Elon Musk Says SpaceX Will Try to Catch a Returning Starship This Month

Musk said on SpaceX's Aug. 4 earnings call that the company will try to catch Starship's upper stage with the launch tower on Flight 14, tentatively set for late August.

The attempt needs regulatory approval, and Flight 14 is also set to deliver the first Starlink V3 satellites to a working orbit.

Starlink's connectivity business produced $4.3 billion of revenue last quarter -- the only SpaceX segment running at an operating profit.

SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) plans to catch a returning Starship upper stage with its launch tower for the first time this month.

"I'd say things look very good, and that's why we, assuming we receive regulatory approval to do so, will attempt to catch the Ship with the tower on the next flight, which is tentatively scheduled for the end of this month," CEO Elon Musk said on the company's Aug. 4 earnings call its first since going public in June.

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The confidence traces to Flight 13, which flew July 24 and ended with the Ship surviving reentry and splashing down softly in the Indian Ocean. Flight 14 is also slated to put Starlink V3 satellites into an operational orbit for the first time.

Two steps sit between here and the attempt: the preflight engine firings both vehicles still have to complete, and the regulatory sign-off Musk named.