Report: SpaceX Waited to Alert FAA About Starship Explosion

Explosions during Starship test flights in January and March created air travel disruptions and diversions.

Jack Daleo

Tuesday, December 23, 2025 at 09:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

SpaceX’s Starship rocket and Super Heavy booster stand nearly 400 feet tall when stacked and are designed to be reusable. [Credit: SpaceX]

Key Takeaways:

SpaceX reportedly delayed informing the FAA for 15 minutes about a Starship explosion during a January test flight, leading to potential air safety risks for commercial aircraft.
According to FAA documents, this delayed reporting led to increased air traffic control workload and forced some pilots to declare fuel emergencies, though SpaceX disputes that any aircraft were at risk.
The incident highlights the growing challenge of safely integrating the rapidly increasing number of commercial space launches, primarily driven by SpaceX, into existing air traffic control systems.
The FAA has since implemented measures like expanded hazard areas and improved communication for future Starship flights, while also facing scrutiny for temporarily suspending a panel on spaceflight debris risks.

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After SpaceX’s gargantuan Starship rocket exploded and disrupted air travel during a January test flight, the company was reportedly slow to inform the FAA.

Starship had separated from its Super Heavy booster and was ascending on its seventh suborbital test flight when it experienced what SpaceX called a “rapid unscheduled disassembly,” sending hunks of debris cascading through the airspace below. Citing FAA documents, The Wall Street Journal on Monday reported that the FAA activated debris response areas—predetermined zones that are cleared of aircraft when unplanned spaceflight debris could endanger them—about four minutes after flight data stopped coming in.