Video shot on Thursday showed orange balls of light streaking across the sky over Port-au-Prince, leaving trails of smoke behind.
SpaceX mission control lost contact with a heavily upgraded version of Starship carrying its first test payload of mock satellites, eight minutes after liftoff from its South Texas rocket facilities at 5:38 p.m.
"We did lose all communications with the ship," SpaceX Communications Manager Dan Huot said, confirming minutes later that the ship was lost.
At least 20 commercial flights diverted to other airports or altered course to avoid potential debris, based on flight records from tracking website FlightRadar24.
The Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates private launch activities, did not immediately return requests for comment.
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