Eric Patrick
Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, on Thursday announced that the company will begin retiring its Dragon spacecraft following threats from President Donald Trump to cancel SpaceX’s government contracts.
Musk took to the social media handle X to share the decision, stating, “In light of the President’s statement about cancellation of my government contracts, @SpaceX will begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately.”
This move comes after a very public and acrimonious breakdown in relations between Musk and Trump, bringing an end to their nearly year-long political alliance.
The two have exchanged insults in a series of heated social media confrontations.
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule, launched in 2020, currently holds the distinction of being the only US-certified spacecraft capable of ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station (ISS).
This program, funded by a NASA contract worth more than $4.9 billion, has been a key part of America’s crewed spaceflight capabilities since the retirement of the Space Shuttle program in 2011. The Cargo Dragon, a variant of the spacecraft, handles resupply missions to the ISS.
NASA spokeswoman Bethany Stevens responded to Musk’s announcement by affirming the agency’s commitment to the current administration’s space objectives, stating on X, “We will continue to work with our industry partners to ensure the President’s objectives in space are met.”
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NASA has also been working toward certifying Boeing’s Starliner for human spaceflight, but the program has faced repeated setbacks, including a failed test flight last year due to propulsion problems.
The mission ended with the spacecraft returning to Earth early, and the astronauts onboard were rescued by a SpaceX Crew Dragon.
The certification of Crew Dragon in 2020 was a significant milestone, ending the US’s dependence on Russian Soyuz rockets, a reliance that had begun after the Space Shuttle’s retirement.
Despite recent tensions, the US and Russia continue to share seats on each other’s spacecraft as part of a longstanding agreement.
Besides government missions, Crew Dragon has also been used for private flights, including tourist expeditions. The most recent private mission, Fram2, orbited Earth’s poles.
Looking ahead, the next Crew Dragon launch is planned for Tuesday’s Axiom-4 mission, which will carry astronauts from India, Poland, and Hungary to the ISS.