Chapter 117

SpaceX achieves the historic milestone of launching NASA astronauts to the International Space Station in May 2020, breaking the United States' nine-year dependence on Russian rockets. The chapter then shifts to Musk's obsessive push for faster operations at Cape Canaveral, his promotion of engineer Kiko Dontchev, and his willingness to defy FAA regulations—ultimately leading to the marginalization of longtime VP Hans Koenigsmann, who refused to hide the company's rule-breaking.

In May 2020, SpaceX successfully launches two NASA astronauts aboard a Falcon 9 rocket with Crew Dragon capsule—the first crewed orbital flight by a private company. Musk watches from the control room with his son Kai while ten million people view the launch live. President Trump attends but Musk distances himself from the president's remarks. To celebrate, Musk joins Kimbal, Grimes, and Luke Nosek at an Everglades resort. Following eleven successful unmanned satellite launches over five months, Musk fears complacency and enters a work binge at Cape Canaveral in October 2020, frustrated to find only two employees working a night shift despite 783 on payroll. He calls in engineer Kiko Dontchev, a Bulgarian-American who had left Boeing after realizing SpaceX's culture better matched his intensity. Dontchev had impressed Gwynne Shotwell with a crumpled résumé and waited five hours outside Musk's office to interview. Now, at Musk's insistence, Dontchev organizes skip-level meetings that lead to his promotion to chief engineer, with veteran Rich Morris overseeing operations—a structure that succeeds by balancing Musk's demands with measured leadership. The chapter concludes with the "Defiance" section, detailing how Musk's drive to move fast and break rules creates conflict. In late 2020, SpaceX prepares an unmanned Super Heavy booster test, but the FAA weather inspector rules conditions unsafe. After SpaceX's waiver request is denied, the launch director glances at Musk, who silently nods approval. The rocket launches successfully but fails during landing. The FAA investigates but imposes no major penalties. Hans Koenigsmann, SpaceX's longtime VP of flight reliability, writes an honest report acknowledging SpaceX violated FAA requirements. Musk becomes "very touchy" about the accountability, and within months eases Koenigsmann—who had survived SpaceX's early struggles—into retirement, valuing loyalty over honesty.