# NASA Expands Commercial Space Services

NASA’s first SpaceX cargo delivery to the International Space Station in 2012 demonstrated a shift from purchasing spacecraft to buying fixed-price transportation services. The Commercial Resupply Services contracts awarded in late 2008 totaled $1.6 billion for SpaceX’s 12 flights and $1.9 billion for Orbital Sciences’ eight flights, placing cost-overrun risk on the contractors. CRS flights continue, with CRS-35 scheduled for November 2026. NASA also released a draft competition for commercial orbital facilities in July 2026, with applicants expected to be ready for a crewed test flight as early as 2029.

- The CRS model shows how fixed-price service contracts can transfer cost risk to contractors while establishing a commercial market for government services.
- Companies pursuing NASA space opportunities can assess whether their capabilities and investment plans support the commercial orbital-facility competition’s crewed test-flight readiness target.
- CRS-35’s November 2026 schedule is a near-term milestone for firms supporting cargo transportation and related services; the signals do not provide a proposal deadline for the orbital-facility competition.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Transportation
**Topics:** Physical Infrastructure
**Published:** October 08, 2026

### Government Entities
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

### Vendors
- SpaceX (Contract awardee)
- Orbital Sciences (Contract awardee)

### Sources
- [🚀📦 14 years ago, SpaceX delivered cargo to the ISS under a NASA contract for the first time!

This marked the beginning of a new era in space transportation. How did a simple “delivery service” change the space industry? Find out here 👇
https://t.co/4ApT4hsPiX https://t.co/SSn](https://x.com/ust_magazine/status/2108259882478809451) - twitter-agency