Starship preps Flight 12
SpaceX is conducting preflight ground tests and gearing up for Starship’s 12th test flight, with a likely launch window opening in early April as the company keeps its rapid test cadence. The program’s pace continues to set expectations for hardware‑first career paths and iterative test‑validation workflows. (digitaltrends.com)
Ship 39 is the first Block‑3 (V3) Starship hardware slated for Flight 12 and has completed multiple cryogenic proof and full cryogenic‑loading runs at Massey’s test site this winter, including consecutive full cryo loads on Feb. 28–Mar. 1. (nasaspaceflight.com) A newly installed truss on the static‑fire stand at Massey’s can apply loads to the ship’s forward and aft flaps plus the payload bay to simulate the stresses associated with a future tower‑catch by Super Heavy. (nasaspaceflight.com) Booster 19 — the Block‑3 Super Heavy paired with Ship 39 for Flight 12 — completed multiple cryo proof tests before rolling out to Pad‑2 for an integrated booster static‑fire campaign. (nasaspaceflight.com) Early static‑fire activity is being phased in with next‑gen Raptors rather than an immediate full cluster burn, with on‑site footage and reporting showing an initial hotfire using a subset of Raptor‑3 engines (reports indicate a ten‑engine run during initial testing). (youtube.com) The Massey test complex upgrades and the decision to proceed via incremental loads reflect post‑anomaly hardening after Ship 36’s destructive static‑fire explosion in June 2025 and Booster 18’s gas‑system pressure anomaly in November 2025, both of which prompted rebuilds and new ground‑support hardware. (spaceflightnow.com(engadget.com)) Block‑3 vehicle changes on Flight 12 include larger propellant margins and updated docking/payload‑bay hardware intended to enable in‑orbit refueling demonstrations and more ambitious orbital profiles once validated on this test campaign. (nasaspaceflight.com)
