Initial Flight Of Heavy-Lift Booster Planned For November

SpaceX is targeting November of this year for the first flight of its Falcon Heavy booster, but that first launch may be more than just a test flight.

Universe Today reports that SpaceX president and CEO Gwynne Shotwell has said that a number of companies have expressed an interest in being paying customers for that first launch. Shotwell said that while there is less riding on a straight-ahead test flight without a customer, a payload has not been ruled out.

SpaceX has in the past said that it plans to make the first Falcon Heavy flight usefull, either by boosting a payload to Geostationary Orbit or demonstrating to the military and other national security entities its ability to deliver their payloads.

And while the November launch date for Falcon Heavy is a goal, it is certainly not etched in stone. It was initially intended to be flown in 2013, but has experienced several delays.

Once it is operational, the Falcon Heavy will be the most powerful rocket flying, at least until NASA gets the SLS ... literally ... off the ground.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.spacex.com