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SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sets reusability record, launches heaviest payload yet

Falcon 9 B1051 is ready to set a new reusability record. (Richard Angle)

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4 years ago

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SpaceX Falcon 9 booster B1051 has become the company’s ‘fleet leader’ after acing its 12th orbital-class launch and landing – a new record for the rocket family.

After a roughly 90-minute weather delay, Falcon 9 lifted off without issue around 12:48 am EST on March 19th. Booster B1051 touched down on drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI) about nine minutes later, followed by the successful deployment of 53 Starlink V1.5 satellites just over an hour after launch. Starlink 4-12 was SpaceX’s 11th successful launch in the first 11 weeks of 2022. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says that Starlink 4-12 was also the heaviest payload ever launched by Falcon 9, weighing in at 16.25 metric tons or ~35,800 pounds.

A thunderstorm bares its teeth in the distance shortly before liftoff. (Richard Angle)

It’s not entirely clear how SpaceX was able to expand Falcon 9’s performance envelope or how far the envelope was pushed. In May 2019, Musk actually claimed that the Starlink V0.9 payload would weigh “18.5 tons” and be SpaceX’s heaviest payload ever, whereas three years later he says Starlink 4-12 set a new record of 16.25 metric tons. Assuming Musk was referring to short tons in 2019 and that SpaceX’s Starlink payload adapter and the tensioning rods that hold the stack together are roughly the same weight (~3 mT) three years later, the true total mass of Starlink 4-12’s payload could be as high as 19-19.5 metric tons (~42,000 lb). Its 53 Starlink V1.5 satellites, meanwhile, would weigh about 307 kilograms (~675 lb) each.

In other words, Starlink 4-12’s record-breaking payload could be up to 2.5 metric tons – about 15% – heavier than the Starlink V0.9 payload that set SpaceX’s internal record in 2019.

(Richard Angle)

SpaceX says a Falcon 9 rocket is on track to launch Starlink 4-12 – a new batch of 53 satellites – no earlier than (NET) 11:24 pm EST on Friday, March 18th (03:24 UTC 19 March).

While ‘just’ the latest in an increasingly routine line of Starlink launches, SpaceX has confirmed that the mission will also set a new record for Falcon 9 reusability. Setting minor records is practically just as common for the average SpaceX launch but this particular record is more significant: if all goes according to plan, booster B1051 will become the first Falcon 9 first stage to complete 12 orbital-class launches and landings, pushing the envelope that much further.

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The second oldest Falcon 9 booster that’s still operational, B1051 debuted in a significant way on March 2nd, 2019 by supporting Demo-1, Crew Dragon’s first uncrewed test flight. The launch was a perfect success and simultaneously kicked off the prolific careers of Crew Dragon and Falcon 9 B1051, both of which continue to have an excellent track record. Since Demo-1, B1051 has also supported the launches of Canada’s RADARSAT constellation, SiriusXM’s SXM-7 radio satellite, and 469 Starlink spacecraft spread over eight separate missions.

Starlink 4-12 will be its 12th launch and is set to occur just over two weeks after the third anniversary of its launch debut, translating to an average of one launch every three months or ~93 days. As an older booster and a fleet leader for several reusability milestones, B1051’s average turnaround time between launches – ~100 days – isn’t exceptionally impressive, though the booster has still accomplished a great deal.

Falcon 9 B1051 rolls out for its first launch – February 2019. (NASA)
B1051’s eleventh launch – December 2021. (SpaceX)

However, newer boosters like B1058 and B1060 – both of which have much faster average turnaround times – are tied with B1051 at eleven flights each. One of the two is almost guaranteed to supersede B1051 in the very near future and become SpaceX’s new fleet leader, meaning that either B1058 or B1060 is likely to be the first to set new reusability records after B1051’s 12th flight.

Falcon 9 B1060, for example, has flown 11 times in 611 days, averaging one launch every 55 days and 61 days per reuse. B1060’s last two turnarounds have been under 50 days. B1058 is very similar. In other words, both B1058 and B1060 could feasibly overtake B1051 as early as May or June 2022 and could both potentially complete their 15th, 16th, or even 17th launches before the end of the year.

As such, this could be Falcon 9 B1051’s last opportunity to lead SpaceX’s fleet of Falcon boosters. Tune into SpaceX’s official webcast to watch Starlink 4-11 live around 11:10 pm EST (03:10 UTC).

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Eric Ralph is Teslarati's senior spaceflight reporter and has been covering the industry in some capacity for almost half a decade, largely spurred in 2016 by a trip to Mexico to watch Elon Musk reveal SpaceX's plans for Mars in person. Aside from spreading interest and excitement about spaceflight far and wide, his primary goal is to cover humanity's ongoing efforts to expand beyond Earth to the Moon, Mars, and elsewhere.

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Investor's Corner

Lucid denies rumors of bankruptcy after over 40% stock drop

Published

15 hours ago

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July 14, 2026

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Credit: Lucid

Electric vehicle maker Lucid Group has denied rumors of an imminent bankruptcy after a report from this morning sent the stock on a dramatic drop on Wall Street, seeing losses of more than 40 percent during trading hours.

Lucid’s Director of Communications, Nick Twork, responded to the report from Eletric-Vehicles.com, which stated the company’s restructuring advisor, AlixPartners, was asked to review two decisions: taking Lucid shares private or filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

The report also claims AlixPartners told the Lucid board to “concentrate on Gravity production while improving its quality, and to temporarily hold back the Lucid Air, the sedan that has defined the company since its launch.”

Twork said:

Shares rebounded after the response to the report, halving its losses as the trading day neared 3 p.m. Eastern.

Lucid has struggled to get its sales off the ground and into more respectable numbers, but the company is in its early years, when things are hard to begin with. It is also backed by several notable investors, including the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), which has nearly limitless money and likely would not ditch an investment of this size so soon.

Lucid shares were down just 14 percent at the time of publication, a far cry from the 55 percent its losses topped out at during the day.

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Tesla owner attempts resale of Model S Signature Edition for over $260k

Published

19 hours ago

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July 14, 2026

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Credit: Tesla

A Tesla owner who purchased a Model S Signature Edition, one of the final 250 units of the all-electric flagship vehicle that the company discontinued earlier this year, is attempting to sell the car despite a no-resale clause that prohibits reselling for the first year.

The car is being sold by J&S Autohaus in Ewing, New Jersey, and is priced at $260,490, well above the $159,420 that Tesla sold it for earlier this year.

To those who do not know, the Model S Signature was a highly exclusive, limited-run farewell variant of the Model S Plaid that was produced this year to mark the end of production of both the Model S and Model X, Tesla’s two flagship vehicles.

Limited to just 250 units with invite-only sales, it serves as a collector’s item celebrating the legacy of the Model S, which helped pioneer Tesla’s electric vehicle success since its 2012 launch.

It bundles top-tier performance with bespoke cosmetic and luxury upgrades, plus Tesla’s Luxe Package. Here’s what the Model S Signature has over the typical Model S Plaid:

  • Exclusive Exterior – Unique Garnet Red Paint, matching door handles, gold Tesla “T” badges upfront, gold Plaid and Signature badging at the rear.
  • Premium Interior – White Alcantara upholstery with gold piping/accents, gold Plaid seat badges, Signature-marked door sills, individually numbered dashboard plaque, gold puddle lights, special interior lighting sequence, and a custom Signature key fob.
  • Performance Upgrades – Carbon-ceramic brakes with gold calipers
  • Bundled Luxe Package – Full Self-Driving (Supervised), four years of Premium Connectivity, free lifetime Supercharging
  • Performance Metrics – ~1,020 horsepower, sub-2-second 0-60 MPH, ~390-mile range

Tesla quickly introduced a No Resale Agreement for the Signature Editions of the Model S and Model X, which would penalize the seller for “the amount of $50,000 or the value received as consideration for the sale or transfer, whichever is greater.”

The company continues:

“If you sell or otherwise transfer the ownership of your Model S or Model X, the remainder of the Recommended Maintenance, Wheel and Tire Protection Plan, and Windshield Protection Plan will transfer automatically to the buyer. The Full Self-Driving (Supervised), Free Supercharging and Premium Connectivity will not transfer with the vehicle and will terminate once the ownership of the Model S or Model X is transferred.”

Tesla will likely come after the seller, especially as it has been about two months since Tesla launched deliveries.

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Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 Early Impressions: new features and early performance

Published

22 hours ago

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July 14, 2026

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Credit: TESLARATI

Tesla rolled out Full Self-Driving (Supervised) v14.3.5 yesterday, and about fifty miles of driving on the new version has given me enough time to highlight what seems to be strong about the release and what is not.

Additionally, Tesla has added a few new features with this specific update, which we’ll highlight as well.

Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 Performance

The new update is business as usual. Things seem to be running completely normal and necessary, but there are a few things that we’ve seemed to pick up on based on our own experience with v14.3.5, as well as what other users are seeing.

Initially, it seems to be more aware of its surroundings, making moves that are incredibly courteous to other drives and operating just a tad more reserved than what the suite might have done previously.

We had two instances where it showed this, the first being FSD needing to pass a Flagger Force vehicle that was placing down signage for the day. Their work truck was right at the front corner of a right-hand turn; typically where most cars travel when they take that turn.

FSD v14.3.5 recognized this, slowed down, and took the turn wide with no issues:

Additionally, v14.3.5 backed up for a semi truck that was making a wide turn onto a road my car was on. This is not new, but it seemed to be backing up for courtesy; it didn’t seem completely necessary, but it might have put some peace of mind in the truck driver’s head:

X user Mike P, also a Pennsylvania native like myself, shared three clips of his Tesla running v14.3.5 performing similar maneuvers. He said:

“FSD turns right into a small alley that only fits one car at a time, sees oncoming car, reverses out of alley to make space, realizes oncoming car is actually parking, re-enters alley.”
Check it out here:

It seems like Speed Profiles are still in need of some tweaking; I am adjusting what Speed Profile I’m in frequently, constantly changing it to get it to travel at the correct speed. This was an issue for me on v14.3.4. It seems like they’re just a little inconsistent.

Terrible Parking

Parking attempts on v14.3.5 were not good. There are quite a few people who have said this:

David Moss, the Tesla owner who has taken multiple coast-to-coast drives without any interventions, also has had some issues with parking early on with v14.3.5:

New Features

Tesla has added the ability to open Camera Preview at any time. Previously, it was only available in Park. Here’s what that feature looks like in action:

Check back later this week for a longer review of what we’ve noticed on Full Self-Driving v14.3.5.

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