Facepalm: If you're an astronaut sitting in a rocket waiting to blast into space, you'd want the reassurance of knowing that a sturdy and reliable vehicle will carry you to safety should the launch encounter problems. This task is usually performed by a heavily armored military personnel carrier, but for the upcoming SpaceX Crew-13 mission, rescue duties will be carried out by the Cybertruck, a vehicle that has been subject to 11 NHTSA recall campaigns.
Making a hasty exit away from the launch pad should something go wrong is important, obviously, but given the potentially destructive power of a rocket, the vehicle coming to astronauts' aid also needs to be sturdy.
NASA uses Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles (MRAP) in this role. The agency previously said these vehicles' armor is so thick that each door weighs 600 pounds, giving them the sound and feel of a bank vault. This means that even if they aren't moving, they can still act as a bunker.
But for the four astronauts of SpaceX's Crew-13 mission, their safety will be put in the hands of a Cybertruck. NASA's Richard Jones said that using the EV means NASA doesn't have to organize an MRAP and its crew for the launch. He also noted that this avoids any conflict over resources – SpaceX had been preparing to launch Crew-12 at the same time NASA was preparing a launch attempt for Artemis II.
SpaceX does use Cybertrucks during its own launches. Jones admitted that the vehicles are much quicker than MRAPs for moving astronauts out of danger. They're also easier to drive while wearing gloves.
But Cybertrucks can't exactly compete with MRAPs when it comes to durability. Elon Musk once said that irs Armor Glass could survive baseball-sized hail, but the famous on-stage demo in which a metal ball shattered a window didn't inspire confidence – Musk later claimed hitting the car's body with a sledgehammer in earlier demo weakened the windows. Jones said no modifications had been made to the Cybertruck.
The Cybertruck has been subject to 11 separate US NHTSA safety-recall campaigns for reasons that include an accelerator pedal that could become trapped, wheels that could separate, and drive-inverter failure, none of which you would want to experience while trying to escape an exploding rocket.
The Crew-13's crew is made up of NASA's Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, plus the Canadian Space Agency's Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov. The launch will take place no earlier than 12 September 2026.
The crew will join Expedition 75 aboard the ISS, where it will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations intended to support future missions to the Moon and Mars. Expedition 75's research includes in-space manufacturing, AI- and augmented-reality-assisted health checks, and bioprinting human tissue.
NASA puts Crew-13's launch-pad escape in the hands of the 11-times-recalled Cybertruck
