WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump appears to be planning to attend a SpaceX “Starship” rocket launch Tuesday, in the latest indication of founder Elon Musk’s influence in the Republican’s orbit.
The Federal Aviation Administration has issued temporary flight restrictions over Brownsville and Boca Chica, Texas, for a VIP visit that coincides with SpaceX’s launch window for a test of its massive Starship rocket from its launch facility on the Gulf of Mexico. The flight restrictions put in place over Trump’s home in Palm Beach, Florida, while he is there will be lifted briefly while security measures are in place in Texas.
Trump’s visit comes as billionaire Musk has been a near-constant presence at Trump’s side as he builds out his administration, attending meetings at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club, attending meetings with the Republicans from Capitol Hill in Washington last week and to a UFC. fight in New York on Saturday.
Trump regularly treated the public during his campaign to a dramatic account of the final Starship test, which included the booster being captured on the launch pad by a pair of mechanical arms.
Tuesday’s 30-minute launch window will open at 4 p.m. central time, according to the company, with the company looking to once again test the booster’s landing capture system in Texas while the upper stage continues its splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
Musk has pumped an estimated $200 million through his political action committee to help elect Trump and, along with former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, has been named to lead an advisory committee charged by Trump with dramatically cutting government costs and reforming of the way Washington operates. raised ethical concerns about Musk’s many interests with the federal government.
Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the president-elect’s plans.
