Starship Updates

This week brought no new Starship test flights or official updates from SpaceX on the next integrated launch from Starbase. With the focus firmly on Falcon 9’s relentless cadence and preparations for NASA’s Artemis II mission—featuring Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen—the next Starship flight remains on the horizon without a publicly confirmed No Earlier Than (NET) date. Recent public attention has shifted toward SpaceX’s broader strategic moves, including its confidential IPO filing and ongoing regulatory spats over orbital safety, rather than Starship-specific milestones. That said, internal work at Starbase likely continues ahead of Flight 8, though details remain sparse. As of April 6, 2026, SpaceX has not announced any static fire tests or stacking activities for Ship 34 or Booster 15, the presumed next pair in line.

Starbase Infrastructure

There were no significant infrastructure updates reported from Starbase this week. Previous reports from late March indicated ongoing work on Pad 2 and the orbital launch mount (OLM), but no new construction milestones, tower modifications, or deluge system upgrades were confirmed in the source materials covering the period ending April 6. With Falcon 9 operations dominating the launch manifest from both Florida and California, and Starship development operating under its usual veil of secrecy, visible progress at Boca Chica appears to be in a holding pattern. That doesn’t mean work has stopped—just that it’s happening off-camera, as is typical during lulls between major test campaigns.

Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy Operations

SpaceX maintained its blistering launch pace this week, with multiple Falcon 9 missions already completed and more on the immediate horizon. On March 30, the company successfully launched the Transporter-16 rideshare mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base, delivering 119 payloads to sun-synchronous orbit. Just hours after confirming a Starlink satellite anomaly (more below), SpaceX also launched Starlink Group 10-44 from Cape Canaveral on the same day—marking the 40th Falcon 9 flight of 2026.

Looking ahead, SpaceX is scheduled to launch Starlink Group 10-58 from Florida on April 2 at 7:52 AM EDT, followed by Starlink Group 17-35 from California the same day at 4:03 PM PDT. Both missions will deploy v2 Mini satellites and feature booster landings on autonomous drone ships. Notably, the California launch will debut a new booster, B1103—the first fresh Falcon core since January. With four Starlink missions slated for the week of April 1–6, SpaceX continues to demonstrate why reuse isn’t just economical—it’s essential to keeping up with demand.

Other SpaceX News

SpaceX made headlines beyond launches this week. On April 1, the company confidentially filed for an initial public offering (IPO), with reports suggesting a potential June debut targeting a staggering $1.75 trillion valuation. While unconfirmed by SpaceX, the move signals a possible shift toward greater financial transparency after years of private operations.

Meanwhile, SpaceX escalated a regulatory dispute with Amazon, filing an FCC complaint alleging that Amazon and Arianespace deployed 32 LEO satellites 50–90 km higher than authorized during a February Ariane 64 launch—forcing Starlink to perform 30 collision avoidance maneuvers. Amazon countered that SpaceX itself launched Amazon satellites to similar altitudes in 2025 without objection. The companies appear to be negotiating a resolution, with Amazon indicating it will lower future insertion altitudes.

On the anomaly front, Starlink-34343 suffered an on-orbit failure on March 29, generating debris tracked by LeoLabs. SpaceX confirmed the loss of contact and noted the fragments, at 560 km altitude, pose no threat to the ISS or Artemis II. The timing is delicate: Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen is scheduled to launch aboard Artemis II on April 1—a historic mission that will make him the first non-American to travel beyond Earth orbit. Gwynne Shotwell even tweeted her support: “Go Artemis II, full send to the Moon.”

Citations

• “SpaceX Files FCC Complaint Over Ariane 64 Amazon LEO Launch” – https://europeanspaceflight.com/spacex-files-fcc-complaint-over-ariane-64-amazon-leo-launch/
• “Launch Preview: SLS, Falcon 9, Atlas V, and Soyuz launches comprise busy launch manifest” – https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2026/03/launch-preview-033026/
• “SpaceX quietly files for big bang IPO” – https://spacenews.com/spacex-quietly-files-for-big-bang-ipo/
• “Second Starlink satellite suffers anomaly, generating debris” – https://spacenews.com/second-starlink-satellite-suffers-anomaly-generating-debris/
• “SpaceX launches Transporter-16 rideshare mission” – https://spacenews.com/spacex-launches-transporter-16-rideshare-mission/