Overview

• SpaceX’s redesigned grid fins cut the number from four to three, boost surface area by 50% and sit lower on the booster to align with tower catch arms.
• The new fins house control shafts and actuators inside the fuel tank and add a dedicated catch point to facilitate ‘chopstick’ tower recoveries.
• A technical probe concluded that Flight 9’s booster loss resulted from stress-induced failure of a fuel-transfer tube at high angles of attack, triggering a fuel leak.
• The FAA has closed its Flight 9 mishap investigation and granted approval for Flight 10 to proceed in a late-August launch window.
• Flight 10 will test a next-generation upper stage’s engine relight, simulated Starlink deployments, new heat-shield materials and tower-catch mechanics.