The spacecraft launches atop a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, and the capsule returns to Earth through splashdown.

As of January 2025, it is the only reusable orbital cargo spacecraft in operation, though it may eventually be joined by the under-development Sierra Space Dream Chaser spaceplane.

Precision water landing under parachutes was proposed to NASA as "the baseline return and recovery approach for the first few flights" of Crew Dragon.

[26] In 2012, SpaceX was in talks with Orbital Outfitters about developing space suits to wear during launch and re-entry.

[30][31][32] In October 2014, NASA selected the Dragon spacecraft as one of the candidates to fly American astronauts to the International Space Station, under the Commercial Crew Program.

[33][34][35] In March 2022, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell told Reuters that "We are finishing our final (capsule), but we still are manufacturing components, because we'll be refurbishing".

Cargo Dragons lack several features of the crewed variant, including seats, cockpit controls, astronaut life support systems, and SuperDraco abort engines.

NASA plans to launch the deorbit vehicle in 2030 where it will remain attached, dormant, for about a year as the station's orbit naturally decays to 220 km (140 mi).

[51] In June 2024, NASA awarded a contract worth up to $843 million to SpaceX to build the deorbit vehicle as it works to secure funding.

[52][53] SpaceX, which aims to dramatically lower space transportation costs, designed Dragon 2 to be reused, not discarded as is typical of spacecraft.

Furthermore, instead of housing the critical and expensive life support, thruster, and propellant storage systems in a disposable service module, Dragon 2 integrates them within the capsule for reuse.

The trunk serves as an adapter between the capsule and the Falcon 9 rocket's second stage and also includes solar panels, a heat-dissipation radiator, and fins to provide aerodynamic stability during emergency aborts.

On the Crew Dragon, above the two center seats (occupied by the commander and pilot), there is a three-screen control panel.

[56] The capsule’s ceiling includes a small space toilet (with privacy curtain),[57] and an International Docking System Standard (IDSS) port.

The spacecraft can be operated in full vacuum, and "the crew will wear SpaceX-designed space suits to protect them from a rapid cabin depressurization emergency event".

[25] The spacecraft's nose cone protects the docking port and four forward-facing thrusters during ascent and reentry.

[25][32] Dragon 2's propellant and helium pressurant for emergency abort and orbital maneuvers are stored in composite-carbon-overwrap titanium spherical tanks at the capsule's base in an area known as the service section.

[30] Sixteen smaller Draco thrusters placed around the spacecraft control its attitude and perform orbital maneuvers.

NASA flights to the ISS have four astronauts, with the added payload mass and volume used to carry pressurized cargo.

[60] On 16 September 2014, NASA announced that SpaceX and Boeing had been selected to provide crew transportation to the ISS.

[65][74] The test objective was to demonstrate sufficient total impulse, thrust and controllability to conduct a safe pad abort.

[75][76][77] On 24 November 2015, SpaceX conducted a test of Dragon 2's hovering abilities at the firm's rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas.

[83] The first orbital test of Crew Dragon was an uncrewed mission, commonly called "Demo-1" and launched on 2 March 2019.

[84][89] On 20 April 2019, Crew Dragon C204, the capsule used in the Demo-1 mission, was destroyed in an explosion during static fire testing at the Landing Zone 1 facility.

[92] Telemetry, high-speed camera footage, and analysis of recovered debris indicate the problem occurred when a small amount of dinitrogen tetroxide leaked into a helium line used to pressurize the propellant tanks.

[92][93] SpaceX modified the Dragon 2 replacing check valves with burst discs, which are designed for single use, and the adding of flaps to each SuperDraco to seal the thrusters prior to splashdown, preventing water intrusion.

[96] The Crew Dragon in-flight abort test was launched on 19 January 2020 at 15:30 UTC from LC-39A on a suborbital trajectory to conduct a separation and abort scenario in the troposphere at transonic velocities shortly after passing through max Q, where the vehicle experiences maximum aerodynamic pressure.

[60] The abort test was performed using a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket with a fully fueled second stage with a mass simulator replacing the Merlin engine.

This was the final flight test of the spacecraft before it began carrying astronauts to the International Space Station under NASA's Commercial Crew Program.

The joint teams conducted full data reviews that needed to be completed prior to NASA astronauts flying on the system during SpaceX's Demo-2 mission.