然而 Starship 仍未进入常规营运。它由 33 具 Raptor 助推引擎驱动，已试飞 12 次，但多次失败；2026 年 5 月一次测试中助推器失控后，美国监管机构曾令其停飞。SpaceX 也仍需突破在轨加注等关键技术，才能把 Starship 变成可靠运输系统。
现有 Falcon 火箭已支撑 SpaceX 在商业发射市场的主导地位，并推动 Starlink 扩至全球逾 1,000 万用户、去年产生 44 亿美元营业收入。但公司称下一代 Starlink、太空资料中心与 Mars 城市需要 Starship 最多 100 公吨入轨酬载及每年数千次发射；Caleb Henry 指出，5,000 次年发射是否可行仍无人知晓。
SpaceX’s IPO story depends heavily on Starship: the 407-foot (about 124-meter) rocket has absorbed more than $15bn in development and is described by the company as central to future growth. Starship is intended to become the first fully reusable launch system, recovering both stages and raising payload capacity to lower the cost of sending satellites, Moon hardware, and Mars mission equipment into space.
Yet Starship is still not operating routinely. Powered by 33 Raptor booster engines, it has flown 12 test missions, several ending in failure; after a May 2026 test in which the booster was lost, US regulators grounded the rocket. SpaceX also needs breakthroughs such as orbital refuelling before Starship can become a dependable transport system.
Existing Falcon rockets have already made SpaceX dominant in commercial launch and helped Starlink reach more than 10mn global customers, generating $4.4bn in operating income last year. But SpaceX says next-generation Starlink, orbital data centres, and Mars cities require Starship’s planned capacity of up to 100 metric tonnes to orbit and perhaps several thousand launches annually; Caleb Henry says whether 5,000 yearly flights is feasible remains unknown.