Sierra Space announced that its Dream Chaser spaceplane has wrapped up a series of major pre-flight tests at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, adding that the successful campaign moves the vehicle closer to its first free-flying mission. Sierra Space also said that it hopes to fly Dream Chaser on its first orbital flight in about a year, in Q4 2026.

Florida Testing

Dream Chaser completed Electromagnetic Interference and Electromagnetic Compatibility tests inside NASA’s Space Systems Processing Facility. The work confirmed that the spacecraft can operate within expected electromagnetic conditions throughout its mission profile in space.

The team also ran high speed tow tests at KSC and Space Florida’s Launch and Landing Facility. For this work, a Freightliner Cascadia from Daimler Truck North America pulled the spaceplane down the runway to simulate landing dynamics and validate key autonomous navigation parameters.

Dream Chaser then proved it could receive telemetry and route commands between the vehicle and Mission Control in Louisville, Colorado using NASA’s Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System. This milestone showed the craft is ready for real time command and control during flight.

The test series closed with a post landing recovery drill that confirmed crews can safe the vehicle and reach sensitive payloads quickly.

Next Up: More Testing And Modifications

With these steps complete, Dream Chaser is expected to enter its final acoustic testing campaign in December 2025. After that, the company plans to pursue modifications in Colorado to support national security missions. These upgrades are intended to broaden the vehicle’s role and show it can meet a wide range of defense requirements.

Dream Chaser remains on schedule for its first trip to low Earth orbit in the fourth quarter of 2026 under the CRS-2 contract, ending with a runway landing at Vandenberg Space Force Base.

“Every milestone reflects the grit, creativity and commitment of our team,” said Fatih Ozmen, Executive Chair at Sierra Space. “Dream Chaser is moving steadily toward its first flight and toward supporting the nation’s highest priority space needs.”

Dream Chaser Program Milestones

Year	Milestone
2004	Dream Chaser concept introduced by SpaceDev, inspired by NASA’s HL-20 lifting body design.
2008	Sierra Nevada Corporation acquires SpaceDev and continues development of Dream Chaser.
2010	Dream Chaser selected for NASA’s Commercial Crew Development (CCDev) program funding.
2013	First free flight approach and landing test of Dream Chaser Engineering Test Article at Edwards AFB.
2014	Completion of additional wind tunnel and structural tests, refining Dream Chaser’s aerodynamic design.
2016	NASA awards Sierra Nevada Corporation a Commercial Resupply Services 2 (CRS-2) contract for Dream Chaser cargo missions to the ISS.
2017	Captive carry test of Dream Chaser at Edwards AFB to validate flight characteristics and systems.
2019	Final design reviews and major structural assembly progress for the first orbital Dream Chaser vehicle.
2021	Sierra Space (spun out from Sierra Nevada Corporation) continues integration and testing of Dream Chaser “Tenacity.”
2023	Major environmental and vibration tests completed on Dream Chaser and its Shooting Star cargo module.
2025	Pre-flight campaign at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, including EMI/EMC, tow tests, TDRSS command & telemetry checks, and recovery rehearsal; preparation for final acoustic testing in December 2025.
2026 (target)	Planned first launch of Dream Chaser to Low Earth Orbit under the CRS-2 contract, with runway landing at Vandenberg Space Force Base.