Elon Musk assured astronauts’ kids: 'We've done everything to ensure your dads come back'

SpaceX founder Elon Musk got emotional while discussing the safety and security of NASA astronauts who are assigned to pilot the Dragon Crew spacecraft. Speaking on NASA live TV two hours ahead of the scheduled launch on May 27, Musk said that he felt responsible for the astronauts who were inside the SpaceX spacecraft.

“I felt it most strongly when I saw their families just before coming here,” said the Tesla CEO while appearing to choke up. “I said, ‘We have done everything we can to make sure your dads come back. OK?’,” an emotional Musk continued.

The 48-year-old business magnate has asserted that the safety of astronauts is the only for SpaceX team working on the mission. On CBS This Morning show, Musk said that if anything goes wrong during the mission, it will be his fault as the chief engineer of the project. He added that all he can think right now is the responsibility and he has to block the thoughts otherwise it would be impossible for him to deal with.

Astronauts 'comfortable' with risk factor

According to the risk calculated by NASA and SpaceX, there is a 1-in-276 chance that the test flight could turn fatal and a 1-in-60 chance that it could encounter some minor issues that would fail the mission but the crew would be safe. NASA reportedly said that the astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, were informed about the risk factor of the test flight but the duo said that they were “really comfortable” with the odds.

SpaceX’s Demo-2 mission was earlier scheduled to be launched on May 27 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 2.03am IST but the lift-off was aborted due to inclement weather conditions. The backup launch opportunities are available on May 30 at 12.52am IST, and May 31 at 12.30am IST. It is the final major test for SpaceX’s human spaceflight system to be certified by NASA for operational crew missions to and from the International Space Station. 

Read: NASA Calculates Risk Ahead Of SpaceX Launch On May 27, Astronauts 'comfortable' With It

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