Archive · 1 Oct 2026
SpaceX Prepares Crew-13 Launch as Dragon Retirement Looms
SpaceX is preparing to send four people to the International Space Station.
They will travel in a spacecraft called Dragon.
The launch is planned for Thursday from Florida.
The astronauts will stay in space for about six months.
SpaceX may stop using Dragon in the future.
The company wants to use a newer spacecraft called Starship instead.
However, Starship is still being developed.
NASA also wants Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft to become another way to carry astronauts.
For now, Dragon remains NASA’s active spacecraft for these crew flights.
SpaceX plans to launch four astronauts to the International Space Station on Thursday aboard a Crew Dragon capsule.
Crew-13 is scheduled to lift off at 11:10 a.m. local time from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The astronauts are expected to spend six months living and working aboard the space station.
SpaceX has indicated that it eventually plans to retire Dragon and shift its human-spaceflight operations to Starship.
NASA is continuing to support Boeing’s Starliner, with its next crewed mission planned for no earlier than 2028.
- Who
- NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk, and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov.
- What
- The Crew-13 mission will carry four people to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon.
- When
- The launch is scheduled for Thursday, October 1, 2026, at 11:10 a.m. local time.
- Where
- NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, with docking planned at the International Space Station.
- Why
- The mission will keep the International Space Station staffed and support six months of work aboard the orbiting laboratory.
Continue Dragon Operations
Transition to Starship
SpaceX’s future crew vehicle
Continue Dragon Operations
Dragon is still flying for NASA without interruption, and SpaceX has at least four additional contracted crew missions through 2030.
Transition to Starship
SpaceX has indicated that it intends to sunset older platforms such as Dragon and shift its business to Starship, although no exact retirement date has been announced.
NASA’s backup option
Continue Dragon Operations
Continuing support for Boeing’s Starliner could give NASA another crew-transport option for the International Space Station.
Transition to Starship
Starliner experienced engine problems during its 2024 crewed test flight, and NASA officials have not scheduled another crewed mission before 2028.
- Mission
- Crew-13
- Launch time
- 11:10 a.m. local time on Thursday
- Launch site
- NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida
- Crew size
- Four astronauts and cosmonauts
- Expected stay
- Approximately six months aboard the International Space Station
- Dragon contracts
- NASA has contracted at least four additional Dragon crew-rotation missions through the end of 2030
- Starliner outlook
- Boeing’s next crewed Starliner mission is planned for no earlier than 2028