SpaceX Catches A Spacecraft Falling From Orbit, Mid-Air, In Giant Steel Arms

Flight 15 deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites, stayed in orbit for over 20 hours and landed back at Starbase, Texas

November 15, 2026

Starship deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites, spent 20 hours in orbit and landed back at Starbase

Starship Flight 15 Delivers 26 Starlink V3 Satellites, Then Lands In Tower’s Arms

SpaceX caught its Starship spacecraft in the mechanical arms of its launch tower as it returned from orbit, a first for an orbital rocket’s upper stage and a major step towards making the vehicle fully reusable.

The tower, nicknamed “Mechazilla,” grabbed the spacecraft upright at Starbase in Texas, the same site from which it had lifted off about 22.5 hours earlier.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk congratulated the team on X. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman also praised the achievement, calling it almost magic and “one step closer to the moon.”

Starship lifted off from Starbase on Friday for its 15th flight. The Super Heavy booster rose from Pad 2 on 33 Raptor engines, and Starship separated through hot staging and continued to space on six Raptors.

The mission delivered on its main objectives. Starship entered orbit and deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites, and SpaceX said it made contact with all of them shortly after deployment as they began raising their orbits to join the Starlink constellation. The spacecraft then stayed in orbit for more than 20 hours while the flight control team monitored its systems.

Mechazilla catches Starship! Congratulations to the entire SpaceX team on this incredible achievement! https://t.co/YJzmGUZb2B
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 14, 2026

For the return, Starship reignited a single Raptor sea-level engine for a deorbit burn and descended towards the Texas coast, performing a final manoeuvre over the Gulf. After it emerged from the clouds, three Raptors ignited for the landing flip, and the spacecraft slowed into the waiting arms of the tower.

The booster had a rougher ending. It flipped and relit 32 of its planned 33 Raptors for the boostback burn, but the burn ended early because of low fuel mass, and SpaceX said the root cause is under investigation. An automated abort then diverted the booster to an offshore landing site, and it completed its landing burn over the Gulf before its flight termination system was activated.

SpaceX has already recovered and reused first-stage boosters. The catch extends that approach to the upper stage, which is normally discarded after a mission. Recovering and reusing both stages would reduce the need to throw away expensive hardware after every flight.

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