SpaceX Clears Final Hurdle for Historic May 27 Astronaut Launch
SpaceX officially passes NASA's Flight Readiness Review, paving the way for the first crewed launch of a private spacecraft from US soil since 2011.
SpaceX receives official approval from NASA to launch astronauts to the International Space Station on May 27 after successfully passing a rigorous Flight Readiness Review. The Crew Dragon spacecraft sits atop a Falcon 9 rocket at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, fully prepared for its historic 4:33 PM EDT launch window. Another review takes place on Monday following final checkouts, and a static test fire of the rocket's engines occurs later today to verify proper functionality.
NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken serve as the crew for this groundbreaking mission, marking the first time humans launch from United States soil since the retirement of the Space Shuttle program in 2011. This is also the first time astronauts fly aboard a privately built American spacecraft. Once in orbit, the Crew Dragon autonomously docks with the ISS where the astronauts live and work for up to three months.
Despite the extended stay at the space station, this flight remains the final demonstration mission in SpaceX's human-rating process for NASA's Commercial Crew program. The initiative aims to build strong public-private partnerships to reduce the costs of domestic spaceflight. At the end of their stay, Hurley and Behnken board the Crew Dragon for a controlled re-entry and ocean splashdown, where a SpaceX recovery crew retrieves them.