Starship Flight Test 12 will be the first Starship Test Flight involving Block 3 vehicles. It will likely feature Booster 19 (B19) and Ship 39 (S39). The flight profile remains largely unknown as SpaceX may opt for soft splashdown of both vehicles given the introduction of the unflown Block 3 design or may opt to attempt a catch of the booster (unlikely as the Booster was heavily redesigned). However, a Ship catch has been ruled out per a tweet from Elon Musk on August 27th, 2025 following Starship Flight Test 10/11 stating that "Starship catch is probably flight 13 to 15."[2]
Furthermore, Starship Flight Test 12 will be the first Starship launch from the under construction Second Pad at the Starbase Launch/Testing Site.
Announcements[]
26 January 2026: Elon Musk Statement[]
Elon Musk stated on X that "Starship launch in 6 weeks"[3] giving a NET of March 9th 2026 for Flight 12.
30 December 2025: FCC licence[]
The FCC delayed Starship flight 12: License granted: Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) Dates: 04/05/2026-10/05/2026 Purpose: Launch vehicle communications for test Starship Test Flight 12 mission launching from Starbase, TX. The first stage booster and the second stage will either return to the launch site or perform a water landing.”
24 November 2025: FCC licence[]
The FCC (Federal Communication Commission) approved flight test 12: “License granted: Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) Dates: 01/23/2026-06/28/2026 Purpose: Launch vehicle communications for test Starship Test Flight 12 mission launching from Starbase, TX. The first stage booster and the second stage will either return to the launch site or perform a water landing.”