CancelledStarship to Mars late 2026
“Starship departs for Mars at the end of next year, carrying Optimus.”
goalposts: 2018 → 2022 → 2026 · moved 2×
“Planning to send Dragon to Mars as soon as 2018. Red Dragons will inform overall Mars architecture, details to come”
— Elon Musk · Apr 27, 2016 · Elon Musk on X, Apr 27 2016 — Dragon to Mars 'as soon as 2018' (verified @elonmusk) ↗
What actually happened
Announced April 27, 2016 for a launch as early as 2018, the uncrewed Red Dragon Mars mission was cancelled by Elon Musk in July 2017 when SpaceX dropped propulsive landing for Dragon 2 in favor of Starship. No Dragon has ever flown to Mars. Wikipedia: SpaceX Red Dragon (cancellation July 2017) ↗
The Progression
Apr 27, 2016
The promise: “Planning to send Dragon to Mars as soon as 2018. Red Dragons will inform overall Mars architecture, details to come” · Elon Musk on X, Apr 27 2016 — Dragon to Mars 'as soon as 2018' (verified @elonmusk) ↗
Dec 31, 2018
Deadline passed. Announced April 27, 2016 for a launch as early as 2018, the uncrewed Red Dragon Mars mission was cancelled by Elon Musk in July 2017 when SpaceX dropped propulsive landing for Dragon 2 in favor of Starship. No Dragon has ever flown to Mars. Wikipedia: SpaceX Red Dragon (cancellation July 2017) ↗
Today · Jun 18, 2026
Status: Cancelled · 2,726 days past due. Quietly shelved.
Uncrewed Mars mission by 2018 was unveiled in April 2016 with the announcement to send an uncrewed SpaceX vehicle to Mars as early as 2018. Space exploration stakeholders, including NASA and the scientific community, are involved and waiting for this milestone in interplanetary travel. This follows SpaceX's pattern of ambitious Mars predictions, aiming to demonstrate technologies for future human missions. The Red Dragon mission was intended to test propulsive landing and gather data on Mars' atmosphere and resources.
Receipts
LAST CHECKED 2026-06-18- [SOURCE] Elon Musk on X, Apr 27 2016 — Dragon to Mars 'as soon as 2018' (verified @elonmusk)
- [REPORT] aljazeera.com
- [REPORT] Spaceflight Now coverage of the Red Dragon announcement
- [SOURCE] @SpaceX Red Dragon announcement tweet
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