Crew Dragon (officially Dragon 2) is a partially reusable spacecraft developed by SpaceX for crew and cargo missions to the International Space Station (ISS) and other destinations.
Development History
Development began in 2014 under NASA's Commercial Crew Program, with the goal of ending American reliance on Russian Soyuz spacecraft for ISS crew transport.
Key Milestones
- March 2019: Demo-1 - First uncrewed flight to ISS
- May 2020: Demo-2 - First crewed flight, carrying NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken
- November 2020: Crew-1 - First operational crew rotation mission
Revolutionary Achievement
The May 2020 Demo-2 mission made SpaceX the first private company to send astronauts to orbit, ending a nine-year gap in American human spaceflight capability that began with the Space Shuttle's retirement in 2011.
Design Features
- Seats up to 7 astronauts
- Touchscreen controls (revolutionary compared to traditional spacecraft)
- Side-mounted docking port for ISS
- Launch abort system integrated into spacecraft
- Propulsive landing capability (though parachute landing is standard)
- Reusable capsule design
Operational Record
As of 2025, Crew Dragon has:
- Transported over 50 astronauts to orbit
- Conducted both government and private missions
- Achieved a perfect safety record
- Reduced the cost of ISS crew transport significantly
Crew Dragon represents the successful realization of commercial crew spaceflight and has become the primary means of transporting astronauts to the ISS.