The FAA review of the launch of SpaceX Starship has been postponed for a month

SpaceX will not be able to test its next-generation Starship rocket for some time, as the company will have to wait some more time for permission from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The release of the FAA’s final environmental review of the launch has been postponed until May 31, the agency said in a statement. update.

The environmental review, called the Program Environmental Assessment (PEA), has already passed the draft stage last year. But now the FAA says it will wait to publish its final report by the end of next month. It follows that previous ad The FAA intends to publish a review in late April, but this will not happen.

The launch in question is Starship’s first orbital test flight, when the Super Heavy launch vehicle and the Starship spacecraft will be launched into the air, and then both sections will plunge into the ocean in about 90 minutes.

The PEA concept is to assess whether the planned launch could pose a threat to public safety, such as a flight over a settlement, whether it poses national security concerns, insurance coverage and any environmental impacts of the launch. In explaining the delay, the FAA said it was finalizing the review and responding to public comments following the draft report.

“The FAA is finalizing its review of the Final PEA, including responding to comments and ensuring compliance with SpaceX’s license application,” the agency said. “The FAA is also concluding consultations and confirming mitigation measures for proposed SpaceX operations. All consultations must be completed before the FAA can issue a final PEA. ”

Although space and SpaceX enthusiasts will be unhappy with this latest delay, it is unclear whether the prototype Starship is ready for its first orbital test flight. How This was reported by space.comSpaceX CEO Elon Musk said last month that the company still needs to finish building the engines and integrate them into Starship, so he estimated May as early as possible for Starship’s first orbital test flight.

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