NASA has decided that a Tesla Cybertruck will replace the armoured military vehicle traditionally used to evacuate astronauts from the launchpad in an emergency, despite the vehicle's history of reliability issues. The change applies to SpaceX's Crew-13 mission, scheduled for no earlier than 12 September 2026, and marks a shift away from the heavily protected Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle NASA has long relied on for rapid escapes during rocket launches.

The Cybertruck has been recalled 11 times over problems including detaching trim panels and a sticking accelerator pedal, yet NASA officials said they were unaware of any modifications made to the vehicles for this role. Joel Montalbano of NASA's Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate said the switch was chosen because Cybertrucks are faster than MRAPs, easier to drive while wearing gloves, and avoid the need to bring in a separate MRAP crew, since SpaceX already uses the vehicles at its own launches. Crew-13 will carry NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov to the ISS to join Expedition 75; SpaceX has completed 90 Falcon launches in 2026 with no failures, making it unlikely the rescue vehicle's suitability will actually be tested.