SpaceX published images showing a fully fueled bundle of the Starship spacecraft and the Super Heavy booster installed on the launch pad. According to the company, they are fully ready for launch, and all that is required for it is a permit from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Starship and Super Heavy were loaded with more than 10 million pounds of propellant today in a flight-like rehearsal ahead of launch pic.twitter.com/VbBTdR5h9p
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 25, 2023
The refueling test was conducted on the territory of the Starbase test site, located near the Texas village of Boca Chica. It used a booster with the designation B9 and a prototype of the spacecraft S25. They were fueled with more than 4,500 tons of fuel, consisting of methane used as fuel and oxygen as an oxidizer.
The last test was the next link in the chain of recent tests, which included a series of burns of both the booster and the Starship. SpaceX claims that they are fully ready for the second orbital flight of the spacecraft, and all they need is a launch permit from the FAA.
But the FAA has not yet issued the appropriate license, which caused a wave of criticism of the organization from SpaceX. The company calls for a number of measures to be taken to keep up with the industry. These include an increase in the number of employees responsible for issuing permits and accelerated consideration of applications for programs of strategic importance.
At the same time, according to various specialized media, SpaceX and the FAA continue active negotiations on the issue of a new license. If it is received soon, the Starship flight may take place as early as November.
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