with the matter said Tuesday.
Regulators and partner agencies involved in the process are reviewing it faster than expected, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is in the final stages of completing its FAA review, the person told CNBC. The person, who requested anonymity to discuss the ongoing federal review, noted that any hurdles that arise this week could also prevent Sunday’s attempt from proceeding and delay approval until later this month.
In its latest statement to CNBC on Tuesday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) canceled its previous November estimate.
“In mid-August, SpaceX submitted new information for its proposed Starship/Super Heavy Flight 5 mission. The FAA is continuing to review the information. Once SpaceX meets all licensing requirements, the FAA will make a licensing decision,” the FAA said.
The Fish and Wildlife Service referred CNBC to the FAA in response to a request for comment.
On September 10, SpaceX released lengthy blog post Says the FAA delayed Starship’s fifth launch due to “redundant environmental analyses,” and claims the review was extended “for unreasonable and exasperating reasons,” as companies seek launch licenses It is said that it has encountered difficulties in the “current regulatory environment”.
The post criticized in part reports that SpaceX violated environmental regulations by using the flood system at its Starship launch pad in Texas without authorization. However, SpaceX settles fine Levied by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the federal Environmental Protection Agency for unauthorized water discharges.
Reuters First reported that the Federal Aviation Administration could approve the license as soon as this month, but did not specify whether approval could come as soon as Sunday.
An ambitious fifth launch
The sun sets behind the SpaceX Starship as it prepares for its fourth flight test at Boca Chica Beach in Brownsville, Texas, on June 5, 2024.
Brandon Bell | Getty Images
SpaceX aims to further advance the development of its massive Starship rocket with a fifth flight. It is looking to build on progress in June The fourth Starship test flight – halfway around the world, deliberately splashed down in the Indian Ocean.
As part of SpaceX’s effort to make Starship fully reusable, the company plans to attempt to return and capture the rocket’s 232-foot-tall booster.
After launching and separating from the rocket’s upper Starship section, the Super Heavy booster is expected to fly back to the launch site and land between a pair of so-called “chopsticks” on the tower. SpaceX stressed that the capture attempt would need to meet “thousands” of criteria, otherwise the booster would veer off its return trajectory and instead splash down on the Gulf Coast.
“We accept no compromise when it comes to ensuring the safety of the public and our teams and will only attempt return if conditions are right,” SpaceX said in a statement describing the flight.
The window for the fifth Starship launch will be Sunday at 8 a.m. ET from the company’s facility near Brownsville, Texas.
Starship is the tallest and most powerful rocket ever launched. Starship, fully stacked on Super Heavy boosters, is 397 feet tall and about 30 feet in diameter.
Starship systems are designed to be fully reusable and intended to be a new way to transport cargo and people beyond Earth. The rocket is also critical to NASA’s plans to return astronauts to the moon. SpaceX won a multibillion-dollar contract from the agency to use Starship as a crewed lunar lander as part of NASA’s Artemis lunar program.
About The Author
