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Three active crewed spacecraft carry humans to orbit across four nations.
| Attribute | Crew Dragon (Dragon 2) SpaceX Active · Last updated 2026-06-01Trust: Agency-primaryⓘ Last verified Remove × | Shenzhou CAST (China Academy of Space Technology) Active · Last updated 2026-06-01Trust: Operator-primaryⓘ Last verified Remove × | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | SpaceX | CAST (China Academy of Space Technology) | Sierra Space |
| Country | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇨🇳 China | 🇺🇸 USA |
| Status | Active | Active | In Development |
| Vehicle type | capsule | capsule | lifting-body |
| Reusable | Yes | No | Yes |
| First flight | 2020 | 2003 | 2027 |
| Crew capacity | 4 crew (up to 7 with no cargo)as of [1] ↑ Most crew | 3 crewas of [1] | up to 7 crew or cargo-onlyas of [1]First missions likely cargo-only for ISS CRS-2 |
| Mass | 12,519 kgas of [1]Spacecraft + trunk, empty | 7,790 kgas of [1]Varies by mission configuration | ~11,000 kgas of [1]Estimated; landing gear issue found in 2023 structural testing |
| Target orbits | LEO, ISS | LEO, CSS | LEO, ISS |
| Mission types | ISS crew rotation, Commercial crew, Private orbital | China Space Station crew rotation, Crewed lunar precursor | ISS cargo (CRS-2), Future crewed access |
| Total flights | 18 crewed missionsas of [2]Approximate; count grows with each CCP and private flight | ~20 crewed missions (Shenzhou 5–19)as of [1]Approximate; Shenzhou 5 was first crewed flight in 2003 ↑ Most experienced | — |
| Summary | Most-flown American crewed spacecraft since the Space Shuttle. Fully reusable capsule supporting NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP). Has transported crews to the ISS, including the stranded Boeing Starliner CFT crew. | China's primary crewed spacecraft, inspired by but substantially evolved from Soyuz. Supports the Chinese Space Station (Tiangong). China plans a lunar-capable variant for future crewed Moon missions. | Winged lifting-body spaceplane awarded NASA CRS-2 cargo contract. Lands on conventional runways, potentially at any airport with a ~4,500 m runway. First flights will be uncrewed cargo missions. Landing gear test failure in 2023 caused further delays. |
All 6 crewed spacecraft with primary-source citations from SpaceX, NASA, Boeing, Roscosmos, Sierra Space, and CNSA. Pure URL state — bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.