SpaceX Falcon 9 regains flight approval operations from FAA

In a quick turnaround, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 booster has regained flight approval operations from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The FAA revoked Falcon 9’s launch permittance after an anomaly occurred following a successful launch and deployment of 21 Starlink satellites earlier this week.

After attempting to land on the ‘A Shortfall from Gravitas’ drone ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, the Falcon 9 booster fell, marking a rarity.

SpaceX commented on the occurrence this week as Vice President Jon Edwards said:

“Losing a booster is always sad. Each one of them has a unique history and character. Thankfully this doesn’t happen often.”

Earlier this week, the FAA then grounded any Falcon 9 launches. On Wednesday, the agency said it would perform an investigation into the issue with the landing:

“The FAA is aware an anomaly occurred during the SpaceX Starlink Group 8-6 mission that launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on August 28. The incident involved the failure of the Falcon 9 booster rocket while landing on a droneship at sea. No public injuries or public property damage have been reported. The FAA is requiring an investigation.”

Late on Friday, the FAA officially confirmed that Falcon 9 launches would be permitted once again:

“The SpaceX Falcon 9 vehicle may return to flight operations while the overall investigation of the anomaly during the Starlink Group 8-6 mission remains open, provided all other license requirements are met. SpaceX made the return to flight request on Aug. 29 and the FAA gave approval on Aug. 30.”

It appears SpaceX will be able to resume Starlink launches now that the FAA has regained approval. It also leaves the door open for the Polaris Dawn mission to potentially takeoff soon, as the company decided to delay it earlier this week due to unfavorable landing conditions.

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