SpaceX Confirms Crew Capsule Destroyed in Ground Test

The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule is hoisted onto a ship in the Atlantic Ocean off the Florida coast after it returned from a mission to the International Space Station on March 8, 2019. NASA via AP, File

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.— SpaceX finally confirmed on May 2 its crew capsule was destroyed in ground testing two weeks ago and conceded that the accident is “not great news” for the company’s effort to launch astronauts this year.

Hans Koenigsmann, a company vice president, told reporters it’s too soon to know what went wrong during the April 20 test or whether the crew Dragon capsule’s test flight in March—minus astronauts—contributed to the failure. Flames engulfed the capsule a half-second before the launch-abort thrusters were to fire.