FAA calls for mishap investigation after Starship explodes

The Federal Aviation Administration will require SpaceX to conduct a mishap investigation following the apparent midair explosion of Starship S33 during the company’s seventh suborbital Starship test flight on Thursday, the agency announced Friday morning.

The Starship lost at least three of its engines in the seconds leading up to the ship’s destruction, which occurred about eight-and-half minutes after the launch from Boca Chica Beach, when SpaceX mission control lost contact with the vehicle. The uncrewed, experimental prototype had reached a speed of approximately 13,246 mph and an altitude of more than 90 miles when contact was lost, according to telemetry data transmitted up to that point.

The launch from Boca Chica took place at 4:37 p.m. Thursday. SpaceX achieved one of its goals with Flight 7: the second-ever return and “catch” of a Super Heavy booster rocket at the launch tower, just short of seven minutes after liftoff.

The flaming remnants of the Starship made for spectacular fireworks passing directly over the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British Overseas Territory 90 miles north of Haiti and 1,600 miles east of the Boca Chica Beach.

SpaceX spectators look up at Starship’s seventh launch Thursday, Jan. 16, 2024, along Texas State Highway 48. (Miguel Roberts | The Brownsville Herald)

The FAA said there were no reports of public injury, but that it is “working with SpaceX and appropriate authorities to confirm reports of public property damage on Turks and Caicos.”

The agency said it activated a Debris Response Area during the event, briefly grounding some aircraft at their departure airports and slowing or diverting some flights to keep them away from falling debris.

“Several aircraft requested to divert due to low fuel levels while holding outside impacted areas,” FAA said.

The agency said a Debris Response Area is activated when a “space vehicle experiences an anomaly” causing pieces to fall outside the FAA’s designated hazard area closed to aircraft during a spacecraft test flight.

“A mishap investigation is designed to enhance public safety, determine the root cause of the event and identify corrective actions to avoid it from happening again,” the agency said.

“The FAA will be involved in every step of the SpaceX-led mishap investigation process and must approve SpaceX’s final report, including any corrective actions. A return to flight is based on the FAA determining that any system, process or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety.”

In a blog post, SpaceX said it will “conduct a thorough investigation, in coordination with the FAA, and implement corrective actions to make improvements on future Starship flight tests.”

“Starship flew within its designated launch corridor — as all U.S. launches do to safeguard the public both on the ground, on water and in the air,” the company said. “Any surviving pieces of debris would have fallen into the designated hazard area.”

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk posted on social media that the “preliminary indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall that was large enough to build pressure in excess of the vent capacity. Apart from obviously double-checking for leaks, we will add fire suppression to that volume and probably increase vent area. Nothing so far suggests pushing next launch past next month.”

Starship’s Raptor engines are fueled by liquid oxygen and liquid methane. SpaceX is currently seeking permission from FAA for up to 25 launches a year, and 25 landings each of the Starship and Super Heavy, at Boca Chica.

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