Starship Flight 4
Fourth Starship integrated flight test. First soft splashdown of both stages; first ship reentry from orbital velocity, completed despite severe forward-flap damage.
LIFTOFF
JUN 06 2024launched from OLP-1 Starbase
aboard Starship Block 1 Flight 4 into Suborbital
Notes from the launch
The first three Starships had broken apart at altitude, on reentry, or above the Gulf during a landing burn. For the fourth, the goal was to have both stages survive to the ocean.
On 6 June 2024, Booster 11 lifted from Starbase, lost one Raptor seconds after clearing the tower, and continued to fly the planned trajectory — completing a hot-staging separation, returning to a "virtual tower" point above the Gulf, and softly splashing down. SpaceX leadership claimed half-centimetre accuracy on the simulated catch.
Ship 29 was the harder problem. During atmospheric reentry over the Indian Ocean — the first completed from orbital velocity by a Starship — its forward flap partially burned through, the live camera looking out at the melting hinge in real time. The ship held attitude and completed a landing burn, splashing down six kilometres from the target centre.
Broadcast
Watch how the launch went
Vehicle components · 2
- 01 Booster B11Landed
- 02 Spaceship S29Landed
Payload
Unnamed payload
Flight test