Starship Flight 12 ONE DAY Delayed due to…Final Preparations is Kind of Mind-Blowing!

Oops. Oof. We need to adjust the schedule for Starship Flight 12 once again. Because of course, the timeline has officially slipped by another day. Still, despite the delay, SpaceX continues moving at an absolutely relentless pace behind the scenes. Meanwhile, Dragon successfully docked with the International Space Station once again, almost casually at this point, prompting an interesting reaction from Elon Musk. And over at ULA, Vulcan's solid booster testing achieved an important success, although the rocket's return to flight timeline remains uncertain. So let's break everything down on today's episode of Great SpaceX. Previously, the target launch day for Starship Flight 12 was May 19th. To prepare for that timeline, SpaceX scheduled consecutive road closures for transport operations and coastal testing activities leading up to launch day. But now, the schedule appears to have shifted by one more day. According to updates posted on X and the company website, the launch is now targeting May 20th instead, while the planned 5.30pm launch window remains unchanged. And honestly, this kind of delay is not surprising anymore. Starship development operates on what engineers would probably call high-speed controlled chaos. One delayed test quickly affects the next test, which affects rollout timing, which affects launch preparation, and suddenly, an entire schedule slides sideways like a shopping cart with one broken wheel. The earlier primary test date of May 17th was removed, while May 18th became the new primary test opportunity. That likely made a May 19th launch unrealistic, especially if SpaceX wanted to preserve additional backup time in case something needed another inspection or retest. So naturally, the big question now becomes this. How is work on the actual vehicles progressing? S39 had already been transported to Massey's for testing. Then, during the afternoon of the 15th, the ship underwent multiple important procedures, including cryogenic testing, spin-prime testing, and igniter testing. These are critical milestones for any Starship vehicle. Cryogenic testing verifies that the tanks and plumbing can safely handle extremely cold propellants, spin-prime testing checks turbopump behavior before ignition, and igniter testing confirms the system's responsible for starting the engines. It's basically like making sure your car has brakes, fuel, and an engine before entering a NASCAR race. After completing those tests, S39 returned to the production site during the morning of the 16th. The ship quickly moved into Megabay 2, where a very interesting process began unfolding. Before S39 even arrived, the PEZ dispenser payload system containing the simulated Starlink payloads had already been moved into Megabay 2 during the evening of May 15th before later traveling to the Sanchez site. Then, by the end of the 16th and into the beginning of the 17th, the payload hardware returned once again to Megabay 2. Crews were soon observed opening the container and exposing the payloads intended for Flight 12. That strongly suggests payload loading operations were completed shortly afterward, and honestly, watching Starship payload operations still feels surreal, because the PEZ dispenser system generally looks like somebody at SpaceX saw a candy dispenser and thought, you know what? We can orbitalize that. Meanwhile, another major clue appeared on the afternoon of the 16th. The ship transport stand returned to Megabay 2, and S39 was lifted directly onto it. That usually means rollout preparations are entering the final stages. In other words, once SpaceX decides the ship is ready, it can head to the launch site almost immediately. With testing scheduled for the 18th, the timing strongly suggests the vehicles would need to roll out either late on the 17th or early on the 18th. Otherwise, SpaceX would risk conducting tests very late in the day or pushing activities another 24 hours. At the time this episode was prepared, no official road closure had yet been announced But based on the current pace of operations, the rollout window likely falls very close to those estimated timeframes. Booster 19, however, remains a little more mysterious. Unlike S39, which has been highly visible during recent operations, SpaceX has revealed very little regarding B19 since it returned to the production site. Most likely, the booster is undergoing inspections while crews finalize installation of the FTS, and considering the compressed timeline, there is now a real possibility that S39 and B19 could roll out extremely close together, potentially even during the same road closure period. If that happens, it would create a truly unusual dual rollout operation heading toward the same launch destination. Previously, SpaceX had transported multiple stages in short periods of time, but usually towards separate facilities or testing objectives. This time, however, both vehicles would be heading toward a single target. And honestly, seeing two massive Starship stages traveling together would probably feel like watching two skyscrapers go on a road trip. Meanwhile, the launch site itself has become unbelievably active. Over the past several days, SpaceX has carried out an aggressive testing campaign focused heavily on Pad 2 systems. Earlier updates already confirmed that the launch tower chopsticks had been lowered into position. Afterwards, SpaceX conducted several water deluge system tests, including two separate tests on the 14th and another on the 15th. Then, during the evening of the 15th, crews executed a much larger integrated systems test involving the BQD or booster quick disconnect system, the SQD or ship QD, launch clamps, chopsticks, and another water deluge sequence. On the 16th, another deluge test occurred during the early afternoon. Then, later that evening, SpaceX initiated a larger operation beginning with heavy tank farm venting before ending once again with a full water deluge test. On the 17th, the pace continued with additional testing involving the chopstick stabilizer arm, tank farm systems, tower operations, and yes, yet another deluge test. At this point, the water deluge system is working harder than most gym memberships in January. 7 major tests in just 4 days, including 3 consecutive days with 2 tests each day. That is an unprecedented workload for Pad 2's deluge system, especially considering this upgraded pad also includes the new flame trench design. Naturally, some people are beginning to wonder whether SpaceX is testing the system this aggressively because something went wrong. And to be fair, repeated testing often raises those kinds of concerns. But honestly, this likely reflects the opposite situation. SpaceX probably wants to prove that the system is functioning consistently and can maintain a sustained operational pace ahead of flight 12. Because after the issues seen during earlier Starship launches, the company clearly understands just how important launch pad durability has become. And based on everything we're seeing, SpaceX appears exceptionally prepared heading into this next campaign. The pace of work happening simultaneously across the vehicles, launch tower, tank farm, and ground systems is honestly difficult to compare with any other aerospace organization right now. Even with another delay, the machine keeps moving. So yes, flight 12 may be slipping by another day, and yes, additional delays remain possible, but the overall momentum behind the program still looks extremely strong. So if you're still here waiting for flight 12, let me know with a number 12 in the comments so I know the real Starship fans are still watching. And of course, don't forget to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you can continue following SpaceX's development journey with us! Now let's move to another major story involving Dragon and the International Space Station. In the previous update, we discussed the successful launch and orbital insertion of the CRS-34 Dragon mission. Now, in the latest development, Dragon has successfully docked with the ISS. The spacecraft arrived at the orbital outpost on the 17th at approximately 6.37 AM Eastern. Dragon autonomously docked with the forward-facing port of the Harmony module, and according to NASA astronaut Jack Hathaway, Dragon contact and soft capture complete. SpaceX later confirmed the achievement on X by stating, Docking confirmed, Dragon has arrived at the space station. Inside the station, astronaut Jack Hathaway and European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adeno monitored the spacecraft's arrival from the Cupola observation module. Over the coming weeks, the Expedition 74 crew will unpack nearly 6,500 pounds of cargo before eventually repacking Dragon with completed scientific experiments, hardware, and station waste for return to Earth in mid-June. But interestingly, one of the most notable moments following docking was actually Elon Musk's reaction. Alongside the statement of SpaceX Dragon spaceship docking with the International Space Station, Musk added, While we never want to be complacent about it, docking with the space station has become routine. And honestly, that single sentence says a lot about where SpaceX is today, because routine spaceflight used to sound almost impossible. Now, SpaceX performs ISS docking operations so consistently that the company's biggest challenge may be reminding people how absurdly difficult this actually is. Docking a spacecraft traveling thousands of miles per hour with an orbiting laboratory the size of a football field is somehow becoming normal. That is incredible, and SpaceX absolutely deserves credit for reaching that level of operational reliability. At this point, the company has become one of NASA's most dependable ISS partners, routinely transporting both cargo and astronauts while also remaining the only spacecraft provider currently capable of returning large amounts of cargo back to Earth. Meanwhile, several competing spacecraft programs continue facing delays, launch issues, or infrequent missions. So perhaps the real question now is no longer how much Dragon can contribute to the ISS. Instead, the question becomes this, what comes after routine? Finally, let's talk about ULA and Vulcan. As many of you remember, Vulcan experienced serious concerns involving one of its solid rocket boosters during its fourth mission. Although the mission still succeeded thanks to compensation from the core booster, the incident temporarily halted Vulcan operations because of concerns regarding future national security launches. Now however, there is finally some positive news. ULA confirmed recently that Northrop Grumman successfully completed a static fire test of its GEM-63XL solid rocket booster. According to the company, the test aimed to demonstrate nozzle design enhancements which were already in work and in advanced propellant technology for future solid rocket motors across their portfolio. This test, combined with the ongoing investigation, is expected to provide critical data needed to help return Vulcan to flight status. At the moment, investigations remain active while corrective measures continue to be implemented. Officials confirmed that pieces of the booster nozzle separated and fell into extremely deep water during the anomaly, preventing recovery efforts. That differs from the nozzle issue experienced during Vulcan's second certification mission in October of 2024, where recovery efforts were more achievable. Looking back at the USSF-87 mission itself, evidence suggested that one of the four Vulcan solid rocket boosters malfunctioned before separation, creating asymmetric thrust and reducing overall performance. Fortunately, the BE-4 engines aboard the core booster successfully compensated, allowing the payload to still reach orbit. Looking ahead, ULA Vice President Gary Wentz stated, Vulcan's going to get back to flight by the end of the year and then we'll launch our manifest backlog that we have. He also added, We're available for other missions. The Commercial Lunar Payload Services Program had a lot of smaller landers and things that we could fly to do some of those precursor efforts with the moon and the mission that NASA's laying out. So we're really excited about the opportunities. And notably, Vulcan's eventual return to flight mission will likely involve launching satellites for Amazon's Kuiper Constellation. To support that effort, ULA recently moved a Vulcan core booster into the new Vertical Integration Facility A at SLC-41. ULA described the milestone by stating, A new chapter begins. The first Vulcan booster is vertical in the new Vertical Integration Facility dedicated to Amazon LEO. This milestone enables testing of first-use technologies and validates systems supporting Amazon's LEO Constellation. Amazon also stated, The first Vulcan booster is vertical inside Amazon's dedicated Vertical Integration Facility at SLC-41 as prep continues for LEO Vulcan 1, the first of 38 LEO missions on Vulcan Centaur. LEO satellites are already stacked for LV-01 and future Vulcan launches, and this step will allow ULA launch teams to validate the systems, hardware, and procedures needed to support a sustained high-cadence launch for LEO Vulcan missions. Still, despite the progress, Vulcan's path back to operational service remains extremely difficult. ULA does not just need Vulcan to fly again, it needs Vulcan to fly reliably. Because when your customers include national security payloads and billion-dollar satellites, reputation matters just as much as raw performance. So now, all eyes remain on what ULA does next. And that brings us to the end of today's episode. Thank you so much for tuning in. As always, this has been Kevin from GreatSpaceX. Until next time, keep looking up!