Part 6/14:
Unlike traditional rockets, Starship is built for rapid turnover. Instead of multi-month refurbishment cycles like the space shuttle, it aims for quick turnaround times, with the booster and ship being catchable by tower arms and quickly returned to the launch mount within minutes. This approach drastically increases flight cadence and reduces costs.
Heat Shield and Reusability:
A major engineering goal is the development of a fully reusable orbital heat shield, capable of withstanding multiple re-entries without shedding tiles or requiring months of refurbishment. The design involves rigorous testing and iteration, with the goal of achieving this reliability through numerous flights.