Elon Musk Warns SpaceX 'Bankruptcy' in Leaked Email; Gives Update on Raptor Engine Issue

In a leaked email to employees, Elon Musk stated that SpaceX may face bankruptcy due to the slow production of Raptor engines.

Aside from its rockets, the said slow production may affect SpaceX's Starlink Satellite project.

Elon Musk Leaked Email: SpaceX May Face Bankruptcy

In a leaked email of Musk obtained by Space Explored, the billionaire expressed his upset with the slow progress in creating the SpaceX Raptor engines that will propel its Starship rockets.

Due to its lack of progress, Musk pointed out that SpaceX may face bankruptcy by the end of 2022 if the space company fails to accomplish a Starship flying rate of once every two weeks next year.

The said email was sent to SpaceX employees over the Thanksgiving holiday.

To give further details, SpaceX is presently constructing its next rocket, Starship, in Boca Chica, Texas, per Space Explored.

Musk's Starship will be the spacecraft that will transport humanity to Mars, but first, it will return humans to the Moon's surface for the Artemis lunar lander program.

However, in order to advance to orbital launches, each rocket prototype will require up to 39 Raptor engines, necessitating a rapid increase in engine output, per CNBC.

The Raptor engine, which is a full-flow staged combustion Methane engine, is experiencing manufacturing problems. As Musk detailed in the leaked email, the manufacturing challenges have gotten even more noticeable.

This only means that before Starship can transport passengers anywhere, SpaceX must fix its engine manufacturing concerns first.

On the other hand, Musk's email to SpaceX staff sheds further light on the importance of Will Heltsley's resignation earlier this month. In another report of CNBC, it clarified that Heltsley was removed from the Raptor engine development before he left the company.

Moreover, Jacob Mackenzie, who has worked for SpaceX for over six years, is currently in charge of Raptor engine manufacturing.

In relation to this, Musk indicated in his email that the company's leadership has been investigating the program's difficulties since then. Through the said investigation, it revealed that the conditions are substantially more serious than Musk had previously imagined.

Additionally, Musk made a brief public statement on Twitter, stating that bankruptcy is an improbable scenario, but not impossible.

SpaceX Raptor Engine Production Affects Starlink Satellite Project

In the said email, Elon Musk added that he was about to take Thanksgiving off, but instead, he worked on the Raptor line all night and all weekend.

In addition to this, Musk was asked by Twitter user @Rubix161 about the status of the Raptor engine, to which he answered that it is getting fixed.

The billionaire creator has consistently said that the most challenging aspect of building SpaceX's massive rocket is production.

Since production is challenging, Musk asked in the email that SpaceX employees must have all hands on deck as they return from Thanksgiving.

To further emphasize what needs to be done, Musk shared that "The consequences for SpaceX if we cannot get enough reliable Raptors made is that we then can't fly Starship, which means we then can't fly Starlink Satellite V2 (Falcon has neither the volume nor the mass to orbit needed for satellite V2)."

"Satellite V1, by itself, is financially weak, while V2 is strong," Musk furthered.

Aside from the affected Starships, it is worth noting that the SpaceX's Starlnk Satellite project will also be affected by the issue

For background information on what Starlink Satellite is, Prestige Online stated that it is a SpaceX project that aims to provide a high-speed satellite internet connection to every corner of the Earth, except for the North and South Poles, via a mega-constellation of satellites in orbit around the planet.