SpaceX delays next Starship test launch by a month, Musk says

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said on Friday that the company's next Starship test flight will take place in May and not April as originally scheduled.

Musk posted on social media platform X that the next flight of Starship's V3 vehicle is four to six weeks away, or in the first two weeks of May. Earlier, he had said the first flight would take place in April.

SpaceX's debut of the V3 Starship iteration has been delayed for months as the company has packed dozens of upgrades into the vehicle to make it more reliable and suitable for NASA missions, including landing on the moon under the Artemis program.

Starship, the company's next-generation rocket, is designed to be fully reusable and carry far larger payloads than its Falcon rocket.

SpaceX's previous Starship test launch, its 11th, was in October.

The company has confidentially filed for a US initial public offering, setting the stage for what could become the largest stock market debut on record. 

The Starbase, Texas-headquartered firm is targeting a potential valuation of more than $1.75 trillion.