SpaceX has repeatedly demonstrated reliable Super Heavy booster captures using the launch tower’s mechanical “chopsticks,” but no Starship upper stage has yet been caught, with every prior flight ending in an ocean splashdown. Recent progress centers on Flight 13’s precise Ship 40 reentry and soft landing in July 2026, which supplied flight data on heat-shield performance and terminal guidance that Elon Musk cited as enabling the first ship-catch attempt. Tower interface tests with Ship 42 and actuator upgrades have refined arm alignment and load handling for the lighter, faster-returning upper stage. Musk stated in mid-October that Flight 15, now targeted for early-to-mid November after regulatory clearance, will attempt the catch of both stages—the first full orbital-class recovery—positioning the November window as the near-term catalyst while leaving any pre-November resolution dependent on accelerated scheduling or earlier test outcomes.