SpaceX has moved the Super Heavy booster for Starship Flight 13 to Orbital Launch Pad 2 at Starbase, Texas, officially kicking off the pre-flight test campaign for what will be the 13th integrated test flight of the world's most powerful rocket. The milestone, confirmed by SpaceX on July 9, puts the program on track for a targeted launch date of July 14, 2026 — though a booster static fire test still stands between now and liftoff.
Where Things Stand
The move to the pad follows a methodical test campaign that began in early June. Booster 20 — the Super Heavy for this flight — rolled out of Megabay 1 on June 5 and completed its cryogenic proof test two days later on June 7, according to Space.com. Meanwhile, the upper stage, Ship 40, completed a 60-second static fire of all six Raptor engines on July 1, clearing a major hurdle on the vehicle side.
NASASpaceflight captured the booster lift operation at Pad 2 earlier on July 9, roughly an hour before SpaceX's official confirmation.
With Booster 20 now vertical on the pad, the next critical milestone is a static fire of its 33 Raptor engines — the test that will generate close to 20 million pounds of thrust and give SpaceX engineers the data needed to clear the vehicle for flight. That test has not yet been scheduled publicly, but its completion is the primary gate between the current pad operations and a launch attempt.
Flight 13 in Context
Flight 13 will be the second flight of Starship Version 3 (V3), the more capable iteration of the upper stage that stands 408 feet (124.4 meters) tall — about 5 feet taller than V2. The mission profile is expected to closely mirror Flight 12, including a Raptor engine relight in space and a planned soft ocean splashdown of the upper stage. No booster catch attempt has been confirmed for this flight, though SpaceX's cadence has been building toward increasingly ambitious recovery operations.
The FAA has issued advisories reflecting a NET (No Earlier Than) launch date of July 14, 2026, at 10:45 PM UTC (5:45 PM CDT). NOTAMs covering Mexican airspace have also been filed starting July 15 at 5:45 PM CDT, suggesting SpaceX has at least a two-day window in mind. Both dates remain contingent on the booster static fire going cleanly and any regulatory sign-offs that follow.
| Vehicle Element | Designation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Super Heavy Booster | Booster 20 | On pad — static fire pending |
| Starship Upper Stage | Ship 40 (V3) | Static fire complete (July 1) |
| Launch Site | Orbital Launch Pad 2, Starbase TX | Active |
| Target Launch Date | July 14, 2026 (NET) | FAA advisory issued |
Why the Pace Matters
SpaceX has been compressing the turnaround between Starship flights at a pace that would have seemed implausible two years ago. Flight 12 flew earlier this year, and the program is now targeting a roughly monthly cadence. Each successive flight adds to the operational data SpaceX needs to certify Starship for commercial payloads and, eventually, NASA's Artemis lunar landing mission. The booster static fire — and how quickly SpaceX can process the results — will be the real indicator of whether July 14 holds or slips into the following week. Follow our SpaceX coverage for updates as the static fire date is confirmed.
Sarah focuses on Tesla Energy, SpaceX missions, and the broader Musk AI portfolio. Former data analyst in clean energy. Based in San Francisco.
Sources verified at publish time. Spotted an inaccuracy? Email editorial@basenor.com.
