SpaceX Starship Super Heavy Project at the Boca Chica Launch Site

SpaceX proposes to conduct Starship/Super Heavy launch operations from the Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas. SpaceX must apply for and obtain an experimental permit(s) and/or a vehicle operator license from the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation to operate the Starship/Super Heavy launch vehicle. The FAA's evaluation of a permit or license application includes a review of 1) public safety issues (such as overflight of populated areas and payload contents); 2) national security or foreign policy concerns; 3) insurance requirements for the launch operator; and 4) potential environmental impact. Read more about the history of the Boca Chica launch site and the location of the launch site.

FAA

The Commercial Space Launch Act of 1984, as amended and codified at 51 U.S.C. §§ 50901-50923, authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to oversee, license, and regulate commercial launch and reentry activities, and the operation of launch and reentry sites within the United States or as carried out by U.S. citizens elsewhere. Section 50905 directs the Secretary to exercise this responsibility consistent with public health and safety, safety of property, and the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States. In addition, Section 50903 requires the Secretary to encourage, facilitate, and promote commercial space launches and reentries by the private sector. As codified at 49 CFR § 1.83(b), the Secretary has delegated authority to carry out these functions to the FAA Administrator.

For more information, read more about the License Review Process and the Environmental Review Process.

SpaceX

Founded in 2002, SpaceX is a commercial space transportation company headquartered in Hawthorne, California. SpaceX designs, manufactures, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft. SpaceX developed the Falcon 1 (no longer operational), Falcon 9, and Falcon Heavy vertical orbital launch vehicles, all of which were built with the goal of becoming reusable launch vehicles. SpaceX launches commercial and government payloads, including the Dragon spacecraft, which is used to send NASA astronauts to the International Space Station and bring them back to Earth. SpaceX has developed a new rocket, Starship/Super Heavy, with the goal of traveling to the Moon and Mars. For additional information on SpaceX, please visit spacex.com.

Environmental Documents in Progress and Completed

In Progress: Scoping Period, Notice of Intent to Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Proposed SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy Launch and Landing Operations at the Boca Chica Launch Site at Starbase, Texas and Expansion of Starship Landing and Expenditure Locations

FAA is announcing its intent to prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, open a public scoping period and hold public scoping meetings for SpaceX’s proposal to increase the launch and landing operations of Starship-Super Heavy at the Boca Chica Launch Site at Starbase in Cameron County, Texas and expand Starship landing and expenditure areas.

The Proposed Action would be implemented in two phases:

  • Phase 1 would include up to 100 annual launches and up to 200 annual landings (100 of Starship and 100 of Super Heavy). Launches and landings could occur any day or time of the week.
  • Phase 2 would include up to 456 launches and 912 annual landings (456 of Starship and 456 of Super Heavy). Launches could occur at any time of day, but would only occur Monday through Friday.
  • The Proposed Action also includes issuance of associated temporary airspace closures.

The FAA will hold four in-person public scoping meetings and one virtual meeting:

  • Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2026; two meetings: 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. and 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. (CT) at the Texas Southmost College, Jacob Brown Auditorium, 600 International Blvd, Brownsville, TX 78520.
  • Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026; two meetings: 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. and 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. (CT) at the Port Isabel Event & Cultural Center, 309 Railroad St, Port Isabel, TX 78578
  • Virtually on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026; 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. (CT)

Registration Link: https://tinyurl.com/StarbasePEIS-Scoping
Please note that registration is required for the virtual meeting.

At the in-person meetings, FAA will provide a presentation during the first half hour. The meetings will then transition to an open-house information-station format wherein FAA will provide information about the project. During the open house portion of the meeting, attendees can provide verbal comments to a court reporter or written comments via a written comment form. 

At the virtual meeting, FAA will provide a presentation during the first half hour. Attendees can provide oral comments for up to three minutes afterward. A moderator will facilitate the verbal comments. 

Both English and Spanish versions of the presentation will be made available to the public on this project page no later than November 10, 2026. If additional accommodations for the public meetings are needed beyond the planned Spanish translation services, please submit a request by November 2, 2026, to the project email address: spacexbocachica@icf.com.

In the event the meetings are rescheduled for any reason, including inclement weather, technology issues, or other circumstances, FAA will post information on the project website.

The FAA invites interested parties to submit comments concerning the scope of alternatives or impacts and on relevant information, studies, or analyses with respect to the Proposed Action.

Public comments can be submitted electronically to www.regulations.gov under Docket No. FAA-2026-12808 or by postal mail to Amy Hanson, FAA Environmental Protection Specialist, SpaceX Boca Chica, c/o Kimley Horn, 767 Eustis Street, Suite 100, St. Paul, MN 55114. The public comment period will close on November 30, 2026.

Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, be advised that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask FAA in your comment to withhold from public review your personal identifying information, FAA cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. All comments received during the comment period will be given equal weight and be taken into consideration in the preparation of the PEIS. For any media inquiries, please contact the FAA Press Office at pressoffice@faa.gov.    
 

Complete: Final Tiered Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for SpaceX Starship Reentry Contingency Operations in the Pacific Ocean and Additional Starship Landing Trajectory

The FAA is announcing the availability of the Final Tiered Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact/Record of Decision (ROD) for SpaceX Starship Reentry Contingency Operations in the Pacific Ocean and Additional Starship Landing Trajectory (Final Tiered EA and FONSI/ROD).

The electronic versions of the Final Tiered EA and FONSI/ROD are available on this website for download.

The FAA acted as the lead agency in the preparation of the Final Tiered EA and FONSI/ROD. Under the Proposed Action, the FAA would modify SpaceX’s vehicle operator license to authorize:
 

  • The expansion of the previously evaluated Hawaii and Central Pacific Landing Area and Southeast Pacific Region Landing Area, 
  • The addition of a new Northern Pacific Contingency Landing Area in the Northeast Pacific for an Eastern Range to Starbase trajectory, and;
  • The authorization of temporary airspace closures associated with an additional Starship reentry trajectory to the Boca Chica Launch Site in Starbase, TX.

The FAA released the Draft Tiered EA for public review and comment on July 13, 2026. The comment period closed on August 3, 2026. Appendix F includes summaries of the comments received and FAA’s comment responses.  All comments received during the comment period were given equal weight and taken into consideration in the preparation of the Final Tiered EA and FONSI/ROD.

Completed: Environmental Assessment for the Draft Tiered Environmental Assessment for Updates to Airspace Closures for Additional Launch Trajectories and Starship Boca Chica Landings of the SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy Vehicle at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas.

The FAA is announcing the availability of the Final Tiered Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact/Record of Decision for Updates to Airspace Closures for Additional Launch Trajectories and Starship Boca Chica Landings of the SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy Vehicle at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas (Final Tiered EA and FONSI/ROD).

The electronic versions of the Final Tiered EA and FONSI/ROD are available on this website for download.

The FAA acted as the lead agency in the preparation of the Final Tiered EA. Under the Proposed Action, the FAA would modify SpaceX’s vehicle operator license to authorize:

  • Updated operations for additional launch trajectories for Starship-Super Heavy operations at the Boca Chica Launch site, and;
  • Updated operations for Starship Return to Launch Site mission profiles for Starship-Super Heavy operations at the Boca Chica Launch Site

The Final Tiered EA also analyzed potential temporary airspace closures associated with the proposed mission profiles.

The FAA previously released the Draft Tiered EA for Updates to Airspace Closures for Additional Launch Trajectories and Starship Boca Chica Landings of the SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy Vehicle at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas for public review and comment on September 19, 2025. Due to a lapse in government funding, the October 7th, 2025 virtual public meeting was cancelled. The public comment period closed on October 20, 2025. All comments received on the Draft Tiered EA were given equal weight and taken into consideration.

Complete: Tiered Environmental Assessment for Updates to Airspace Closures for the Flight 9 Mission Profile of the SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy Vehicle at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas

The FAA is announcing the availability of the Tiered Environmental Assessment for Updates to Airspace Closures for the Flight 9 Mission Profile of the SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy Vehicle Increased Cadence at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas and associated license modification.

Based on the safety analysis for Starship-Super Heavy Flight 9, an Aircraft Hazard Area and associated Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) would necessitate FAA to close airspace over a portion of the Bahamas and the Turks & Caicos Islands. This is an update to the existing operations involving the Starship-Super Heavy described in the April 2025 Tiered EA. 

The electronic versions of the Final Tiered EA and Mitigated FONSI/ROD are available on this website for download. 

Complete: Final Tiered Environmental Assessment and Mitigated Finding of No Significant Impact and Record of Decision for SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Vehicle Increased Cadence at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas.

The FAA is announcing the availability of the Final Tiered Environmental Assessment (Final Tiered EA) and Mitigated Finding of No Significant Impact/Record of Decision (FONSI/ROD) for the SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Vehicle Increased Cadence at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas (Final Tiered EA and Mitigated FONSI/ROD). The FAA is the lead agency on the Final Tiered EA. 

The electronic versions of the Final Tiered EA and Mitigated FONSI/ROD are available on this website for download. 

Spanish language translated versions of documents
•    Conclusión Mitigada de Impacto No Significativo y Registro de Decisión
•    Resumen Ejecutivo

Under the Proposed Action, the FAA would modify SpaceX’s existing vehicle operator license to authorize:

  • Up to 25 annual Starship/Super Heavy orbital launches, including:
    • Up to 25 annual landings of Starship (Second stage)
    • Up to 25 annual landings of Super Heavy (First stage)

The Final Tiered EA also addressed vehicle upgrades.

The FAA previously released the Draft Tiered Environmental Assessment for the SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Vehicle Increased Cadence at the Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas (Draft EA) for public review and comment on July 29, 2024. The FAA released the Revised Draft Tiered Environmental Assessment for the SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Vehicle Increased Cadence at the Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas (Revised Draft EA) for public review and comment on November 20, 2024. The FAA held two in-person meetings on January 7, 2025, in Brownsville, Texas and one virtual meeting on January 13, 2025. All comments received on the Draft EA between July 29 and August 29, 2024, as well as the Revised Draft EA between November 20, 2024 and January 17, 2025, were given equal weight and taken into consideration. 

The comment period closed on January 17, 2025. All comments submitted online and in other forms are included in this Final Tiered EA.

Previous Activity

View the archive of activities related to the Starship/Super Heavy launch operations from the Boca Chica Launch Site. 

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Last updated: Thursday, October 15, 2026