https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/26/faa-...h-license.html
The Federal Aviation Administration on Monday announced the close of its investigation alongside SpaceX into the second Starship flight, as
Elon Musk’s company seeks a license to launch the towering rocket again.
SpaceX led an investigation that the FAA oversaw into the
Nov. 18 launch of a Starship prototype that reached space before being intentionally destroyed due to a problem with the rocket.
The FAA noted that SpaceX identified 17 corrective actions from the mishap.
“Prior to the next launch, SpaceX must implement all corrective actions and receive a license. … The FAA is evaluating SpaceX’s license modification request and expects SpaceX to submit additional required information before a final determination can be made,” the federal regulator said in a statement…..
The company emphasized that it has already made “changes on upcoming Starship vehicles” to resolve the issues from the second test flight, with “upgrades” to the booster and Starship prototypes that are set to launch the third test flight.
The 17 corrective actions following the second Starship flight also represent a marked improvement from the first, which required
63 corrective actions before the rocket launched again.
Musk said in a social media discussion last week* that he expects the company to be ready to launch the third Starship test flight as soon as mid-March, although
the SpaceX CEO also said, shortly after the November launch, that the third flight’s rocket would be “ready to fly in three to four weeks.”
*
“The Third Starship Flight Test (IFT-3) is targeted to be on the second week of March…. "The probability of Starship reaching the orbit is 70-80% this time."