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Both vehicles have recovered first-stage boosters, but as of 11 October 2026 they are in very different states. New Glenn reached orbit on its first flight and has flown three times; its only working launch pad is being rebuilt after a ground-test explosion. Starship flew 13 suborbital test flights, then reached orbit for the first time on Flight 14, September 28, 2026.
Height, thrust, engines, launch price and Artemis roles side by side are on Starship vs New Glenn specs.
| Metric | Starship | New Glenn |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | SpaceX | Blue Origin |
| Vehicle Class | Super heavy-lift (SpaceX: the most powerful launch vehicle ever developed) | Heavy-lift |
| First Orbital Flight | Flight 14, Sep 28, 2026: reached orbit and deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites (13 suborbital test flights before it, from Apr 2023) | NG-1, Jan 16, 2025: reached orbit; booster lost during descent |
| Status (11 Oct 2026) | In flight testing: 13 suborbital flights, then the first orbital flight (Flight 14, Sep 28); no Starship launch since | Not flying: LC-36, its only working pad, is being rebuilt after the May 28, 2026 static-fire explosion |
| Most Recent Flight | Flight 14 (Sep 28, 2026): first orbital flight; deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites, which SpaceX said were transmitting; a Raptor Vacuum engine cut out early, so the planned 10-hour flight ended with a splashdown near Hawaii about three hours after liftoff; booster splashed down in the Gulf | NG-3 (Apr 19, 2026): first booster reflight, landed; the upper stage left AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 in too low an orbit, and the satellite is being deorbited |
| Booster Recovery Track Record | Tower catches on earlier test flights (first on Flight 5, Oct 2024); the V3 booster missed its planned return on Flight 12 (boostback not completed) and Flight 13 (hard splashdown after some engines failed to relight) | Booster landed on NG-2 (Nov 2025), then flew again on NG-3 and landed a second time; the NG-1 booster was lost |
| Upper-Stage Recovery | Never caught: the Flight 13 ship splashed down intact in the Indian Ocean and was towed to Christmas Island over 24 days; the Flight 14 ship returned from orbit to a Pacific splashdown | Expendable second stage |
| Payload to LEO | 100+ t in a fully reusable configuration (SpaceX design figure; not yet demonstrated) | 45,000 kg |
| Payload to GTO | No figure published by SpaceX | More than 13,000 kg |
| Diameter / Fairing | 9 m (no separate fairing: payloads ride inside the upper stage) | 7 m fairing |
| Propellant | LOX / liquid methane (both stages) | LOX / LNG (1st stage); LOX / LH2 (2nd stage) |
| First Stage Engines | 33 Raptor (LOX/CH4); Raptor 3 on the V3 vehicles flying since May 2026 | 7 BE-4 (LOX/LNG) |
| Launch Site(s) | Starbase, TX | LC-36A, Cape Canaveral, FL (being rebuilt); a second pad, LC-36B, is under construction |
| Next Milestones | Ship-to-ship propellant transfer (needs two Starship launches) and a ship catch, neither flown yet | Return to flight: as of Nov 12, 2026 anticipated in January 2027 (staff memo quoted by The Register); a second pad, LC-36B, is being built |
| Customers (booked or flown) | SpaceX (Starlink V3), NASA (Artemis lunar lander) | Amazon Leo (12 launches booked plus options for 15, Apr 2022), NASA (ESCAPADE, launched Nov 2025), US Space Force (NSSL Phase 3 Lane 2) |
Flight 13 (July 24, 2026) was Starship's thirteenth test flight and, like every flight before it, flew a suborbital trajectory. It released 20 Starlink V3 satellites on that path, where they reentered and burned up as planned. The ship made a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean and stayed largely intact; it was then towed for 24 days to Christmas Island. The Super Heavy booster hit the Gulf harder than planned after some of its engines failed to relight for the landing burn.
Flight 14, on September 28, 2026, was Starship's first orbital flight: the ship reached orbit and deployed all 26 Starlink V3 satellites, which SpaceX said were transmitting as planned. A Raptor Vacuum engine on the ship cut out early during ascent, so SpaceX shortened a flight planned to last 10 hours; the ship splashed down near Hawaii about three hours after liftoff, and the booster splashed down in the Gulf seven minutes later. Catching the ship and ship-to-ship propellant transfer are still ahead. See the full Starship flight tracker for live updates.
New Glenn has been flying since January 2025, when NG-1 reached orbit on its debut but lost its booster during descent. Blue Origin landed a booster on NG-2, which launched NASA's twin ESCAPADE Mars orbiters in November 2025, and on NG-3 in April 2026 that same booster flew again and landed a second time, the first reuse of a New Glenn first stage. On NG-3, one of the two BE-3U upper-stage engines did not produce enough thrust, leaving AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite in an orbit too low to operate. The FAA required a mishap investigation and concluded it in May 2026.
On May 28, 2026, a New Glenn exploded during a static fire test at Launch Complex 36, destroying the rocket and damaging the pad; Blue Origin traced it to the main oxygen valve on one BE-4 engine. Blue Origin is rebuilding LC-36 and building a second pad, LC-36B, and, as of November 12, 2026, its return to flight is anticipated in January 2027, according to a staff memo from chief executive Dave Limp quoted by The Register. Until then, New Glenn launches for customers such as Amazon Leo wait on the pad.
On paper the two are in different payload classes: Starship's design figure is more than 100 metric tons to orbit fully reused (SpaceX), against New Glenn's 45 metric tons. On flight readiness, Starship has now reached orbit, while New Glenn cannot fly until LC-36 is back in service. New Glenn has reflown a booster; Starship has not yet caught or reflown a ship.
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It depends on the measure. New Glenn reached orbit on its first flight and reflew a booster on its third, but that flight's upper stage left its payload in too low an orbit, and the vehicle cannot fly until LC-36 is rebuilt after the May 28, 2026 static-fire explosion. Starship reached orbit for the first time on its 14th flight, September 28, 2026, after 13 suborbital test flights; it has not yet flown a ship-to-ship propellant transfer.
Two events. After NG-3 on April 19, 2026, when one BE-3U upper-stage engine fell short on thrust and left the payload too low, the FAA required a mishap investigation, which it concluded in May. Then on May 28 a New Glenn exploded during a static fire on Launch Complex 36 (Blue Origin traced it to a main oxygen valve on one BE-4 engine), damaging the rocket's only working pad. As of November 12, 2026, its return to flight is anticipated in January 2027, according to a staff memo from chief executive Dave Limp quoted by The Register.
Yes: on NG-3, April 19, 2026, it flew the booster from NG-2 and landed it again on the ship Jacklyn. That booster was not significantly affected by the May 28 explosion, which destroyed a different rocket.
Not yet. It is still in flight testing. Its first 13 flights were suborbital; Flight 14, on September 28, 2026, reached orbit and deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites. Catching the ship at the tower and ship-to-ship propellant transfer have not been flown.
Amazon's booked New Glenn launches for Amazon Leo wait until LC-36 is back in service; Amazon Leo satellites have flown on Atlas V, Falcon 9 and Ariane 6 meanwhile. NASA plans Artemis III in 2027 as a low Earth orbit test of rendezvous and docking between Orion and test versions of both crewed landers, SpaceX's Starship and Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 2.