SpaceX said Flight 15 of Starship is preparing to launch as soon as Friday, Nov. 13, pending regulatory approval, with a 75-minute window opening at 4:45 p.m. Central Time¹.

The company said the flight is planned to be the first to return both Starship and Super Heavy to the launch site for catch¹.

If successful, SpaceX said that would mark the first full recovery of an orbital launch system¹.

The company said the ship’s first return-to-launch-site mission is expected to orbit Earth at about 275 kilometers and complete about 14 orbits over a flight lasting more than 22 hours¹.

SpaceX said the profile is designed so the vehicle can insert into a passively safe suborbital trajectory or deorbit over predetermined ocean areas after raising to orbital altitude¹.

The booster’s primary objective, SpaceX said, is a successful launch, ascent, stage separation, boostback burn and return to the launch site for catch, the first such attempt for a Super Heavy V3 booster¹.

The company said three V1 boosters were previously caught on earlier tests, with two later reflown¹.

Starship’s primary objectives include deploying 26 Starlink V3 satellites and, if systems needed for reentry, landing burn and tower approach are healthy, the first ship catch at Starbase, SpaceX said¹.

Each Starlink V3 satellite is intended to add 1 terabit of capacity, SpaceX said, with the 26 satellites equaling about 10 Starlink V2 Mini launches on Falcon 9¹.

Three of the satellites have cameras to scan Starship’s heat shield, a method SpaceX said was tested on previous flights¹.

The company said the heat shield includes Flight 14 changes, including extra tile retention in high-risk areas and a curved tile design on a large portion of the shield¹.

SpaceX said a live webcast is planned about 30 minutes before liftoff, with coverage through ship catch, and that the schedule is dynamic¹.

Sources

1. spacex.comStarship Flight 15 on 11/13 plans to catch both booster and ship2:49 PM

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