The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) opted to halt flights to several airports in Florida on Thursday night after SpaceX’s Starship upper stage disintegrated, raining debris over the coast. The botched test flight disrupted airports in Miami, Orlando, Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale, as well as Philadelphia, in a worrying trend of SpaceX rockets hogging airspace.
SpaceX’s Starship rocket lifted off on Thursday, March 6 around 6:30 p.m. ET from Boca Chica, Texas for its eighth test flight. Things went smoothly for the rocket’s Super Heavy 232-foot-tall (71-meter) booster, which gently made its way back to Earth to be caught by the 400-foot-tall Mechazilla tower in its giant, metal arms. The rocket’s upper stage, however, suffered another major failure, spinning uncontrollably before breaking apart a few moments after launch.
“During Starship’s ascent burn, the vehicle experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly and contact was lost,” SpaceX wrote on X. “Our team immediately began coordination with safety officials to implement pre-planned contingency responses.”
How would you like to see this above your #catamaran ? #SpaceX #Elon #starship8 pic.twitter.com/xCjntoUoTZ
— GeneDoctor (@GeneDoctorB) March 7, 2025
This was the second consecutive test flight of the Starship rocket in which its upper stage malfunctioned and rained rocket bits from the skies along the Florida coast. It’s also the second time a Starship launch disrupted commercial flights.
The FAA will now require SpaceX to perform an investigation into the mishap. “During the event, the FAA activated a Debris Response Area and briefly slowed aircraft outside the area where space vehicle debris was falling or stopped aircraft at their departure location,” the agency wrote in a statement. A Debris Response Area is activated if debris falls outside of the identified closed aircraft hazard areas.
The falling debris affected flights to and from Miami International Airport, and airports serving Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, Florida, CNBC reported.
During flight 7 in January, Starship’s upper stage suffered an engine glitch that forced an early shutdown, causing it to break apart and rain down bits of rocket debris over Turks and Caicos in the Caribbean. The mishap prompted an investigation to determine the root cause of the malfunction, which SpaceX determined was due to a “harmonic response several times stronger in flight than had been seen during testing.” That means vibrations amplified by resonance put increased stress on Starship’s propulsion system.
SpaceX’s megarocket has now suffered back-to-back glitches that disrupted commercial airlines and airports, a sign of increasing conflict between the growing rocket business and private aerospace.
Starship will remain grounded until the investigation is complete, but it will likely fly again soon given SpaceX’s accelerated test schedule and eagerness to reach orbit. Company executives have stated they hope to launch Starship up to 25 times in 2025. That’s a lot of liftoffs for the massive rocket, which is becoming increasingly disruptive.
