Elon Musk-backed SpaceX was forced to abort a launch just 11 seconds before liftoff after a plane was believed to have strayed into the airspace above the launch site. The Falcon 9 launch on Sunday morning was called off with just seconds to spare while officials waited for the skies above the California launch site to clear.
SpaceX was initially scheduled to launch its Falcon 9 rocket loaded with 27 Starlink satellites on Sunday morning from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The launch was scrubbed just 11 seconds before liftoff after control spotted a “possible aircraft in the airspace,” reports Business Insider.
The launch of the craft was then postponed while the airspace was checked, with Business Insider adding that “several [aircraft] flew close to the restricted area.” So far, a Delta flight from LA to Hawaii and a Southwest Flight from San Diego to Honolulu have been linked to the disruption:
Social media users and several media outlets suggested that Delta Flight 480, which flew from Los Angeles’ LAX to Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport at around 7 a.m. on Sunday, was the culprit.
According to data collected by FlightAware, the Boeing 767 traveled northward during its takeoff, turning west just past the Vandenberg Air Force Base, which SpaceX uses for Falcon 9 launches.
In a statement to Business Insider, Delta said the crew on the flight followed instructions from air traffic control and proceeded to Honolulu with “no issue.”
In audio of air traffic control communications posted on the YouTube channel VAS Aviation, an air traffic controller can be heard discussing the launch, and telling DL480's flight deck that it “looks like you’re gonna have the best show for the rocket launch.”
Southwest has so far not commented on the issue and the Federal Aviation Administration said it had received no reports about the incident.
SpaceX ultimately ended up launching the Falcon 9 rocket on Tuesday instead and the event went off without a hitch. The whole ordeal does lay bare the tensions between private rocket companies and commercial air traffic that have been simmering for months.
Just last week, airliners had to be diverted and delayed after a SpaceX rocket exploded and scattered debris all over the Caribbean. Australian flag carrier Qantas also reported that SpaceX debris had led to delays of up to six hours on some routes earlier this month.
With SpaceX only increasing its number of launches every year and new private space companies cropping up at an alarming rate, the interactions between rocket companies and airlines are only going to hot up.