Crucial Safety Test of SpaceX's Crew Dragon Capsule Delayed to Jan. 18

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From Space.com:
"SpaceX's Crew Dragon astronaut taxi will have to wait at least another week to show its emergency-escape skills in flight.
Crew Dragon's crucial in-flight abort test, or IFA, which had been targeted for Jan. 11, will now take place no earlier than Jan. 18, NASA officials announced yesterday (Jan. 6).
'The new date allows additional time for spacecraft processing,' NASA officials wrote in an update."

https://www.space.com/spacex-crew-drago ... -2020.html

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Here's another article from SpaceFlight Now.com:
"SpaceX reschedules crew capsule in-flight abort test for Jan. 18"

https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/01/07/s ... or-jan-18/

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The latest update from Space.com:
"SpaceX tests rocket for critical Crew Dragon in-flight abort launch on Jan. 18"

https://www.space.com/spacex-tests-rock ... aunch.html

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And another from SpaceFlightNow.com:
"SpaceX test-fires rocket ahead of Crew Dragon in-flight abort test"

https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/01/11/s ... bort-test/

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An update article from Ars Technica:
"Crew Dragon faces its last big test before human spaceflight on Saturday"

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/01 ... -saturday/

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Another update from Ars Technica:
"SpaceX will shut down its rocket mid-flight to test Dragon’s escape system"

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/01 ... pe-system/

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And an update from Space.com:
"SpaceX is about to destroy a rocket in a critical Crew Dragon test flight. Here's why."

https://www.space.com/spacex-crew-drago ... ocket.html

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And an update from SpaceFlightNow.com:
"SpaceX abort test serves as practice run for astronauts, rescue teams"

https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/01/16/s ... cue-teams/

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Here's the success report from Ars Technica:
"SpaceX successfully completes its Dragon abort test"

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/01 ... bort-test/

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And the success report from Space.com:
"SpaceX launches Crew Dragon escape test flight, destroys rocket on purpose"

https://www.space.com/spacex-crew-drago ... ccess.html

The bottom line:
"After a data review, SpaceX hopes that NASA will clear Crew Dragon to carry humans. Once that happens, SpaceX will fly two NASA astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, to the space station for a two-week stay during a test mission called Demo-2.

If that initial crew flight goes smoothly, NASA will greenlight Dragon to begin regular crewed flights. "

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Here's an update from SpaceFlight Now.com:
"SpaceX releases preliminary results from Crew Dragon abort test"
"Data from the Jan. 19 in-flight launch escape demonstration of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft indicate the performance of the capsule’s SuperDraco abort engines was “flawless” as the thrusters boosted the ship away from the top of a Falcon 9 rocket with a peak acceleration of about 3.3Gs, officials said Thursday."

https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/01/23/s ... bort-test/

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[helicon]

Good news Stephen - I'm glad to see that the summary reports indicate that the operation was a complete success. Bodes well for future missions including those with astronauts aboard.

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Good news Stephen - I'm glad to see that the summary reports indicate that the operation was a complete success. Bodes well for future missions including those with astronauts aboard.

Yes, indeed, Michael!
I am excited that perhaps SpaceX will best Boeing, and get crew to the ISS first. Then, perhaps, we can see competition put an end to the incredibly expensive and wasteful Government Contractor stranglehold on space contracts.

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