Deploy operational Starlink V3 satellites from Starship
Starship is intended to carry the next-generation Starlink V3 satellites. Flight 13 deployed twenty of them, but on a suborbital trajectory from which they were expected to reenter within about twenty minutes.
Partially achieved
What do the status labels mean?
Announced: it has been said out loud, but we have not seen work toward it yet.
In progress: we can point to tests, hardware or contracts that show work under way.
Partially achieved: part of the job is done and shown, but not all of it.
Achieved: evidence matches the whole “done” description we wrote down.
Uncertain: sources disagree or are missing. We say so instead of guessing.
Paused or cancelled: a reliable source says work has stopped or the plan was dropped.
Full definitions →- Said on
- 24 July 2026
- First target In plain English
What is a target window?
A target window is when the company said something would happen. Sometimes that is an exact day. Often it is only a month, a quarter or a year.
We keep it exactly as vague or as precise as the company did. If they said “2026”, we show 2026. We never turn that into a made-up day in December.
When a company gives a new date later, we keep the old one too. You can always see how the plan moved.
Saying “I’ll visit this summer” is a window. Saying “I’ll visit on 14 July” is an exact date. They are not the same promise.
- From Flight 14 onwards, as part of Starship's orbital missionsOpen-ended precision, stated 15 September 2026
- Current target
- From Flight 14 onwards, as part of Starship's orbital missionsOpen-ended precision, stated 15 September 2026
- Last checked In plain English
Who checked this, and how?
Each record has a review note. It names who did the check and lists every claim that was compared with its source.
Right now these checks were done with AI help and have not yet been re-read by an independent human editor. We say this plainly on every page rather than hiding it.
A “review due” label means the record is older than two weeks and is scheduled for another look. The content is unchanged until then.
- 18 September 2026Next review due 2 October 2026
What would count as “done”
Starship deploys Starlink V3 satellites into an orbit where they remain after deployment and can enter service, rather than onto a trajectory that returns them to the atmosphere.
Why we say this
SpaceX records that Flight 13 successfully deployed all 20 Starlink V3 satellites, communicated with every satellite over radio frequency and laser links, and downloaded telemetry from them. The same account states the satellites were deployed on the pre-planned trajectory and were expected to demise on reentry roughly twenty minutes after deployment, so the deployment mechanism and satellite communications were demonstrated but no satellite entered service.
Stated uncertainty. A successful deployment demonstration is not the same as delivering satellites into service. This milestone stays partially achieved until a primary source records satellites remaining in orbit after a Starship deployment. Flight 12's deployment of Starlink simulators on 22 May 2026 predates this milestone's announcement and is recorded under the Starship V3 milestone instead.
How the date moved In plain EnglishWhat is a target window?
A target window is when the company said something would happen. Sometimes that is an exact day. Often it is only a month, a quarter or a year.
We keep it exactly as vague or as precise as the company did. If they said “2026”, we show 2026. We never turn that into a made-up day in December.
When a company gives a new date later, we keep the old one too. You can always see how the plan moved.
Saying “I’ll visit this summer” is a window. Saying “I’ll visit on 14 July” is an exact date. They are not the same promise.
What is a target window?
A target window is when the company said something would happen. Sometimes that is an exact day. Often it is only a month, a quarter or a year.
We keep it exactly as vague or as precise as the company did. If they said “2026”, we show 2026. We never turn that into a made-up day in December.
When a company gives a new date later, we keep the old one too. You can always see how the plan moved.
Saying “I’ll visit this summer” is a window. Saying “I’ll visit on 14 July” is an exact date. They are not the same promise.
- Stated 15 September 2026 · recorded here 18 September 2026 · current targetFrom Flight 14 onwards, as part of Starship's orbital missions (Open-ended precision)
First stated target for operational delivery. SpaceX tied it to the start of orbital missions rather than to a date.
What actually happened
All 20 Starlink V3 satellites were deployed and communicated with, on a pre-planned suborbital trajectory, and were expected to demise on reentry about twenty minutes after deployment.
Sources In plain EnglishWhere does the evidence come from?
Every status links to the page we read. We record who published it, when, and which part of it supports the claim.
A company saying something proves that the company said it. It does not prove the thing is true. When we can, we look for a second voice: a regulator, a partner like NASA, or an exchange.
If a page disappears later, we flag it. A missing page is not proof that a claim was wrong.
Source rules →
Where does the evidence come from?
Every status links to the page we read. We record who published it, when, and which part of it supports the claim.
A company saying something proves that the company said it. It does not prove the thing is true. When we can, we look for a second voice: a regulator, a partner like NASA, or an exchange.
If a page disappears later, we flag it. A missing page is not proof that a claim was wrong.
Source rules →Who checked this In plain EnglishWho checked this, and how?
Each record has a review note. It names who did the check and lists every claim that was compared with its source.
Right now these checks were done with AI help and have not yet been re-read by an independent human editor. We say this plainly on every page rather than hiding it.
A “review due” label means the record is older than two weeks and is scheduled for another look. The content is unchanged until then.
Who checked this, and how?
Each record has a review note. It names who did the check and lists every claim that was compared with its source.
Right now these checks were done with AI help and have not yet been re-read by an independent human editor. We say this plainly on every page rather than hiding it.
A “review due” label means the record is older than two weeks and is scheduled for another look. The content is unchanged until then.
Claims we compared with their sources
Flight 13 deployed all 20 Starlink V3 satellites, which were expected to demise on reentry about twenty minutes after deployment.
Both halves of the claim appear in the same paragraph. The expected demise is why this site records partial rather than full achievement.
Starship flights 1 through 13 were deliberately placed on passively safe suborbital trajectories, and orbital missions begin with Flight 14.
The update states both the historical approach and the Flight 14 transition. It gives no date for Flight 14.
What this check could not tell us
- This is an AI-assisted review, not independent human review. A human editor has not yet re-checked these findings.
- Every source checked in this review is a SpaceX company statement. Company statements establish what the company said; they do not independently establish the outcomes as fact.
- Source pages were read through a browser on 18 September 2026. The accessedAt time on each source is normalised to 12:00 UTC on that date rather than recording an exact retrieval instant.
- The SpaceX updates page is a single URL carrying dated sections. Locators identify the section by date and heading because per-update permalinks were not used.
- No regulator or mission-partner source has been checked for this batch, so no FAA, NASA or filed-document claims are published.