SpaceX pushes Starship launch to Thursday after multiple delays

SpaceX has again shifted the launch schedule for Starship’s 12th flight test, moving the highly anticipated mission from Tuesday to Wednesday and now to Thursday as the company prepares its next-generation Starship system for flight from Starbase near Boca Chica Beach.

The launch window is expected to open at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. 

The schedule changes come days after a worker died at SpaceX’s complex in Starbase. 

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the death, which occurred Friday at the private rocket plant and test facility, according to multiple reports from the San Antonio Express-News and The Wall Street Journal.

The San Antonio Express-News reported that the Brownsville Fire Department responded to Starbase early Friday before being advised SpaceX emergency medical services were handling the incident. The worker has not been publicly identified.  

SpaceX has not publicly linked the incident to the launch delays.

The company said the schedule remains dynamic, which is typical for developmental flight testing.

The upcoming mission will mark the first flight of redesigned Starship and Super Heavy vehicles, along with the debut of the next evolution of the company’s Raptor engines and a newly designed launch pad at Starbase.

The test is expected to focus on validating major redesigns intended to move Starship closer to full and rapid reuse.

SpaceX said the Super Heavy booster will target an offshore landing point in the Gulf rather than attempt a return-to-launch-site catch because this is the first flight of the redesigned vehicle.

The Starship upper stage is also expected to test payload deployment, a Raptor engine relight in space, and several experimental reentry maneuvers. The mission includes deployment of 20 Starlink simulators and two modified Starlink satellites designed to test hardware planned for future Starlink V3 systems.

SpaceX said engineers also intentionally removed a heat shield tile and painted several others white to test how the system performs during reentry and to help future inspection systems analyze damage.