WASHINGTON — Gen. Chance Saltzman, the U.S. Space Force’s chief of space operations, visited SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica this week, and attended the sixth test flight of SpaceX’s Starship rocket on Nov. 19.
Saltzman watched the Starship launch alongside SpaceX founder Elon Musk, President-elect Donald Trump and a number of lawmakers.
A Space Force spokesperson confirmed Saltzman was invited by SpaceX to observe the test flight and participated in two days of program reviews.
“The Department of the Air Force and the U.S. Space Force are monitoring Starship’s progress and look forward to potentially leveraging its capabilities in the future,” the spokesperson said.
The flight test marked a key step in SpaceX’s ambitious plans for the fully reusable super heavy-lift launch vehicle.
Starship, when fully assembled with its Super Heavy booster, stands an imposing 400 feet tall. The vehicle is designed to transport both crew and cargo to destinations ranging from Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars.
While no immediate commitments have been made to integrate Starship into military operations, Saltzman’s presence signals military interest in the technology.
The Space Force depends heavily on SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets for national security satellite launches. But Starship, with its massive payload capacity, has the potential to support military logistics and space operations.
One of the most intriguing possibilities under evaluation is using Starship as a rapid global transport system. The Space Force and the Air Force are exploring concepts where Starship could replace traditional military airlift platforms like the C-17 Globemaster III, potentially delivering personnel and cargo to any point on Earth in under an hour.
One potential scenario involves using Starship as a mass transportation platform to launch satellites into low Earth orbit, with subsequent orbital transfer vehicles taking the payloads to their final destinations.
