Elon Musk has hinted that SpaceX will attempt to catch the Starship upper stage in the next launch-and-landing test (Starship Flight 14 / IFT-14).
In the most recent Starship Flight 13 launch (IFT-13), SpaceX achieved a precise attitude (angle) on landing the upper stage Starship 40 in the Indian Ocean. Just before touching the water surface, Ship 40 achieved a vertical stance, which is the key to catching it with the launch tower Chopsticks.
Achieving the required attitude, a perfect engine cutoff sequence, and a smooth landing burn in Ship 40’s vertical soft splashdown landing paved the way for an upper stage Starship catch. According to Musk, it can happen as soon as Flight 14.
“The ship landing was precise, meaning that it would have been caught by the tower arms,” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote on X.
The success of the Flight 13 Starship launch and landing test was also critical for the development and improvement of the current Starship V3 generation. The useful data will help in further refinement of the design and engineering of Starship, and help improve the landing catch precision.
Starship Landing Catch: Brief History and Future
Neither the Super Heavy rocket boosters nor the Starship spacecraft (collectively called the “Starship”) are equipped with landing legs.
Since Starship is aimed at rapid reusability, the original idea was to catch both stages of the Starship with the launch tower arms (aka the Chopsticks). Having landing legs hinders reusability in multiple ways.
SpaceX caught a Super Heavy booster using the Chopsticks for the first time during the Flight 5 Starship test on October 13, 2024. This was a historic achievement. The booster landed precisely, and the Chopsticks caught it perfectly. Musk even shared the booster’s state after the catch.
After Flight 5, Musk said that SpaceX would catch the Starship upper stage in the Flight 6 test. However, SpaceX never attempted the ship catch. However, Flight 13 has proven to be a pre-qualification test to attempt a catch in the next flight.
SpaceX had to abort the catch of the Super Heavy booster in Flight 6 because of technical reasons. However, SpaceX successfully caught the booster in Flight 7 and Flight 8 tests.
Here’s a list of successful Starship booster catches at Starbase, Texas:
- Flight 5 (October 13, 2024) — Booster 12 (B12):
First-ever successful catch, on the first attempt, at OLP-1. - Flight 7 (January 16, 2025) — Booster 14 (B14-1, first flight):
Successful catch at OLP-1. - Flight 8 (March 6, 2025) — Booster 15 (B15-1):
Successful catch at OLP-1 (despite some engine issues on boostback).
The only hurdle that can prevent SpaceX from catching Starship on Flight 14 would be an anomaly after auditing the Flight 13 landing data. SpaceX has already sent teams to recover Starship 40, which is still floating in the Indian Ocean.
After it arrives at Starbase, Texas, United States, it will be thoroughly studied for thermal protection and landing smoothness, among several other audits and analyses.
“Unless we discover problems after mission data review, SpaceX will attempt to catch the ship with the tower on next flight,” Musk stated on X.
Stay tuned for future updates on Starship and SpaceX. Follow us on:
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