U.S. agency closes Starship review ahead of SpaceX’s next test flight

FILE - A SpaceX logo is displayed on a building on May 26, 2020, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Monday closed its review into a SpaceX Starship booster’s return failure that occurred during a flight test in May, clearing the way for Elon Musk’s space company to launch the rocket’s next test flight from Texas as soon as this week.

The May 22 test flight of SpaceX’s Starship rocket, the 12th test since April 2023, debuted a new version that is expected to be the centerpiece of Musk’s satellite launch business and put astronauts on the moon.

The rocket system’s Super Heavy booster launched Starship, the upper stage, from Texas into space on a path into the Indian Ocean. But Super Heavy failed its attempt to return in a controlled soft landing in the Gulf of Mexico.

Starship’s upper-stage propulsive separation maneuver during ascent — in which it blasts its own engines to rocket into space — pushed the Super Heavy booster into an unexpected position, according to SpaceX. Five of Super Heavy’s engines subsequently failed to ignite and the booster plunged into the Gulf at high speeds, exploding on impact.

The FAA, which oversees U.S. commercial rocket activities, said SpaceX’s mishap report into the failure cited heat damage on the booster during ascent and “erroneous engine alarm system settings.” The agency said SpaceX identified four corrective actions.

Reporting by Joey Roulette