SpaceX Targets June 30 for Starship Flight 13 With New V3 Stack

BOCA CHICA, Texas — SpaceX has set June 30, 2026 as the target date for Starship Flight 13, the program's next orbital-class test mission and the second flight of the upgraded V3 hardware combination. The mission will lift off from Orbital Launch Pad 2 at SpaceX's Starbase facility, with Booster 20 — a next-generation V3 Super Heavy prototype — powering the stack off the pad alongside Ship 40, a V3 Starship upper stage.

The June 30 target, confirmed by multiple launch tracking sources, places Flight 13 within the same calendar month originally projected by SpaceX leadership. The company has stated publicly that it wants to fly Starship at least monthly through 2026 as it works toward the cadence required for eventual Mars missions and NASA's Artemis lunar landing program.

What Makes V3 Different

Starship V3 represents a generational upgrade over the hardware used in the program's first 11 flights. The V3 Super Heavy booster uses a new Raptor engine configuration designed for higher thrust and improved propellant load management. The V3 Starship upper stage incorporates structural improvements and an updated heat shield tile system intended to withstand the aerodynamic and thermal demands of orbital-velocity reentry at higher fidelity.

Flight 12, completed earlier this year, was the first outing for V3 hardware and successfully demonstrated new flight regimes including a controlled reentry profile and updated propellant crossfeed configurations. Flight 13 will build on that data, testing additional mission objectives SpaceX has not fully disclosed but which are expected to push closer to full orbit with a nominal reentry trajectory.

OLP-2 and the Pace of Starbase Development

Launching from Orbital Launch Pad 2 — rather than OLP-1, which hosted Flights 1 through 11 — reflects the maturation of SpaceX's Starbase complex. OLP-2, commissioned earlier this year, gives SpaceX the ability to turn around two Starship stacks in parallel, a critical enabler of monthly or higher launch frequency. The Mechazilla catch system will be standing by for a booster recovery attempt on Flight 13, following the successful booster catches demonstrated during 2025.

Broader Program Context

SpaceX is developing Starship to carry payloads and crews to the Moon under NASA's Human Landing System contract, and ultimately to ferry colonists and cargo to Mars. Each test flight adds to a dataset of flight-proven hardware behavior that brings both programs closer to operational status. NASA has milestone deadlines tied to Starship's readiness for the Artemis crewed lunar landing, creating scheduling pressure that makes every successful flight meaningful.

With the SpaceX IPO set to begin trading on June 12, investor attention on Starship milestones is running unusually high. A successful Flight 13 in the weeks following the public debut would provide a powerful demonstration of the company's technical momentum — and a fitting early chapter in SpaceX's new era as a publicly traded company.