The Federal Aviation Administration has paused SpaceX's the launch of its Starship rocket as the U.S. agency oversees an investigation by the private company of the breakup after a test launch Thursday.

A SpaceX Starship prototype failed in space minutes after launching from Texas on Thursday, forcing airline flights over the Gulf of Mexico to alter course to avoid falling debris and setting back Elon Musk's flagship rocket program.

The seventh fully-stacked SpaceX Starship lifted off on time from Starbase, Texas, but eight-and-a-half minutes into flight, things started to go wrong. While the first-stage Super Heavy booster returned to the launch pad for the second time, SpaceX ultimately lost this Starship.