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loeg 5 days ago

Looks like Starship test flights are already beating that $1 billion per-launch cost (I'm seeing estimates in the $100-500 million range), and they'd like to get the marginal cost down to ~$10 million.

anonymars 5 days ago | parent [-]

I'm confused -- how is it meaningful to compare the cost of Starship test flights with operational Saturn V missions?

fluoridation 5 days ago | parent | next [-]

There were no Saturn V test flights like Starship is doing, that I can find info on. Wikipedia lists 3 tests before Apollo 4, which was the first full launch.

anonymars 5 days ago | parent [-]

From context I interpreted GP to be somehow concluding that Starship is "cheaper" (these test flights are "beating" the price tag of the Saturn V launches), I'm gently pointing out I don't think that is a reasonable conclusion to draw based on empty suborbital test flights vs. taking humans to the moon and back

fluoridation 5 days ago | parent [-]

It would seem no one has the information I originally requested. All we have to go on for Saturn V is a per-launch cost where we don't know what's included. I agree it's an apples-to-oranges comparison, but it seems to be all we have.

boxed 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

The test flights include R&D. The ~1b per flight of Saturn V was excluding R&D when the program was churning along.

I guess you could argue that it's never meaningful to compare anything that isn't a commodity though, which certainly isn't the case here. But I find that silly.

anonymars 4 days ago | parent [-]

That's not what I'm saying. We are comparing 1 billion per operational Saturn V flight to...what? There are no operational Starship flights to compare with. What sense is there in comparing the cost of manned flights to the moon and back with unmanned suborbital test flights?

boxed 4 days ago | parent [-]

Saturn V did have at least one suborbital mission with Spacelab though. So not as hard to compare as you say.

dragonwriter 4 days ago | parent [-]

Spacelab was carried on Shuttle flights, Skylab was launched on a modified Saturn V. And it was low orbit, not suborbital.