US grounds SpaceX's starship after fiery mid-air explosion

Washington: The United States on Friday grounded SpaceX sstarshipand ordered Elon Musk s company to investigate why the spaceship spectacularly disint...

Washington: The United States on Friday grounded SpaceX's starship and ordered Elon Musk's company to investigate why the spaceship spectacularly disintegrated in a fiery cascade over the Caribbean during its latest test mission.

Authorities in the Turks and Caicos Islands confirmed they diverted all flights from their airspace during the incident and urged residents not to touch fallen debris, warning it could be hazardous.

"The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) is requiring SpaceX to perform a mishap investigation into the loss of the starship vehicle during launch operations on Jan. 16," the agency said.

"There are no reports of public injury, and the FAA is working with SpaceX and appropriate authorities to confirm reports of public property damage on Turks and Caicos."

It added that during the event, it briefly activated a "Debris Response Area" protocol to slow aircraft outside the area where the debris was falling or stop aircraft at their departure location.