Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser debut mission delayed once more, now not docking to station – Spaceflight Now

The debut of Sierra Space’s cargo area airplane Dream Chaser has delayed once more and can now not see a docking with the International Space Station. In an announcement Thursday afternoon, NASA stated the area company and Sierra Space had agreed to a serious modification of their area station resupply contract.

The area airplane is now scheduled to launch on its inaugural flight no sooner than late 2026. Additionally, as a substitute of docking to the ISS, the car named Tenacity will now conduct a free-flyer mission.

NASA stated underneath the contract revsion it’s “no longer obligated for a specific number of resupply missions.” The unique Commercial Resupply Services-2 (CRS-2) contract specified a minimal of seven flights to the ISS, with 4 missions awarded as a part of a firm-fixed worth job order “based on the needs of the space station.”

“Development of new space transportation systems is difficult and can take longer than what’s originally planned,” stated Dana Weigel, supervisor of NASA’s International Space Station Program. “The skill to carry out a flight demonstration generally is a key enabler in a spacecraft’s growth and readiness, in addition to providing better flexibility for NASA and Sierra Space.

“As NASA and its partners look toward space station deorbit in 2030, this mutually agreed to decision enables testing and verification to continue on Dream Chaser, as well as demonstrating the capabilities of the spaceplane for future resupply missions in low Earth orbit.”

Back in 2016, Sierra Nevada Corporation, dad or mum firm to Sierra Space, was awarded a CRS-2 contract alongside Northrop Grumman and SpaceX for a most potential worth of $14 billion from 2016 by 2024.

In November 2024, NASA prolonged the CRS-2 contract with all three suppliers with mission award interval now operating by December 31, 2030. That would take the cargo flights by the approximate finish of life for the area station.

Currently the SpX-33 and NG-23 missions are servicing the ISS with the Dragon and Cygnus spacecraft set to depart in December and March respectively.

Spaceflight Now reached out to NASA to ask how quickly Sierra Space may moderately be awarded a mission to the ISS, assuming a nominal free-flyer mission subsequent yr. An company spokesperson stated that’s nonetheless up within the air.

“Following a successful orbital demonstration mission and certification, NASA may order flights from Sierra Space as part of the agency’s Commercial Resupply Services-2 contract based on the agency’s needs,” a NASA spokesperson stated.

Meanwhile, Sierra Space stated in a press launch that this free-flyer mission “is expected to prove the technology and deliver critical data to NASA” and likewise “provide Sierra Space with flexibility to address the nation’s most pressing National Security Space challenges, while continuing to advance Dream Chaser’s capabilities for NASA and commercial customers.”

Sierra Space is without doubt one of the main companions, alongside Blue Origin, which can be growing a business area station known as Orbital Reef. Sierra Space would use Dream Chaser as a technique of cargo transport and likewise present its inflatable LIFE (Large Integrated Flexible Environment) Habitat modules.

Back in April 2025, NASA stated Orbital Reef accomplished human-in-the-loop testing, demonstrating some each day operations inside a mockup of the business area station.

Sierra Space put a optimistic spin on the modifications to its contract with NASA.

“Dream Chaser represents the future of versatile space transportation and mission flexibility,” Sierra SpaceGovt Chair Faith Ozmen stated within the firm’s press launch. “This transition supplies distinctive capabilities to fulfill the wants of various mission profiles, together with rising and existential threats and nationwide safety priorities that align with our acceleration into the Defense Tech market.

“Together with NASA, we are seeking to preserve the exceptional potential of Dream Chaser as a national asset, ensuring its readiness for the next era of space innovation.”

What occurred to Dream Chaser?

The Dream Chaser area airplane was initially imagined as a crewed car that might fly as a part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Ultimately, NASA down-selected to Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, leaving Sierra Space to pivot on its plans.

Since then the cargo model of the car has been within the works. For years, it was slated to be the payload on the second certification (Cert-2) flight of United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket. ULA President and CEO Tory Bruno stated final yr that they waited so long as they may within the hopes of launching Dream Chaser on the Cert-2 mission, which in the end resulted in ULA flying with no payload on that mission.

Back in February 2024, members of the media had been invited to NASA’s Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio, to see the Dream Chaser area airplane built-in with the Shooting Star cargo module. Leadership with NASA and Sierra Space touted the capabilities of the car, trying in the direction of it first launch.

“We are coming out of years of development, years of hard work, years of resolving really tough engineering challenges that come from revolutionizing the way we do things,” stated Tom Vice, the then CEO of Sierra Space. “And we are really excited that this year we enter orbital operations for NASA. It is a year that we change how we connect Earth and space.”

In May 2024, Tenacity arrived on the Space Systems Processing Facility (SSPF) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for “final testing and prelaunch processing.” Between then and now, there have been few official particulars concerning the work being carried out on the car.

In response to questions from Spaceflight Now, Sierra Space stated the next:

“Significant manufacturing milestones have been achieved for Dream Chaser, which is now entering final testing phases to meet rigorous pre-launch requirements. The vehicle has begun Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) testing—an essential step toward ensuring mission readiness and reliability. Sierra Space remains focused on completing the final phases of testing and preparation to ensure Dream Chaser’s successful first flight, planned for late 2025 and now anticipated in late 2026 due to launch vehicle availability.”