Threats from SpaceX rocket debris delay flights via Indian Ocean routes

Qantas has delayed multiple flights between Australia and South Africa in recent weeks — sometimes by up to six hours — due to warnings about possible debris from SpaceX launches, the company has told multiple media outlets.

Ben Holland, Qantas Chief Operating Officer, said: The Guardian That his company received warnings from US authorities that covered a large part of the Indian Ocean without prior notice, delaying flights between Sydney and Johannesburg. According to The Guardian, South African Airways flights have also been affected by warnings of upcoming SpaceX debris.

SpaceX has completed eight launches since the beginning of the year, including the Falcon 9 rocket He releases Wednesday It carries two landers built by private space companiesAnd Firefly and ispace, both of which are headed to the moon. The company is also trying to launch the seventh test flight of its giant Starship rocket, but Forced weather The task will be rescheduled several times. It’s currently scheduled for release today (which you can watch live here). For these initial test flights, SpaceX is targeting an upper stage soft landing in the Indian Ocean, and the upcoming test will be no different.

Neither SpaceX nor Qantas immediately responded to a request for comment.

As the pace of commercial space launches increases, so does their potential impact on passenger travel on Earth. This effect is amplified by advances in rocket technology that enable companies like SpaceX to recover and reuse key components, such as boosters. However, not all parts of the missile were recovered; Some, like heat shields or upper-stage debris, are designed to either burn up during reentry or fall in specific areas, making it more complicated to manage and track what goes up — and what inevitably comes back down.

In November, the FAA issued a draft environmental impact appreciation Evaluating SpaceX’s proposal to increase the number of Starship launches from its base in Boca Chica, Texas. The company’s plans included landing some of the missiles in the Indian Ocean, which could affect a large area of ​​airspace between Australia and Africa, according to FAA plans.

“The FAA often provides data to launch operators to avoid operations during days with high air traffic volume and selects times with minimal impact,” the agency wrote. “However, the FAA recognizes that although these operating windows would minimize disruption to the (National Airspace System), they would likely increase disruption to the traveling public in the vicinity of proposed launches or landings.”

Each of the 25 Starship launches for which SpaceX has been seeking permission will include two landings– For the Starship itself and for the super-heavy first stage rocket.

The Qantas delays are not the first time SpaceX has disrupted commercial airline schedules. In 2018, an Elon Musk publicity stunt in which a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket carried a Tesla Roadster into space caused a 4,645-minute flight delay, according to Reporting by Fox. And before the FAA It changed its procedures In 2023, a typical rocket launch from Florida could force up to 36 flights to be diverted, causing a delay of 300 minutes and an additional 1,500 miles.