Every active and upcoming crewed and cargo spacecraft — from the ISS workhorses to deep-space exploration vehicles. Live flight counts, specifications, mission histories and side-by-side comparisons.
Human spaceflight depends on a small fleet of crew capsules and cargo vehicles that connect Earth to orbital outposts. Three nations — the United States, Russia and China — currently operate crewed spacecraft, while a new generation of vehicles is in development for lunar exploration and commercial space stations. This page profiles every active and upcoming spacecraft, with live mission data drawn from the Orbital Radar launch schedule and launch log.
Crewed Spacecraft
Vehicles currently certified or in advanced development to carry humans to orbit and beyond.
Launched in 2010, NASA's Commercial Crew Programme contracted private companies to build crew transport to the ISS, ending reliance on Russian Soyuz. SpaceX's Crew Dragon began operational flights in November 2020. Boeing's Starliner has completed one crewed test flight (2024) but faces an uncertain future after thruster and helium leak issues.
NASA Commercial Resupply Services (CRS)
Cargo Dragon and Cygnus deliver supplies to the ISS under NASA's CRS contracts. Sierra Space's Dream Chaser will join as the third CRS-2 provider. Cargo Dragon is unique among active cargo vehicles in its ability to return significant payloads to Earth.
Artemis Programme
NASA's return to the Moon uses Orion (crew transport to lunar orbit) and Starship HLS (lunar surface lander). The SLS rocket launches Orion, while Starship HLS launches separately on Starship/Super Heavy. Crew transfer occurs in lunar orbit. See the full Artemis mission guide.
Russia's Soyuz and Progress have served the ISS since its first expedition in 2000. Japan's HTV-X is the successor to the HTV/Kounotori cargo vehicle that flew 9 missions between 2009 and 2020.
Frequently Asked Questions
As of 2026, there are four operational crewed spacecraft capable of carrying humans to orbit: SpaceX Crew Dragon (USA), Soyuz (Russia), Shenzhou (China) and Boeing Starliner (USA, status uncertain following CFT thruster issues). NASA's Orion is flight-proven but has not yet carried crew. Sierra Space's Dream Chaser and SpaceX's Starship HLS are in development.
Crew Dragon carries up to 4 astronauts with life support, an abort system (SuperDraco engines) and a docking adapter. Cargo Dragon is an uncrewed variant that delivers up to 6,000 kg of supplies and experiments. Both share the same 4-metre capsule design, launch on Falcon 9, and are partially reusable.
SpaceX Crew Dragon and the Russian Soyuz currently carry crew to the ISS. Before Crew Dragon's first operational mission in November 2020, NASA relied solely on Soyuz for crew access following the Space Shuttle's retirement in 2011.
NASA's Artemis programme uses the Orion capsule to carry crew to lunar orbit, where they transfer to SpaceX's Starship HLS for the surface landing. Orion launches on SLS; Starship HLS launches separately on Starship/Super Heavy.
The Russian Soyuz holds the record by a wide margin, with over 150 crewed flights since 1967. It is the longest-serving crewed spacecraft in history and was the sole means of transporting crew to the ISS from 2011 to 2020.
Three countries currently operate crewed orbital spacecraft: the United States (Crew Dragon, Starliner, Orion), Russia (Soyuz) and China (Shenzhou). India's Gaganyaan is in development for its first crewed flight.
Crew Dragon has completed over 15 crewed missions as of 2026, including NASA crew rotation flights (Crew-1 through Crew-10+), private Axiom missions, Inspiration4 and the Polaris programme. Individual capsules have been reused up to 4 times. Including Cargo Dragon flights, the Dragon family has flown over 55 missions total. See the launch log for the complete record.