SpaceX delays next Starship test launch by a month, Musk says

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said on Friday that the company's next Starship test flight will take place in May and not April as originally scheduled.

Musk posted on social media platform ‌X that ⁠the ⁠next flight of Starship's V3 vehicle was four ​to six weeks away, or in the first two ​weeks of May. Earlier, he said the first flight would take place in ​April.

SpaceX's debut of the V3 ⁠Starship iteration ‌has been delayed for ​months as ​the company has packed dozens ⁠of upgrades into the vehicle to make ​it more reliable and suitable ​for NASA missions like landing on the moon under the Artemis program.


Starship, SpaceX's next‑generation rocket, is designed to be fully reusable and carry far larger payloads ‌than SpaceX's Falcon rocket.

SpaceX's previous Starship test launch, its 11th, was ​in October.

SpaceX ​has confidentially ⁠filed for a U.S. initial public offering, Reuters reported on Wednesday, setting the stage for what ​could become the largest stock market debut on record.

The Starbase, Texas-headquartered firm is targeting a potential valuation of more than $1.75 trillion.