SpaceX targets a September 28, 2026 liftoff for Starship Flight 14, marking the mega-rocket’s first-ever orbital test flight from its Starbase proving ground in South Texas. The uncrewed mission aims to complete six orbits during a nearly 10-hour flight before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.
SpaceX Targets Orbital Test Flight at Starbase
SpaceX is preparing to push its towering megarocket into a completely new regime. After 13 test flights that intentionally relied on suborbital trajectories to maximize public safety, the company aims to put the vehicle into orbit for the first time. The upcoming mission is scheduled to launch no earlier than 8:15 a.m. EDT (1215 GMT) on September 28, 2026, from the Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, pending regulatory approval. Originally, the flight was set for Tuesday, Sept. 22, but the company made a change on its website stating it will launch as soon as Sept. 28, with no reason given for the launch date change.
Launch Window and Flight Timeline Mechanics
The mission operation carries a 75-minute launch window stretching from 8:15 a.m. EDT and 9:30 a.m. EDT (1215-1330 GMT) on Monday, Sept. 28, with up to two backup days for launch on Sept. 29 and Sept. 30 if weather or technical glitches prompt a delay. Following a successful wet dress rehearsal with its Starship megarocket on Sept. 24, 2026, engineers kept the schedule on track.
Unlike previous hour-long suborbital hops, Flight 14 will run nearly 10 hours as the uncrewed Starship stands 407 feet (124 meters) tall, and the more than 400-foot-tall (121 meters) Starship flies about 171 miles (275 kilometers) above Earth’s surface. The rocket components stand jointly called Starship when stacked together, with the Super Heavy serving as the rocket booster.
Starlink Deployment and Heatshield Upgrade Objectives
Starlink V3 Satellites and Heatshield Upgrade Objectives
Beyond proving orbital mechanics, the flight introduces payload deployment to the Starship testing cadence.
NASA Artemis Moon Missions and Reuse
Reaching orbit is a mandatory technical milestone for SpaceX as it works toward fulfilling NASA contracts. Company officials emphasize that mastering orbital flight is the key operational bridge toward making the entire system fully and rapidly reusable.
The upcoming flight is planned to be the first to send Starship into orbit around Earth. Flight tests until this point have intentionally flown passively safe suborbital trajectories to maximize public safety while allowing for maximum learning. By going to orbit, the next phase of developing Starship to be fully and rapidly reusable can begin, SpaceX
Meanwhile, spectators can follow the mission live on our Starship Flight 14 launch updates page, watch SpaceX’s official livestream on the SpaceX X account and the official Flight 14 mission page beginning about 30 minutes before liftoff, or tune into NASASpaceflight for 24/7 live views ahead of the Monday morning liftoff.