With Masseys out of Commission, SpaceX may attempt Static Fire Ships at the Launch Site

Date:
Sun, 29 Jun 2025 17:46:41 +0000

Description:
With the Ship static fire stand and trench at Masseys out of commission, SpaceX appears The post With Masseys out of Commission, SpaceX may attempt Static Fire Ships at the Launch Site appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com .

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With the Ship static fire stand and trench at Masseys out of commission, SpaceX appears to be attempting a path toward static firing a Ship on Pad 1 (A). There are numerous elements to this plan, and its not the first time SpaceX has attempted to use a pad for a different vehicle. If successful, it could cut months off the supposed downtime due to the damage at Masseys
caused by Ship 36s explosion.



SpaceXs Ship Static Fire Problem

As covered for the past few weeks, SpaceX no longer has a way to static fire Ships at Masseys, or anywhere else, for some time. And the repair times for Masseys appear to be at least three to four months in a best-case scenario.

With this in mind, SpaceX had a few options. Option one was to repair
Masseys and have a multi-month stand-down in testing and flights while teams repaired Masseys for further development of Block 2, and later convert it to Block 3. This would result in a lengthy stand-down between flights, but once up and running again, there would likely be a quick succession of
back-to-back launches of the remaining two Block 2 Ships before switching to Block 3.

Option two is to repair and upgrade Masseys for Block 3 testing and scrap
the rest of Block 2. This would result in a long gap between any testing, as every item required to get Block 3 flying is either under construction, in development, or in need of repair. This could have led to a stand-down of flight tests for at least eight months or more. Masseys After Ship 36s RUD (Credit: Jack Beyer for NSF)

Option three, which is the most SpaceX-like of them all, would involve the repair Masseys for Block 3 and, in parallel, attempt to come up with a plan
to static fire Ships on Orbital Launch Pad 1 (A). This would allow SpaceX to continue testing and flying the remaining Block 2 Ships while preparing for Block 3 of Starship. This is what SpaceX is planning. This solution isnt as straightforward as simply placing a ship on the Orbital Launch Mount (OLM).

Firstly, the clamp systems on Ships and Boosters are not the same, which means you would need an adapter placed between the Ship and the OLM clamps. Something that could be used as an adapter rolled to the launch site on the night of June 27, this was a vacant Ship transport stand. The next step is to determine how to integrate this into the OLM to facilitate Ship static fire testing.

Teams could find a way to weld the ship stand to the OLM using several I-beams welded to the top deck plating. Part of this solution would involve having the I-beams protrude into the center opening of the OLM, as it is larger than a Ship transport stand. This solution requires modifying the OLM deck and could interfere with Booster stacking operations and launch later down the line, unless SpaceX makes the necessary modifications, performs static fires tests of Ship 37 and Ship 38, and then removes everything from the launch mount. Empty Ship Transport Stand at the Launch Site (Credit: Ceaser G for NSF)

The other solution is to modify the bottom of the ship transport stand to allow it to become compatible with the OLM Booster clamps. This prevents any welding onto the OLM and is cleaner. See Also SpaceX Starship Program L2 SpaceX Section NSF Store Click here to Join L2

There is another element to all of this: how to hook up the propellant lines, high-pressure lines, and electrical lines to the Ship.

SpaceX cant just use the Booster Quick Disconnect (BQD) since its interface is different from the Ship Quick Disconnect (SQD). Teams would likely have to take the BQD apart and run separate hoses to the SQD. Either these would connect manually to the Ship or SpaceX uses the extra SQD plate sitting in Sanchez, or alternatively, take the one from the Masseys cryogenic proof station.

Another issue is room to hook this system up, since the BQD is designed to extend and contact the QD panel on the Booster, there is possibly no room to install this makeshift SQD.

SpaceX would likely have to turn the ship to the side and run the feed lines over a makeshift gantry to hook to the Ship. This would prevent the use of
the Chopsticks to lift the Ship onto the OLM, thus requiring the SpaceX LR11000 crane to place the Ship. However, SpaceX could remove the BQD hood door and keep the plate retracted inside the main hood. This might allow for enough of a gap to install lines between the BQD plate and the SQD panel on the Ship. Ship 37 When it was at Masseys for Cryogenic Proof Testing (Credit: Jack Beyer for NSF)

The other part of the propellant loading is the tank farm and OLM itself. Currently, the software is set up for Booster static fire tests or launches, not Ships.

SpaceX will have to make software changes to disable certain parts of the OLM and set up the Booster side of the tank farm to fuel a Ship. This isnt difficult; its just another added component to this plan. Lastly, teams will need to integrate all of this and then load and proof-test it to ensure it works.

The other part of the propellant loading is the tank farm and OLM itself. Currently, the software is set up for Booster static fire tests or launches, not Ships. SpaceX will have to make software changes to disable certain parts of the OLM and set up the Booster side of the tank farm to fuel a Ship. This isnt difficult; its just another added component to this plan. Lastly, teams will need to integrate all of this and then load and proof-test it to ensure it works.

A minor timing issue is that Ship 38 still requires its cryogenic proof testing, followed by a few weeks in Mega Bay 2 to have its engines installed and prepare it for a static fire campaign. SpaceX could build and integrate this contraption onto the OLM, conduct static fires for both Ship 37 and Ship 38, and then attempt to fly both in quick succession. Teams also still need
to static fire Booster 15-2. STATIC FIRE! Super Heavy Booster 3 (B3) fires
up. A major milestone for the booster that will launch Starship on its way to interplanetary destinations!

Overview: https://t.co/P8FfplUitf

https://t.co/3kYnJ2NLkU pic.twitter.com/mcAsaDv3lO

NSF NASASpaceflight.com (@NASASpaceflight) July 20, 2021



Its not the first time SpaceX has done something like this. Five years ago, in the wild west days of the Starship program, SpaceX installed an adapter ring on Suborbital Pad A. This was to allow for the installation and testing of Booster 3 or BN3, as Orbital Launch Pad A was several months away from being ready for testing at the time. Using this setup, SpaceX cryogenically proof-tested a Booster for the first time and also completed the first static fire test campaign of a booster.

If this is successful, SpaceX would still have the chance to gather vital flight and hopefully reentry data using the last two Block 2 Ships, whilst preparing to start flying Block 3 Ships.

Featured Image: Masseys location in relation to the rest of Starbase via Jerry Pike for L2/NSF. Hundreds per month in downloadable hi-res are
available for all L2 members.



The post With Masseys out of Commission, SpaceX may attempt Static Fire Ships at the Launch Site appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com .



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Link to news story: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2025/06/masseys-spacex-static-fire-ships-pad-a /


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