| Mission type | Flight test |
|---|---|
| Operator | SpaceX |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Ship 38 |
| Spacecraft type | Starship (Block 2) |
| Manufacturer | SpaceX |
| Payload mass | ~16,000 kg (35,000 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | NET October 13, 2025 at 6:15pm CDT (23:15 UTC) [1] |
| Rocket | Super Heavy (Block 2, B15-2) |
| Launch site | Starbase, Pad-1 |
| End of mission | |
| Landing site |
|
| Payload | |
| 8 Starlink mass simulators | |
| Mass | ~16,000 kg (35,000 lb) [2] [3] |
Starship flight test 11 will be the eleventh flight test of a SpaceX Starship launch vehicle, utilizing Booster 15 and Ship 38. [4] It will be the last flight of a Block 2 Starship vehicle, and will fly a similiar profile to the previous two flights. [5] According to Eric Berger, Flight 11 will likely test further heat shield modifications, along with additional tests of the Raptor engines, [6] with a later statement by SpaceX employee Bill Gerstenmaier contradicting this, stating that the ship would fly a more operational heat shield. [7] SpaceX would later confirm that the ship would still have some tile experiments, involving removing tiles that lack an ablative backup section. The booster, with 24 flight-proven engines, will test configurations planned to be used by Block 3 boosters upon landing before being expended. [8]
B15 was rolled back to Mega Bay 1 on March 8 for refurbishment, [9] after having flown on flight 8. [10] It was then rolled to Pad 1 on September 5, and stacked onto the OLM on September 6. Booster 15 then performed a 33 engine, 9 second duration static fire on September 7. [11] B15 then rolled back to MB1 on September 8. [12]
S38 was rolled to the Massey's test site for cryogenic testing on July 27. [13] On July 30, S38 conducted three separate cryogenic proof tests, [14] followed by a return to the production site on August 1. [14] Engine Installation began on August 14 with two Vacuum Raptors entering MB2. [15] S38 rolled out to the OLP-1 at the Starbase Launch Site on the 17th of September, S38 was then lifted onto the Launch Mount for static fire testing. [16] The first attempt at a static fire was aborted as the vehicle began propellant load on September 18. [17] It re-attempted a static fire, but it was aborted for unknown reasons during propellant loading. [18] Ship 38 then conducted a 6 engine, 8 second duration static fire on September 22. [19]
The mission profile for flight test 11 will be similar to the previous flight test, with the ship targeting a splashdown in the Indian Ocean and the booster conducting landing burn experiments over the Gulf of Mexico. Eight Starlink simulators will be deployed, along with a relight test. [8]
| Time | Event | October 13, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| −01:15:00 | Flight director conducts a poll and verifies go for propellant loading | Planned |
| −00:53:00 | Starship oxidizer (liquid oxygen) load start | Planned |
| −00:46:10 | Starship fuel (liquid methane) load start | Planned |
| −00:41:15 | Super Heavy fuel (liquid methane) load start | Planned |
| −00:35:52 | Super Heavy oxidizer (liquid oxygen) load start | Planned |
| −00:19:40 | Super Heavy and Starship engine chill | Planned |
| −00:03:20 | Starship propellant load complete | Planned |
| −00:02:50 | Super Heavy propellant load complete | Planned |
| −00:00:30 | Flight director verifies go for launch | Planned |
| −00:00:10 | Flame deflector activation | Planned |
| −00:00:03 | Super Heavy engine ignition | Planned |
| +00:00:02 | Liftoff | Planned |
| +00:01:02 | Max Q (moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket) | Planned |
| +00:02:37 | Super Heavy most engines cutoff (MECO) | Planned |
| +00:02:39 | Starship engine ignition and stage separation (hot-staging) | Planned |
| +00:02:49 | Super Heavy boostback burn start | Planned |
| +00:03:38 | Super Heavy boostback burn shutdown | Planned |
| +00:03:40 | Hot-stage jettison | Planned |
| +00:06:20 | Super Heavy landing burn start | Planned |
| +00:06:36 | Super Heavy landing burn shutdown | Planned |
| +00:08:58 | Starship engine cutoff (SECO) | Planned |
| +00:18:33 | Payload deploy demo start | Planned |
| +00:25:33 | Payload deploy demo complete | Planned |
| +00:37:49 | Raptor in-space relight demo | Planned |
| +00:47:43 | Starship atmospheric reentry | Planned |
| +01:03:30 | Starship is transonic | Planned |
| +01:03:52 | Starship is subsonic | Planned |
| +01:05:58 | Starship landing burn | Planned |
| +01:06:00 | Starship landing flip | Planned |
| +01:06:09 | Landing burn 3 to 2 engines | Planned |
| +01:06:25 | Starship splashdown | Planned |
| Source: SpaceX [8] | ||