SpaceX’s Demo-2 Crewed Mission Gets OK for Wednesday Launch

SpaceX's manned Demo-2 test flight mission as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program received the go-ahead to launch on Wednesday, May 27, after it passed a launch readiness evaluation Monday.

A blog post published Monday says SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft is slated to take off Wednesday from Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a Falcon 9 rocket to transport NASA astronauts Douglas Hurley and Robert Behnken to the International Space Station.

The Demo-2 mission will serve as SpaceX’s final flight test to validate its Falcon 9, spacecraft, operations and launch pad capabilities.

“We’re burning down the final paper. All the teams are a go, and we’re continuing to progress toward our mission,” said Kathy Lueders, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. 

Hurley and Behnken will join the Expedition 63 crew at the orbiting laboratory to help with research efforts and support station maintenance and operations. The crew will carry out tests to ensure that the spacecraft can remain docked at the ISS for up to 210 days in future missions.

The mission’s specific duration will be determined after the astronauts’ arrival at the ISS based on the next manned launch’s readiness.