SpaceX Is Poised To Beat Boeing To This Milestone, Launching New Era In Space Travel

[Elderberry]

Investor's Business Daily by GILLIAN RICH 8/2/2018

SpaceX is primed to be the first company in history to send astronauts into space on a commercial launch, likely beating Boeing (BA) to that milestone as they ready their competing "space taxis" for NASA.

SpaceX expects to launch its first uncrewed mission of the Crew Dragon capsule in November and its first crewed mission in April 2019, when two astronauts will travel to the International Space Station, according to a NASA statement Thursday.

Meanwhile, Boeing now sees its first uncrewed flight test of its CST-100 Starliner capsule late this year or early next year, with the first crewed mission happening in "mid-2019" at the earliest.

Boeing had earlier warned that the crewed test could be pushed back to 2019, and the Washington Post reported last month that Boeing discovered a fuel leak on the Starliner that could result in a delay.

But while SpaceX appears to be in a position — for now — to claim bragging rights, the flight schedules have already been subject to delays, and more are possible.

SpaceX initially had estimated an April uncrewed launch, then pushed it back to August. The first crewed mission previously was seen in August, then delayed to December. Boeing's first unmanned test previously was due in August, and a crewed test was scheduled for November.

More: https://www.investors.com/news/spacex-boeing-first-astronauts-commercial-launch-nasa-iss/?src=A00220&yptr=yahoo

[WarmPotato]

I don't much trust SpaceX as leading anything

[Elderberry]

NASA is naming at least 8 astronauts to fly SpaceX and Boeing's new spaceships

https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-astronauts-for-spacex-boeing-launches-live-video-2018-8

On Friday, the space agency plans to announce crews for the first flights of SpaceX's Crew Dragon and Boeing's CST-100 Starliner. NASA will broadcast video of the announcement, and you can watch live starting around 11 a.m. EDT via the embed at the end of this post.

Four of a minimum of eight astronauts will almost certainly be Bob Behnken, Eric Boe, Doug Hurley, and Sunita "Suni" Williams . Sometimes called the "Commercial Crew Cadre," those astronauts are seasoned veterans who've worked closely with Boeing and SpaceX on their new spacecraft and systems over the past three years.

The other four-plus astronauts that NASA has selected, however, aren't yet publicly known. (However, Boeing also plans to launch a third person on its first crewed mission: Chris Ferguson, a company employee and retired NASA astronaut, according to the Washington Post .)