FAA is done with Starship's safety review, now it's over to the birds and turtles

SpaceX has inched a little closer to being granted a license for the next Starship launch after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced it had completed the safety review of the company's Starship-Super Heavy license evaluation. This part of the process looks at issues around public health and safety as well as …

[spireite]

No doubt in my mind

I fully expect MuskX to sort the issues and get several iterations out the door to hit some part of 2025.

Whatever the situation, even excluding 2025 as the target, he'll get it up before Bezos' gig gets anything up into real orbit....

Icon , because SpaceX plume will be massive.

[Yet Another Anonymous coward]

Re: No doubt in my mind

Unless Boeing/Lockheed Martin took a senator for 'drinks' and 'convinced' him that the lesser spotted newt is a vital part of the American ecosystem

And he has a word with his colleague on the oversight committee

[spireite]

Re: No doubt in my mind

Ordinarily, I'd agree but........

NASA probably want their other kit up, and since the Artemis candle is going nowhere fast.... they'll have far more weight through other senators to keep SpaceX out of the weeds.

After all, we know the BLM are far more pricey, whatever they say. Expenditure talks, and they should have cancelled Artemis rockets by now if they has sense......... but sense is an alien word (ho,ho) to NASA.

[Flocke Kroes]

Re: No doubt in my mind

Senators would not mess around with details requiring expert knowledge. A simpler knob to turn without risk of scandal would be to prioritize other responsibilities of the US F&WS.

LM are responsible for the Orion capsule for Artemis. Artemis II is independent of Starship but the Orion for Artemis III depends on Starship landing on the Moon and another ready to meet up with Orion. Delaying Artemis III is somewhat in LM's interest: cost plus contract to store an idle Orion but this delays invoicing for the Artemis IV Orion. Delaying SpaceX might not delay Artemis III. The space suit contract is difficult and was awarded too late to be certain of being ready on time. Delays to Artemis I have delayed Artenis II - bits of the Orion from one are needed for the other, This means that currently Orion is expected to be ready later than the SLS for Artemis II - but Boeing are working on that. LM are likely to bid on other contracts that require Starship so parts of LM have an interest in Starship becoming operational.

The other place to look is United Launch Alliance (half LM and half Boeing). An operational Starship would limit opportunities for ULA's Vulcan rocket that will be ready real soon now. So would RocketLab's Neutron, Stoke Space or any of the other medium sized rockets under development. ULA is looking for a buyer so long term Starship is not a competitor to LM and Boeing's launch business (they won't have one).

The simplest explanation for any delay is under resourced agencies working with difficult regulations having to produce results that will withstand the scrutiny of Blue Origin's lawyers.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: No doubt in my mind

Hi is that Turtle Trust, this is an err "concerned citizen" and I need another month I can blame on somebody else, I mean to say, I'm concerned that a family of turtles has a made a nest on the launch pad....

[Orv]

Re: No doubt in my mind

It's Texas, people there want to obliterate the natural environment as fast as possible.

[Dostoevsky]

Re: No doubt in my mind

Well, ok, in *Dallas* they do. But I live in East Texas, and I have guns if someone tries to mess with my pine trees.

I really love pine trees. :-)

[TheMaskedMan]

Re: No doubt in my mind

"I fully expect MuskX to sort the issues and get several iterations out the door to hit some part of 2025."

Agreed. It's in their own interests to make the thing work, and work well, asap. No doubt there will be explody episodes along the way, which will delight critics' and competitors alike, but eventually it will work. At that point, said critics will slink away muttering about unfair something something...

As for Blue Origin. Well, they made a flying dildo, I guess that's something. Apart from that, cool looking mockups and blue ring plans are as good as it gets

[John Brown (no body)]

Re: No doubt in my mind

"but eventually it will work."

Oh yeah, I'm sure it will and, as you say, "explody episodes along the way", but has anyone noticed the numbers of the Starship and launcher? And the number already on the production line following the next to launch Ship 25 and booster 9? Ship 26 is already in engine test phase and others aren't far behind. That is some FAST development and pretty astounding compared to pretty much everyone else in the launch business.

[Mishak]

Fast

And that's when it's being hindered by the lack of resources that the regulator fast to expedite reviews and license applications.

SpaceX could move a lot faster than they are being allowed, as they demonstrated with the SN test flights.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: No doubt in my mind

I have always thought that based on the shape of their rockets they should rename themself to Electric Blue Origin.

[spireite]

Re: No doubt in my mind

Electric Blue Organ surely..

[DJ]

Re: No doubt in my mind

"...requiring in-orbit propellant transfer – itself needing a fuel depot in orbit, filled by a tanker variant of a SpaceX vehicle."

By 2025?

That will happen.

But only in Hollywood.

I believe we've seen this movie before -------> (icon)

[John Robson]

Re: No doubt in my mind

IF - they get a first launch today.

AND - it goes as planned

Then they can look at starting to trying to catch the boosters (since that's where the major expense is) and simultaneously put a couple of ships in orbit with the first tests of transfer.

The QD plate already exists, so the concept of refuelling isn't completely mad, but it is going to be some interesting engineering to keep the two ships attached whilst still (I assume) accelerating enough to settle the fluids into the pump intakes.

The biggest risk is still that a failed catch could cause some significant damage to stage zero...

2025 is certainly very ambitious, but if you don't set ambitious targets than they you aren't ever going to meet even reasonable targets.

(And no I don't think they'll be ready in 2025, but neither do I think that BO is likely to have all that much more than slide decks by then either.

[gecho]

There should be a pretty good chance of the next launch succeeding. The first stack was strong enough to flip end over end at supersonic speeds and survive the FTS detonation for a time. It launched with engines, and a thrust vectoring system that had already been due to be replaced with something better.

And the launch pad concrete is considerably more beefy with a water cooled steel plate on top.

[Boris the Cockroach]

Only survived the FTS going off because the charges were too small.

The new charges were tested on a ground test... produced a lot of flying scrap metal.

Anyway... lets hope it does'nt take the 120 days the wildlife service can report back in

[Anonymous Coward]

After the launch pad damage, they wanted to try again soon and "internet experts" cautioned that the concrete will need time to fully cure... well, at least it's had that curing time now!