Starbase Louisiana launch schedule

Announced August 25, 2026. Nothing has been built. No ground has been broken, no launch mount exists, and no vehicle has been assigned to the site. The only confirmed facts are the location, the roughly $100 billion investment figure, the Starship vehicle, and SpaceX's description of this as its fourth and largest launch facility.

A coastal marsh site of this scale requires federal environmental review and wetlands permitting before major construction. No schedule, scoping notice, or hearing date has been published for Starbase Louisiana. This is normally the first public paperwork to appear, and it is where the first credible timeline signals show up.

Pecan Island is a chenier ridge surrounded by marsh. Expect fill, road and utility work, and heavy-equipment access before any vertical structures. A construction start date has not been announced.

A Starship site needs a launch mount, flame trench or deluge system, propellant farm, and vehicle assembly capacity. None of this has been designed publicly for the Louisiana site.

Commercial launches from a new site require an FAA vehicle operator license covering that location, including airspace and maritime closure planning over the Gulf. No license application for Starbase Louisiana has been made public.

Before a first launch, expect cryogenic proof testing and static fires at the pad. Those tests are visible and audible for miles and are usually the clearest public sign that a first flight is close.

A real date comes from one of four places: SpaceX itself, an FAA licensing or airspace notice, a federal environmental document, or a Vermilion Parish or Louisiana public filing. If a date is not traceable to one of those, treat it as speculation. Every date on this site links to its source.