SpaceX sets Starship Flight 12 for May 19

SpaceX has set May 19 as the next target date for Starship’s twelfth flight test, putting the company on track to debut a redesigned version of its heavy-lift rocket less than a year after Flight 11. (spacex.com) The company’s mission page says the launch from Starbase, Texas, is scheduled to begin in a window that opens at 5:30 p.m. Central time, with a live webcast starting about 30 minutes before liftoff. The test is set to introduce what SpaceX calls the next generation of both Starship and Super Heavy. (spacex.com) A company update published May 12 says the third-generation system uses Raptor 3 engines and an entirely new launch pad, with design changes aimed at full and rapid reuse. The mission also gives readers a cleaner sense of what Flight 12 is for. SpaceX says the primary goal is to demonstrate the new vehicle hardware in flight for the first time, while also carrying out a series of upper-stage tests tied to heat-shield performance, in-space engine relight and payload deployment. (spacex.com) ### What exactly is new on this version of Starship? SpaceX’s May 12 update describes Starship V3 as a broad redesign rather than a minor refresh. The company said the booster now uses three larger, stronger grid fins instead of four, has a redesigned fuel transfer tube for its 33 Raptor engines, and replaces the earlier interstage setup with an integrated hot stage. (spacex.com) The upper stage also received a clean-sheet propulsion redesign, according to SpaceX. The company said those changes support a new Raptor startup method, increase propellant tank volume and reduce aft-end enclosed areas that could trap leaked propellant. (spacex.com) A newly designed pad at Starbase is part of the test as well. SpaceX said Flight 12 will be the first mission to use that pad, making the ground system itself one of the major items under evaluation. (spacex.com) ### What will Flight 12 try to do once it leaves Texas? SpaceX says the booster’s test plan includes launch, ascent, stage separation, a boostback burn and a landing burn to an offshore point in the Gulf of America. Because this is the first flight of what the company calls a significantly redesigned vehicle, Super Heavy will not attempt a return to the launch site for catch. (spacex.com) The Starship upper stage is scheduled to pursue a longer list of in-flight objectives. SpaceX said the ship will deploy 22 Starlink simulators, with the final two intended to scan the vehicle’s heat shield and send imagery to operators. (spacex.com) A single Raptor relight in space is also planned. SpaceX said engineers have intentionally removed one heat-shield tile and painted several others white to study aerodynamic loads and imaging performance during reentry. (spacex.com) ### How does this compare with the last Starship flight? Flight 11 launched on October 13, 2025, and was the final mission using the second-generation Starship and first-generation Super Heavy booster, SpaceX said. The company reported that mission achieved its major objectives, including deployment of eight Starlink simulators, an in-space Raptor relight and a soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean. (spacex.com) That earlier flight also marked the final launch from the previous configuration of Pad 1, according to SpaceX. (spacex.com) Flight 12 therefore combines three firsts at once: a new-generation ship, a new-generation booster and a new pad. ### Does the May 19 date mean the launch is locked in? SpaceX says the answer is no. The company’s mission page says the schedule remains dynamic, and it told viewers to check its website and X account for updates. (spacex.com) The Federal Aviation Administration says SpaceX must obtain and operate under the required launch licensing authority for Starship missions from Boca Chica in Cameron County, Texas. The FAA’s Starship project page says its review covers public safety, national security, insurance and environmental impacts. (spacex.com) May 19 is the next published target, and SpaceX says viewers can follow the webcast beginning about 30 minutes before the 5:30 p.m. Central opening of the launch window on the company’s site and X account. (spacex.com) (faa.gov)