FAA approves Starship’s ninth flight from Boca Chica Beach

The Federal Aviation Administration announced Thursday that it is giving SpaceX the green light to launch Starship from Boca Chica/Starbase for the rocket’s ninth suborbital test flight.

The FAA’s “return to flight” determination follows completion of a SpaceX-led mishap investigation into the loss of Starship S34 during Flight 8 on March 6, when the six-engine rocket exploded less than 10 minutes after liftoff, scattering debris over the Caribbean and Atlantic.

Flight 8 ended in a similar fashion to Flight 7 (Jan. 16), when Starship S33 disintegrated over the Caribbean, raining pieces over the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The FAA said it decided to allow Flight 9 to proceed after determining that SpaceX “satisfactorily address the causes of the (Flight 8) mishap,” and will verify that SpaceX implements all the corrective actions the FAA deems necessary.

“The FAA’s determination of when a vehicle involved in a mishap can resume operations is based on public safety,” the agency said in a statement.

In making such a determination, the FAA weighs several factors, including the nature of the mishap, whether safety-related systems performed adequately, and “generation of unplanned debris,” the agency said.

“Prior to making a return to flight determination, the FAA must find that any system, process, or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety or any other aspect of the operator’s license,” according to the agency.

The FAA said it concluded that “SpaceX meets all of the rigorous safety, environmental and other licensing requirements.”

The agency said it is in “close contact and collaboration” with the United Kingdom, Turks and Caicos (a British overseas territory), the Bahamas, Mexico and Cuba while the FAA “continues to monitor SpaceX’s compliance with all public safety and other regulatory requirements.”

For Flight 9, the agency said it issued two “comprehensive environmental assessments,” one of which modifies SpaceX’s existing license, to allow up to 25 Starship/Super Heavy booster launches from Boca Chica, and the other which updates airspace closures.

“Both found no significant safety or environmental impacts,” the FAA said.

SpaceX’s mega rocket Starship is prepared for a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, Sunday, March 2, 2025. (Eric Gay/AP Photo)

The agency said SpaceX is required to update its flight safety analysis (FSA) to include outcomes from all previous flights (mishaps included), and “calculate and establish hazard areas.”

The FSA should include potential risk to human populations (on or off the flight path), the possibility for Starship failure and resulting debris “propagation and behavior” in addition to other considerations, the FAA said. This is among the data used to “determine and implement measures to mitigate public risk,” the agency said.

“The FAA is expanding the size of hazard areas both in the U.S. and other countries based on the updated flight safety analysis, and because SpaceX intends to reuse a previously launched Super Heavy booster rocket for the first time,” the agency said.

The 33-engine Super Heavy B14 booster used for Flight 8 was successfully retrieved at the launch tower for reuse. SpaceX plans to pair it with Starship S35 for Flight 9.

For Flight 9, the Aircraft Hazard Area, or AHA, (used by air traffic control to keep aircraft away from rockets in flight, or airborne pieces of rockets) covers approximately 1,600 nautical miles, extending east from Boca Chica through the Straits of Florida, including the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands. By comparison, the AHA for Flight 8 was 885 nautical miles.

Ultimately, SpaceX is responsible for any impacts from mission failure, the FAA said.

“SpaceX is responsible for the operation of its vehicle, including in the event of a mishap,” according to the agency. “The FAA requires SpaceX to maintain liability insurance in the amount of $500 million to cover claims resulting from the launch and flight of the Starship Flight 9 mission.”

Notices to pilots and mariners from the FAA and Coast Guard, respectively, suggest Flight 9 could launch the last week of May or the first week of June, though SpaceX has yet to announce an official date and time.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk posted on X on May 13 that Flight 9 would launch “next week,” though that window is rapidly closing and not reflected in updated notices from the FAA and the Coast Guard.

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