Starbase never sleeps. And now, SpaceX is closing in on one of the boldest moments in its Starship program: Catching the vehicle's upper stage out of the sky with the launch tower's mechanical arms for the first time.

Speaking on the company's first quarterly earnings call on 4 August, Elon Musk confirmed that Flight 14 will attempt to return the Ship to the "Mechazilla" tower at Starbase, Boca Chica.

"Assuming we receive regulatory approval to do so, we'll attempt to catch the ship with the tower on the next flight, which is tentatively scheduled for the end of this month," he said. 

The attempt marks a critical step toward full and rapid reusability. SpaceX has already caught the Super Heavy booster on the tower arms three times, most recently in March 2025, but the 50-meter upper stage is a far harder target. 

Unlike the booster, the Ship returns from near-orbital velocity, subjecting its airframe, heat tiles and catch pins to punishing thermal and structural loads before the final landing burn. To line up the catch, the vehicle must relight one or more Raptor engines during descent to steer its approach. In an approach corridor that has to be nearly perfect.

Flight 14 hardware is advancing on parallel tracks. Ship 41 has completed cryogenic testing, been fitted with engines, and is preparing to roll to Massey's for a static-fire campaign, while Booster 21 has finished its own cryogenic proofs and awaits static fire in the Mega Bay.

Full-stack flight readiness can be expected by the end of August, making a late-August or early-September launch window plausible if no issues surface. We are very much looking forward to this one!