Starship SN15

Block 3 Starship Prototype

Mission Profile

Starship SN15 (Serial Number 15) was the first SpaceX Starship prototype to successfully complete a full-altitude test flight and landing, launching on 5 May 2021 from Boca Chica to approximately 10 km altitude before performing a controlled flip-and-fall maneuver and successfully landing upright — the first Starship to do so. The Block 3 configuration incorporated hundreds of design improvements over SN8 through SN11, all of which had successfully flown but crashed on landing due to propellant header tank or engine issues. SN15's landing, while accompanied by a small post-touchdown fire quickly extinguished, proved that the challenging flip-and-burn landing sequence was viable and cleared the path for full orbital Starship testing. Elon Musk's SpaceX had spent over four years developing the landing maneuver, and SN15's success was celebrated as one of the most difficult achievements in SpaceX's history.