Elon Musk says Starship to fly again in '6-8 weeks'

Image: Theresa Cross / Space Explored

Here we are again looking at another crazy timeline from SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk on when Starship could fly again. However, a lot of work is going on down at Starbase, so maybe it’s not so far out this time?

What’s the chance he’s right?

Like every time we discuss a timeline coming from our favorite billionaire, rocket boy, techie, and media guru, we have to state to take it with a grain of salt. However, we move forward with some sense of false hope.

In a reply on Twitter, Musk stated the subsequent launch of Starship should be expected in “6-8 weeks.” But a lot happened during Starship’s first launch. Can they hit that timeline?

In April, SpaceX launched the first fully integrated Starship rocket, which flew for a few minutes before losing thrust and being terminated. An investigation is still underway as to the cause of the failure. The damage to the launch site caused by Starship is still being worked on, and the company has made a lot of progress.

Repair work is well underway at the Orbital Launch Mount. Most, if not all, of the fencing that was knocked down, is back up, and SpaceX teams are working on fixing damaged tanks. Do you remember that large crater underneath the launch mount? Well, that has actually helped SpaceX with digging as engineers are working on installing a water suppression system and whatever this “massive steel plate” Musk said is coming.

Crater left by Starship Super Heavy Booster below the Orbital Launch Mount after launch.

All of this work is in preparation for its next Starship launch. While the first flight did not make it to space, it did, however, perform much better than expected. Well, Musk’s goal was just not to blow up the pad, which it mostly succeeded at. There are many barriers that SpaceX will have to overcome, like another license from the FAA and a potential lawsuit, but building the next rocket will not be one of them.

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Flight hardware waiting in the wings

Starship 25 was rolled to the launch site and stacked on one of the two suborbital test stands a few weeks ago. There it was undergone several cryogenic fueling tests and will likely experience more tests as the potential next flight-ready Starship.

There is also Booster 9 that has been stacked and is sitting inside the High Bay. Several other boosters and ships are in various stages of assembly. SpaceX has practiced being “hardware rich” during Starship’s development. Meaning they don’t need to worry about losing a vehicle as they usually have another one finishing production soon.

So is Musk’s timeline feasible? Who knows. This is SpaceX we are talking about. The workforce can do amazing things in short amounts of time. However, if history serves us right, I wouldn’t be planning any trips to Brownsville based on that tweet.