Every Starship flight so far has stopped short of orbit. Will Flight 14 deploy Starlink satellites in orbit by Sept 18?

SpaceX's 14th Starship test flight, intended as the vehicle's first attempt to reach orbit and its first revenue-generating mission carrying next-generation V3 Starlink satellites, had not launched by September 18, 2026, as earlier targeted. The company pushed the flight back multiple times through September from Starbase, Texas, despite completing a 33-engine static fire test on the Super Heavy booster in early September. The target date slipped past September 18, then past a subsequent September 22 date, before SpaceX set September 28 as the new target for the roughly two-and-a-half-hour launch window; the company did not publicly detail the specific technical cause of the later delays. The flight carries added significance because every prior Starship test has fallen short of orbital velocity, and Flight 14 is meant to mark the vehicle's shift from suborbital test flights to deploying an operational satellite payload in orbit. Predict Six's community was closely split on whether Starlink satellites would reach orbit by September 18, with 41 percent voting yes; the repeated delays meant no launch, and therefore no deployment, occurred within the window, resolving the question no. The rescheduled September 28 attempt would represent Starship's first orbital-class flight if it proceeds as planned.