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


SpaceX’s construction near the rocket factory in Starbase, Texas, U.S. March 31, 2026. REUTERS/Gabriel V. Cardenas

April 3 (Reuters) - 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.

(Reporting by Sneha S K in Bengaluru; Editing by David Gregorio)

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