Focused Only On Loss Of Ship, Booster Covered By Test Exception

The FAA has required SpaceX to conduct an investigation of the Starship Flight 9 mission, which lasted significantly longer than the two previous flights but still resulted in the loss of the Ship upper stage vehicle after a propellant leak led to a loss of control and a controlled termination of the mission.

The FAA’s move is not surprising, given the developmental test nature of the Starship program thus far. SpaceX will determine what happened during the mission which also led to the loss of the Super Heavy booster, which was the first time a Super Heavy has been reflown.

The FAA said the investigation is concerned only with the loss of the Ship vehicle and not the booster, as the booster was intentionally stressed for the purpose of gathering data. The FAA confirmed that the booster loss is covered under a test-induced damage exception.

The FAA said in a statement, "The mishap investigation is focused only on the loss of the Starship vehicle, which did not complete its launch or reentry as planned."

The agency explained, "The FAA determined that the loss of the Super Heavy booster is covered by one of the approved test-induced damage exceptions requested by SpaceX for certain flight events and system components. The FAA evaluated each exception prior to launch approval and verified they met public safety requirements."

The FAA also said that airline flights were impacted only minimally, saying,  "The FAA activated a Debris Response Area, out of an abundance of caution, when the Super Heavy booster experienced its anomaly over the Gulf of America during its flyback toward Texas.”

"The FAA subsequently determined the debris did not fall outside of the hazard area. During the event, there were zero departure delays, one flight was diverted, and one airborne flight was held for 24 minutes."

FMI:  www.spacex.com/