Starship is expected to be used for the Artemis III crewed moon mission, and the eventually trek to Mars. Once fully operational, the plan is for the Super Heavy boosters to be launched and caught back at the Orbital Launch Integration Tower, where they will be repositioned and re-flown within an hour, Musk said.

Two days after the latest in a string of test-flight setbacks for his big new Mars spacecraft, Starship, Elon Musk said on Thursday he foresees the futuristic vehicle making its first uncrewed voyage to the red planet at the end of next year.