SpaceX returned Starship Ship 40 to Texas almost three months after splashdown

Ship 40, which flew on July 24 during the 13th suborbital flight with a controlled landing in the Indian Ocean, was towed by sea for 24 days and delivered to the port of Brownsville in Texas on October 7. It is now being studied in a hangar at Starbase.

tafs uz editorial deskFirst published on tafs uz 16 October 2026 at 13:532 min readAI translation

The key facts

Ship 40 flew on July 24 as part of the 13th test launch and splashed down in the Indian Ocean
Towing through rough seas took 24 days; Elon Musk doubted the operation would succeed
On October 7 the ship arrived at the port of Brownsville and was placed in a Megabay hangar at Starbase

Return after flight

SpaceX has published new photos of the Starship Ship 40 vehicle. The craft is now installed vertically inside the Megabay hangar, alongside three more new Starships being prepared for flight.

Flight and splashdown

Ship 40 flew on July 24 as part of the 13th test launch of the rocket system. The suborbital flight ended with a controlled landing in the Indian Ocean. A significant part of the vehicle's structure survived, and it remained afloat on the surface of the water.

Difficult towing operation

After that, SpaceX organized an operation to return the ship to base. The 52-meter-long ship was towed through rough seas for 24 days. According to Kun.uz, the conditions of the voyage were so difficult that even Elon Musk expressed doubts about the possibility of successfully completing the operation.

Inspection off the coast of Australia

In August, Ship 40 was taken to an island belonging to Australia. In calmer waters, engineers inspected the vehicle and took samples from the heat shield covering its lower section.

Delivery to Texas

Then the Starship was loaded onto the large semi-submersible transport vessel Forte. On October 7, the vessel arrived at the port of Brownsville in Texas. After that, Ship 40 was transported overland to the Starbase complex and placed in a hangar.

Further study

Engineers now intend to thoroughly examine the ship and study how the flight and return through the atmosphere affected its structure and heat shield. The data obtained is planned to be used for further improvement of the Starship system.