SpaceX successfully launched Starship Flight 13 from Starbase, Texas, deploying 20 next-generation Starlink V3 satellites while validating key in-space propulsion, re-entry, and spacecraft performance technologies.

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• SpaceX successfully launched Starship Flight 13 from Starbase, Texas, on 24 July 2026, marking another major milestone in the development of the world’s most powerful fully reusable launch system.
• During the mission, the Starship upper stage successfully deployed 20 next-generation Starlink V3 satellites into a suborbital trajectory, demonstrating the vehicle’s satellite deployment capability.
• The mission also included a successful Raptor engine in-space relight test, an important capability for future orbital missions, lunar exploration, and deep-space transportation.
• Starlink V3 satellites are designed to deliver significantly higher bandwidth, faster internet connectivity, and improved global communication services compared to earlier satellite generations.
• Six of the deployed satellites were equipped with onboard cameras to transmit live views of the Starship vehicle during flight, providing valuable engineering and mission data.
• After completing its mission, the Starship upper stage successfully re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and executed a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean while continuing to transmit telemetry.
• The Super Heavy booster successfully completed its boostback manoeuvre before making a hard splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, after fewer landing engines ignited than planned during the final descent.
• Flight 13 evaluated major hardware and software upgrades introduced after the previous mission, supporting the continued development of Starship for commercial satellite launches, human spaceflight, lunar missions, and future Mars exploration.