SpaceX Starship Flight 13 Deploys 20 Starlink V3 Satellites, Booster Re-ignition Failure; Next Try to Catch

SpaceX completed the 13th test flight of its Starship, the second flight of the upgraded V3 version. The second-stage Ship achieved all major objectives, while the first-stage Super Heavy booster performed well for most of the flight but failed to re-ignite enough engines during the landing phase, resulting in an ocean impact at a higher-than-planned speed.

The launch experienced a hold. During the first attempt on July 16, the Starship countdown reached zero and the engine ignition sequence began, but four of the Super Heavy booster's 33 Raptor engines failed to ignite. Under the launch license conditions, the Starship could have at most two engines out at liftoff, so the flight computer automatically aborted. SpaceX subsequently found that six engines had abnormal rotation responses in their liquid oxygen turbopumps, including the four that did not ignite and two others that had abnormal operating states. SpaceX replaced the six Raptor engines and performed rotation checks and other verification tests after the engines had cooled down.

From the actual flight results, the 13th Starship test flight achieved several advances. The 33 engines on the Super Heavy booster and the six engines on the Ship performed normally during their respective powered flight phases, and the hot-stage separation between the two stages was completed successfully. For the first time, the V3 booster used all 33 engines for the high-thrust phase of the boost-back burn, which aimed to cancel the booster's horizontal momentum and guide it to the planned recovery or splashdown zone. The Starship deployed 20 functional next-generation Starlink V3 satellites. All 20 satellites were released, then deployed their solar panels and antennas, established radio frequency and laser communication links, and transmitted telemetry data to the ground. The satellites burned up during re-entry about 20 minutes later, but the mission validated the payload release, satellite deployment, and communication procedures. The Ship successfully re-ignited a Raptor engine in space for the longest duration yet tested.

Ship 40 performed a soft, controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean, remaining intact after impact and continuing to transmit telemetry data and images. The mission obtained the first high-quality footage of the Starship's complete heat shield after a full re-entry under higher dynamic pressure conditions.

The first-stage booster's end-of-mission recovery remained the most notable shortcoming. Of the 13 engines planned for the landing burn, only about eight appeared to have successfully re-ignited. Due to insufficient deceleration thrust, the booster did not achieve a soft, controlled splashdown but struck the ocean at a relatively high speed.

The thermal protection system remains a key risk for the Starship program. A launch attempt originally scheduled for July 23 was postponed due to weather conditions, as SpaceX wanted to maintain clear visual observation conditions to photograph the heat shield tiles during ascent. The Starship heat shield is still undergoing continuous iteration and is one of the higher-risk, lower-maturity parts of the overall system.

Deploying 20 functional Starlink V3 satellites in this 13th flight was one of the most commercially significant changes. Previous Starship test flights focused on engines, stage separation, flight attitude, and re-entry capability. This mission began to verify the deployment process for real satellite payloads. Even if Starship can only achieve partial reusability at this stage, it is already capable of handling Starlink V3 satellite deployment missions.

After the 13th test flight, Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, said that if the mission data review does not reveal new issues, SpaceX will attempt to catch the second-stage Ship with the launch tower's mechanical arms on the next flight. This would be the first time SpaceX uses the launch tower's mechanical arms to capture the second-stage Ship; previously, tower recovery had targeted the first-stage Super Heavy booster.