Starship Enters Orbital Test Phase

Starship Flight 14 achieved the programme's first orbital insertion after lifting off from SpaceX's Texas launch site. The uncrewed mission carried 26 Starlink V3 satellites and represented a transition from deliberately suborbital test trajectories.

The flight plan called for roughly six orbits at an altitude of about 275 kilometres, followed by a deorbit burn and Pacific splashdown. SpaceX is using the mission to evaluate systems needed for a fully reusable vehicle; future recovery attempts remain planned development steps.

Source: SpaceX, 2026-09-28.