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Musk reverses decision to retire SpaceX Dragon amid Trump dispute
06 Jun 2025

Elon Musk has announced that SpaceX will continue operating its Dragon spacecraft, reversing a statement made just hours earlier amid his escalating conflict with US President Donald Trump.

Musk had declared that SpaceX would begin decommissioning the Dragon capsule—a critical vehicle for ferrying NASA astronauts to and from the International Space Station.

This came in response to Trump's threats to cancel federal contracts with Musk's companies.

However, in a later update, Musk clarified that the spacecraft will remain active.

Trump suggests he might cancel contracts with Musk
Contract concerns

The feud escalated after Trump suggested he might cancel lucrative contracts with Musk's businesses, including SpaceX.

"The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon Musk's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts," Trump said on Truth Social.

He also wondered why President Biden hadn't done it yet.

Dragon has received over $20 billion in government contracts
Mission impact

SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft plays a crucial role in NASA's International Space Station (ISS) program, ferrying astronauts to and from the ISS.

The next SpaceX Dragon launch is scheduled for June 10, which will carry four people on Axiom Mission 4.

Since 2008, SpaceX has received over $20 billion in government contracts, mostly from NASA and the Department of Defense.

Feud could have serious consequences for US space program
Feud intensifies

The feud between Musk and Trump has been escalating since Musk opposed the Trump administration's key spending bill.

Taking Dragon out of service would disrupt the ISS program, which involves dozens of countries under an international agreement signed over two decades ago.

Russia's Soyuz system is the only other crewed spacecraft that sends astronauts to the ISS.