According to the latest report, SpaceX will stop production of the new Crew Dragon after completing the fourth and final space capsule. After confirming the news, Musk’s SpaceX said it would continue to produce components for the spacecraft and would retain the ability to produce additional Crew Dragon capsules.
Join tip3x on Telegram
Given the Crew Dragon’s reusable nature, it has long been assumed that SpaceX will produce a limited number of spacecraft. But until today, it wasn’t known how many capsules the company planned to build before moving on to other projects.
Moreover, Crew Dragon has sent five crew members into space since its first crewed flight in 2020, including its first civil flight late last year. As part of an ongoing commercial crew program, NASA plans to use the SpaceX capsule to transport astronauts to the International Space Station on six different missions.
But NASA recently said it would use the Crew Dragon for three more missions due to delays on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. Crew Dragon’s discontinuation comes as SpaceX seeks to certify and enter service the next-generation reusable heavy-lift rocket, Starship.
Furthermore, the spacecraft is a key part of all of SpaceX’s moon and Mars plans. After several delays, Musk recently said the company hopes to conduct its first orbital test of Starship in May.
