FORTE Departs Christmas Island with SpaceX Starship Ship 40 Bound for Texas

The Boskalis semi-submersible FORTE left Christmas Island on 28 August with SpaceX Starship Ship 40 on deck. Destination: Port of Brownsville, Texas. Arrival is expected around 8 October.

Ship 40 came down in the Indian Ocean in late July. It survived reentry intact. After a 24-day recovery tow, Ship 40 reached Christmas Island in mid-August, then FORTE arrived on 23 August to begin loading. The process required FORTE to partially submerge beneath the 170-foot rocket and rise to lift it clear of the water.

Engineers want the hardware back at Starbase. The trip will tell them how the airframe and heatshield held up during descent.