SpaceX abandons Super Heavy catch as Starship booster lands offshore

SpaceX's Starship Flight 15 booster completes an offshore landing after its catch is called offNew Delhi,Nov 14, 2026 04:40 ISTSpaceX's Super Heavy booster completed an offshore landing during Starship Flight 15 after the company called off its planned attempt to catch the rocket at the launch tower in Texas.The development marked a departure from the mission's original recovery plan, which aimed to bring both stages of the giant Starship rocket back to the launch site.Instead of returning to Starbase for a catch by the tower's mechanical arms, nicknamed Chopsticks, the upgraded Super Heavy V3 booster was diverted offshore and landed at sea.WHY WAS SUPER HEAVY CATCH ABANDONED?SpaceX has not yet explained why the booster recovery was abandoned. More information is awaited from the company on what prompted the change in the flight plan and whether it was a precautionary decision or related to a technical issue.That information will help clarify why the booster failed the tower catch attempt. The planned catch was called off before the vehicle could be secured by the launch tower's arms.Its subsequent offshore landing means the first stage completed a landing sequence, but it was not recovered at the launch site.FIRST OFFSHORE LANDING FOR V3 BOOSTERThe flight was significant for the Super Heavy programme because it was the first V3 version to attempt a return for a tower catch. SpaceX has previously demonstrated the recovery of three earlier Super Heavy boosters, with the company working towards reusing both stages of Starship.The ability to catch and rapidly reuse the booster is central to SpaceX's ambition of making Starship a fully reusable launch system. Recovering the rocket at the launch tower could reduce the need for ocean recovery operations and speed up preparations for another flight.SHIP42 RECOVERY STILL AHEADMeanwhile, the Ship upper stage is continuing its separate orbital mission.Starship is expected to deploy 26 next-generation Starlink V3 satellites and complete approximately 14 orbits around Earth before its planned return to Starbase.SpaceX is still targeting a historic tower-catch attempt for Ship, which would be the first recovery of an orbital Starship upper stage at the launch site.The catch of the upper stage is expected at 2:45 am IST on November 15. The booster's offshore landing does not determine the outcome of that separate attempt.- Ends