SpaceX has now completed the first-ever static fire of a flown Super Heavy Booster, Booster 14, which is set to fly on Flight 9. Ship 35, which is also set to fly on Flight 9, is expected to be the next milestone ahead of flight, as it waits to complete engine testing at Masseys potentially as soon as next week.
Booster 14 Static Fire
On April 1, SpaceX rolled Booster 14 out to the launch site and placed it on Orbital Launch Pad A. This is the first time this booster has been outside Mega Bay 1 since returning after being caught on Flight 7. SpaceX didn’t waste any time on testing this booster, when just two days later, Booster 14 completed a 33-engine static fire, marking a significant milestone in the Starship Program.
The static fire had a normal duration of around eight seconds, and all three banks of engines could be seen igniting during the static fire. This becomes the first already flown Super Heavy Booster to complete a static fire test, and it is a part of a launch campaign for flight. As confirmed by SpaceX, Booster 14 will be reused and flown on Flight 9, and it will fly with 29 reused engines, having only four new Raptors.
Booster 14 being lifted onto the OLM (Credit: Rough Riders Show for NSF)
This is a major step in the Starship Program’s path to reusability. Going forward, each of the last four Block 1 Boosters should be reused at least once. Currently, those are Booster 14, Booster 15, Booster 16, and Booster 17. Booster 18 is expected to be Block 2, the next generation of Booster design.
Reusing these boosters and engines means SpaceX can focus on building those next-generation vehicles and engines while reusing the older-generation hardware to continue collecting flight test data. This flight will also help SpaceX gather data on booster reuse to better inform any design changes with newer-generation boosters down the line.
As for bringing back Booster 14 for a second time, SpaceX hasn’t confirmed if teams will try to bring the booster back or possibly splash it down in the Gulf of Mexico. There have been some rumblings that SpaceX might not intend to catch Booster 14 but perform high-stress testing on it. However, SpaceX has confirmed nothing regarding what teams plan to do with Booster 14 after its ascent burn.
Booster 14 before its milestone static fire (Credit: BocaChicaGal for NSF)
Ship 35
Ship 35 is still tucked away inside Mega Bay 2 since completing its cryogenic proof tests on March 11 and 12. If this ship follows Ship 34’s readiness timeline, it would be set to static fire on April 4. Given the ship is not at Masseys, this did not happen.
The ship itself might not be ready yet and needs more time to finish up assembly and upgrades, possibly related to Ship 34’s failure. The other reason could be that the Masseys Static fire trench isn’t ready after getting work done following Ship 34’s 60-second static fire. Either way, Ship 35 could roll out to Masseys next week for engine testing. There is now a road closure that could be for Ship 35’s trip to the test site as soon as April 8.
Ship 35 at Masseys for Cryo with Booster 16 (Credit: BocaChicaGal for NSF)
It is unknown if SpaceX will do another 60-second static fire or if crews will try a different test to verify any changes made to prevent another failure. Currently, April is not off the table for Flight 9 as teams were able to finish Ship 34 in 24 days after it completed its static fire. However, it is likely that Flight 9 will happen sometime in early May.
Regulatory
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has closed the Mishap investigation into Flight 7. According to the FAA, SpaceX identified 11 corrective actions to prevent a reoccurrence of the event and implemented them prior to Flight 8. It is currently unknown what the exact cause of Flight 8’s failure was compared to Flight 7, but both occurred at around the same time in flight and both led to the complete loss of the vehicle.
SpaceX shouldn’t need a license modification for this upcoming flight. Still, it requires either a safety determination or a closure of the mishap investigation into Flight 8 for return to flight. Currently, the status of either of these options is unknown.
The @FAANews has confirmed both the mishap in Starship flight 7 and New Glenn Flight 1 are closed.
Both are closed without any safety impact.@NASASpaceflight pic.twitter.com/cPOoQXtQVc
— Adrian Beil (@BCCarCounters) March 31, 2025
Orbital Launch Pad A
Given that the launch pad that will host Flight 9 just supported a static fire from Booster 14, there will be a few more steps to refurbishment before the pad is ready to host an actual launch. In the past, a good indication was the painting of the Orbital Launch Mount legs, but SpaceX hasn’t painted these since before Flight 7.
Before this static fire, one of the hold-down arms opposite the Booster Quick disconnect was replaced, which SpaceX hasn’t done during past refurbishments. The 16 static fires and eight launches may have started to wear down the booster test stand, turned Orbital Launch Mount.
(Credit: Rough Riders Show for NSF)
A new addition to the Launch Pad is a high-pressure gas line running up the back side of the launch tower to the Ship’s Quick Disconnect. This could be a Carbon Dioxide line for a newer fire suppression system on the ship, this would replace the nitrogen system that was installed for Flight 8. If this is for a purge system it might indicate that the system on Flight 8 didn’t exactly do its job.
Featured Image: Booster 14 Second Static Fire (Credit: BocaChicaGal for NSF)
The post Booster 14 Completes Milestone Static Fire Ahead of Flight 9 appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.
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