NASA and SpaceX prepare Crew-13 launch for fastest US flight to space station

Launch timing and fast transit plan

NASA and SpaceX have scheduled the launch of the Crew-13 mission for Thursday, 1 October 2026, at 11:10 AM ET (17:10 Spanish peninsular time) from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The flight will carry four crew members aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule propelled by a Falcon 9 rocket. If the planned trajectory holds, the spacecraft will complete its transit to the International Space Station in 7 hours and 50 minutes, representing the fastest journey by an American spacecraft to the orbital laboratory since station construction began in 1998. Docking is scheduled at the forward port of the Harmony module at approximately 01:00 on Friday, 2 October. The crew plans to open the hatch roughly 90 minutes after docking to join the Expedition 75 crew for safety briefings and welcome remarks.

Crew composition and milestones

NASA astronaut and geologist Jessica Watkins commands the mission, becoming the first NASA astronaut to launch twice on a Dragon spacecraft following her 170-day stay in orbit during 2022. NASA research pilot Luke Delaney from the Langley Research Center serves as pilot on his first flight into space. The two mission specialists are Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk, who becomes the first Canadian to fly under NASA's commercial crew program, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov on his first mission to orbit. Facing the traditional superstitions surrounding the mission number, the crew travelled to the launch pad in support vehicles bearing license plates that read Lucky-13. The flight number recalls the Apollo 13 mission, which launched on 11 April 1970 at 14:13 US Eastern time before suffering an oxygen tank explosion two days later.

Technical readiness and weather forecast

The mission team previously rescheduled the launch from 12 September after discovering a leak in the propulsion system of the Dragon capsule in late August. Technicians resolved the issue by replacing an oxidizer valve before NASA, SpaceX, and international partners granted final flight readiness approval. The crew arrived at Kennedy Space Center on the preceding Saturday to complete standard pre-flight quarantine protocols. Meteorologists at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station assessed a 55% probability of favorable weather for the launch window. Forecasters identified cumulus cloud formations and precipitation along the rocket flight path as the primary meteorological risks for the flight attempt.

Space station handover and long-term exploration

The four astronauts will spend six months on the orbital laboratory conducting maintenance tasks and microgravity research. NASA stated that the crew will carry out dedicated research projects to support future deep-space travel.

conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare humans for future exploration missions to the Moon and Mars.

Crew-13 will relieve the four members of SpaceX Crew-12, who arrived at the station in February and are scheduled to depart for Earth no earlier than Monday, 5 October. The Crew-12 astronauts had previously sheltered inside their capsule in June after an air leak was detected on the station. The mission operates alongside broader exploration goals, including NASA plans to test lunar landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin during Artemis III in 2027 following the completion of the Artemis II lunar flyby on 10 April. SpaceX has indicated plans to retire the Crew Dragon craft in the future when the space station concludes operations, transitioning to its Starship vehicle.