SpaceX prepares first catch attempt of the Starship upper stage

SpaceX sets up a first for the Ship

SpaceX launched Starship from Texas on Friday afternoon for the programme's 15th test flight, according to Engadget. The flight plan included a goal the company had never attempted before: catching the upper stage, known as the Ship, with the launch tower's chopstick arms.

The company has caught Super Heavy boosters this way several times and has even reflown them, but a catch of the Ship has never been tried. Flight 15 was meant to go further still, with a planned double catch in which the Super Heavy V3 booster and then the Ship would both return to the launch site.

The booster catch was aborted

The flight did not go fully to plan. Engadget reports that the Super Heavy booster ran into a problem on its descent and aborted its catch attempt. It changed course to splash down in the Gulf, and exploded before it reached the water.

Despite the booster loss, the mission achieved some of its main objectives. The Ship deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites into orbit during the flight.

The Ship's first landing attempt

The upper stage kept flying long after the booster was lost. It has circled Earth in orbit for roughly 22 hours since launch, which is far longer than the quick hop profiles of earlier flights.

The Ship was expected to make its landing attempt shortly after 4PM ET on Saturday, the day after launch. SpaceX has been streaming the flight live on its website and on X, so the catch attempt can be watched as it happens.

Why a Ship catch matters

Catching the booster has already let SpaceX reuse Super Heavy hardware, and catching the Ship would extend that approach to the upper stage. Reusing both stages is central to SpaceX's plan to fly Starship often and cheaply.

A successful catch of the Ship would be a first for the programme, while the booster loss on Flight 15 shows the V3 booster still has work to do before routine double catches become reality.