Below are some key milestones for the Crew-6 mission launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Liftoff, from Launch Complex 39A, is targeted for 12:34 a.m. EST Thursday, March 2 (times are approximate; all times are EST):
- 11:52 p.m. Crew access arm retracts
- 11:56 p.m. Dragon launch escape system is armed
- 11:59 p.m. Falcon 9 rocket propellant loading begins
- 12:27 a.m. Falcon 9 begins engine chill prior to launch
- 12:32 a.m. Propellant load complete; Dragon switches to internal power
- 12:33 a.m. SpaceX launch director verifies go for launch
- 12:34 a.m. Liftoff!
- 12:35 a.m. Max Q (moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket)
- 12:36 a.m. First stage main engine cutoff (MECO)
- 12:36 a.m. First and second stages separate
- 12:36 a.m. Second stage engine starts
- 12:41 a.m. First stage entry burn
- 12:42 a.m. Second stage engine cutoff (SECO-1)
- 12:43 a.m. First stage landing on SpaceX drone ship
- 12:46 a.m. Dragon separates from second stage
- 12:47 a.m. Dragon nosecone sequence