Following the sensational explosion of SpaceX’s Starship during a test flight, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was compelled to momentarily reroute several flights from the airspace surrounding the blast area. Debris from the incident created a temporary disruption in airspace activities.
During the unfolding of the event, multiple flights were either held or redirected near Puerto Rico right after the Starship’s failure, as illustrated by Flightradar24 data. Fortunately, the FAA announced that the airspace operations are back to their usual rhythm.
Several airports reported setbacks due to these sudden rerouting actions. Specifically, the FAA recorded a 30-minute delay warning raised by Miami International Airport because of the “rocket launch anomaly”. Similarly, the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida also reported short delays for the same reason.
Earlier that same day, SpaceX’s Starship lifted off from its Boca Chica, Texas base for its seventh test flight. Despite the unfortunate explosion, it began rather well, with SpaceX managing to capture the enormous booster rocket on its descent using the launch tower – only the second successful attempt of its-kind.
The incident has however, added to the criticism directed at SpaceX this week, when Qantas airlines blamed the aviation company’s launches for causing several flight delays due to falling rocket debris.
Subsequent to the Starship’s disintegration, social media platforms were flooded with images and videos of the incident. A befitting quote by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk read: “Success is uncertain, but entertainment is guaranteed!”
Original source: Read the full article on TechCrunch
