Second consecutive SpaceX cutoff
During the morning hours of July 20, the space company SpaceX halted a planned flight of its Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The rocket was intended to deliver a batch of Starlink broadband satellites into orbit when the countdown was terminated just before engine ignition.
The event marked the second successive launch attempt by the firm to be discontinued in the closing seconds of the countdown. Such holds are standard practice when automated checks flag irregularities prior to departure.
- Date: morning of July 20
- Vehicle: Falcon 9
- Payload: Starlink broadband satellites
- Outcome: last-second abort
- Note: second abort in a row
No specific reason for the interruption was disclosed initially. SpaceX is expected to announce a new launch window after completing the required technical review.