On Thursday, January 16, 2025, SpaceX’s giant rocket Starship launched into space and performed a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas.
Eric Gay | Associated Press
The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday that SpaceX’s Starship rocket will be grounded until the company and regulators complete an investigation into an in-flight failure on a recent test flight that forced the airline to reroute.
The watchdog noted in a statement that while there were “no reports of public harm,” it had received “reports of damage to public property in the Caribbean Islands of Turks and Caicos.”
SpaceX must complete its investigation and take any necessary corrective actions before the FAA issues the company a new license to launch Starship again.
FAA diversions and delays Dozens of commercial airline flights – Includes several operators American Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Delta Air Lines – back Starship rocket exploded minutes after launch on Thursday, raining down debris.
SpaceX said in a statement that it believed a fire on the vehicle caused the Starship to break apart. Videos posted on social media by people in the region showed the rocket exploding in space.
This screenshot taken from a social media video shows debris from a Texas-launched SpaceX rocket spotted over the Turks and Caicos Islands on January 16, 2025, as an orange ball of light flies across the sky.
Marcus Haworth @marcusahaworth | Marcus Haworth via Reuters
Notably, the FAA said it activated a “debris response zone” to warn aircraft of debris falling “outside the identified enclosed aircraft hazard area.”
Before a rocket launches, the FAA issues “aircraft hazard zones” to tell pilots where debris could fall if something goes wrong during launch.
SpaceX’s “Aircraft Hazard Zone” map released ahead of its seventh Starship flight.
Federal Aviation Administration
SpaceX initially posted a statement on its website on Thursday that Starship debris “fallen into the Atlantic Ocean within a predetermined hazard area,” seemingly contradicting the FAA’s explanation of why a “debris response area” was activated.
As of Friday morning, SpaceX’s latest statement did not include this specific language. The company’s website states more broadly that “any surviving debris falls into designated hazard areas” after a failure.
In response to CNBC’s request for clarification on whether Starship debris fell outside the intended hazard zone, the FAA reiterated that its “information is preliminary and subject to change.” SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment.
