Crew-11 Arrives at Kennedy Space Center Ahead of Launch

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NASA’s Crew-11 mission is officially in the final stretch before liftoff, with all four astronauts arriving at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) ahead of their scheduled launch on Thursday. Touching down at the iconic 15,000-foot-long Shuttle Landing Facility, the crew is now immersed in a rigorous pre-launch schedule as they prepare for their journey to the International Space Station (ISS).

Why Arrive Early?

Arriving five days before launch might seem premature, but it’s standard practice for ISS-bound crews. This early arrival allows time for final training, briefings, and rehearsals. The astronauts also entered pre-flight quarantine even before traveling to KSC, minimizing the risk of carrying illnesses to the station.

During their stay, the astronauts are based out of the Operations & Checkout Building—home to decades of astronaut activity, from Apollo to Shuttle, and now Commercial Crew. It’s the same building where those famous walkouts into the Astrovan once took place. On launch day, Crew-11 will recreate that historic moment—though instead of the Astrovan, they’ll be stepping into sleek SpaceX Teslas en route to Launch Complex 39A.

Preparing for Liftoff

In the days leading up to the launch, the crew will participate in a “dry dress rehearsal,” a full run-through of launch day procedures. They’ll don their SpaceX suits, travel to the launch pad, and board Crew Dragon—but without fueling the rocket. That process takes place separately during a static fire test, where Falcon 9’s engines are briefly ignited on the pad to confirm readiness.

SpaceX typically conducts static fires for new Falcon 9 boosters or missions carrying high-value or crewed payloads—Crew-11 falls squarely into that latter category.

Meet the Crew of Crew-11

  • Oleg Platonov (Roscosmos)
    A former Lieutenant Colonel in the Russian Air Force, Platonov was selected as a cosmonaut in 2018. This will be his first spaceflight. His inclusion is part of the U.S.-Russia seat exchange agreement, which ensures a continual Russian and American presence aboard the ISS.

  • Kimiya Yui (JAXA)
    Representing the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Yui previously spent nearly five months on the ISS during Soyuz TMA-17M in 2015. Once aboard, he’ll reunite with fellow Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, currently serving on Crew-10.

  • Mike Fincke (NASA)
    A veteran astronaut with over a year of spaceflight experience across two Soyuz missions and one Shuttle flight, Fincke was long slated to fly on Boeing’s Starliner Crew Flight Test. However, Starliner delays led NASA to reassign him to a SpaceX Dragon mission instead. He’ll serve as Crew-11’s pilot.

  • Zena Cardman (NASA)
    A member of NASA’s 2017 astronaut class, “The Turtles,” Cardman is making her first trip to space. She was initially assigned to Crew-9, but the reshuffling caused by Starliner’s flight test left empty seats that needed to be filled by returning astronauts. Cardman was reassigned to Crew-11 as a result.

The Hardware and the Timeline

The Crew Dragon spacecraft assigned to this mission—Endeavour—is currently staged inside the hangar at Launch Complex 39A. The Transporter Erector was rolled back last week for Falcon 9 booster integration, marking one of the final steps before rollout to the pad.

Liftoff is targeted for 16:09 UTC on Thursday, launching NASA and its international partners one step closer to continuing science and operations aboard the ISS.

Stay tuned to NASASpaceflight’s YouTube Channel for live launch coverage beginning at T-4 hours.

Written by Ryan Caton for NSF’s BREAKINGspace with support from Alejandro Alcantarilla Romera. Lead image via Max Evans.

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