The SpaceX Starship will be fully reusable and could be used for point to point transportation of cargo and people on Earth, flights to space and as habitats in space.
There are 25,000 passenger planes for moving people and cargo. There are another 14000 military jets. Passenger travel around the world will triple the demand for vehicles by the 2040s. If Starship can become one thousand times safer then it could replace passenger jets for moving people and cargo for longer distances than 2000 miles. Half of the passenger jets could be replaced. This would be about 35,000 Starships.
Hundreds of Starships could be sent to Mars every two years to colonize and create a city. If a million people were moved over three decades to Mars. Each might take 100 people, this could mean ten thousand Starships if they are used mainly for one way travel and then as habitats or moving around Mars.
Another few thousand could be used for flights to orbit and to the moon.
Another ten thousand could be used for military purposes.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.
A frequent speaker at corporations, he has been a TEDx speaker, a Singularity University speaker and guest at numerous interviews for radio and podcasts. He is open to public speaking and advising engagements.