Homemade SpaceX Starship Replica Attempts the Famous ‘Belly Flop’

Imagine SpaceX’s Starship but make it smaller.
Derya Ozdemir

Not a days go by without someone seriously talented taking on the internet stage to show off their creations. After getting tired of waiting to see SpaceX's high-altitude SN8 flight test, which launched and exploded upon landing last week, YouTuber Nicholas Relm started his own Starship program and built a radio-controlled Starship of his own after seeing others try to replicate it.

He made a fully functioning electric Starship that looks like the real thing. His replica can take off vertically, skydive down, and land vertically, which as far as he knows, nobody has done all three before. According to the video's description, the replica Starship has complete control of surface actuation and can take off, hover, and do the famous belly flop maneuver.

The replica is made of 3D printed parts with some carbon and foam parts and uses conventional drone electronics and radio equipment to allow full control. You can watch the video to see how the inventor built it and the problem he encountered while doing so, with some flight test footage accompanying the whole thing. Enjoy!

Nicholas Rehm is not the only one who got bored of waiting and decided to make their own replica of Elon Musk’s creations. You can watch how these Russian YouTubers turned a LADA hatchback into a funny version of a Cybertruck here.

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