Boeing CEO Says They’ll Beat SpaceX to Mars, Musk Replies ‘Do it’

Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg told CNBC that his company will beat SpaceX to Mars.

Host Jim Cramer asked if it would be Muilenburg or Musk who would “get a man on Mars first.”

“Eventually we’re going to go to Mars and I firmly believe the first person that sets foot on Mars will get there on a Boeing rocket,” Muilenburg responded.

As news of the segment received coverage, Musk retweeted a Fortune headline that read “Boeing CEO: We’re Going to Beat Elon Musk to Mars.” Musk added, “Do it.”

https://twitter.com/x/status/938816780444745728

The Fortune story offers some of Muilenburg’s comments to CNBC regarding Boeing’s effort to reach Mars.

“We’re working on that next generation rocket right now with our NASA customers called ‘Space Launch System,’” Muilenburg said. “This is a rocket that’s about 36 stories tall, we’re in the final assembly right now, down near New Orleans. And we’re going to take a first test flight in 2019 and we’re going to do a slingshot mission around the moon.”

Musk said in September that SpaceX is in the process of overhauling its fleet of space vehicles to focus on a new Interplanetary Transport System, codenamed the BFR (Big F-ing Rocket).

The company will start building the first BFR ship in 2018, and Musk “feels confident” they can launch the first human mission to Mars in about five years.

Photo: Boeing

 

[Grendal]

SLS is definitely not going to Mars. It's a big rocket but is hamstrung by the fact it is reusing old Space Shuttle engines. Unless they create an entirely new engine production line (which they won't) then there just isn't enough engines to do much of anything. So SLS is a dead program long term.

The CEO of Boeing needs to say this to justify the billions that the government is handing the company to work on the project but any real aerospace engineer knows the truth about SLS.

 

[brkaus]

Musk ***retreated*** a Fortune headline ???

 

[Reciprocity]

I dont think Elon is racing anyone to Mars or EVs or tunnels or AI or Neural implants, he is trying to stay ahead of humanities need to destroy it self. If Boeing or anyone else wants to race and accomplish something useful to that end, Elon would probably be a huge supporter of that endeavor. The dude must get tired of having to do everything himself. Someone, help Elon. Thanx.

Seriously, Elon is not in a race against anyone else, only the next mass extinction event.

 

[Leopold Stotch]

I dont think Elon is racing anyone to Mars or EVs or tunnels or AI or Neural implants, he is trying to stay ahead of humanities need to destroy it self. If Boeing or anyone else wants to race and accomplish something useful to that end, Elon would probably be a huge supporter of that endeavor. The dude must get tired of having to do everything himself. Someone, help Elon. Thanx.

Seriously, Elon is not in a race against anyone else, only the next mass extinction event.

Totes

 

[Bobfitz1]

SLS is definitely not going to Mars. It's a big rocket but is hamstrung by the fact it is reusing old Space Shuttle engines. Unless they create an entirely new engine production line (which they won't) then there just isn't enough engines to do much of anything. So SLS is a dead program long term.

The CEO of Boeing needs to say this to justify the billions that the government is handing the company to work on the project but any real aerospace engineer knows the truth about SLS.

This thread could have been named "Boeing Whistles Past the Graveyard"

 

[brkaus]

Musk ***retreated*** a Fortune headline ???

Thank you for fixing.

 

[Nikxice]

Caught the Muilenburg interview this morning on CNBC. My initial reaction was that if Boeing ever does get to Mars it'll likely happen long after this guy's tenure as CEO. Another thought was that Muilenburg might want to keep tabs on NASA's budget. His Mars first fantasy is dependent on the middle man and a host of other potential issues.

The post interview banter with the CNBC talking heads was pathetically fawning in their praise for Boeing. What a shocker, a clueless Jim Cramer said that he was putting his money on Boeing to get to Mars first. Too bad, if only SpaceX was in a position for Elon to tweet, 'Short it'.

 

[Krugerrand]

Someone pass the man a hat and shaker of salt.

 

[macpacheco]

And Musk replies: "Do it !!!"
Classic Musk. What matters isn't what SpaceX achieves but advancing the frontier of space exploration. He of course believes SpaceX will beat them to the punch with ease, but no point is being arrogant.

 

[ecarfan]

Musk ***retreated*** a Fortune headline ???

Thank you for fixing.

Doesn’t look fixed to me.

Did you mean “retweeted”?

Musk doesn’t “retreat”.

 

[Drewflux]

I dont think they could do it in Elon's timeframe. Although we know what Elon time is like

 

[TechOps]

And, good luck.

 

[DragonWatch]

If we were to believe Boeing, then the Multiple Lauch Rocket System (MLRS) would have been built by Boeing, but they lost that contract, and the rest is history. Maybe they should just stick to airplanes like the Right brothers.

 

[EternalChampion]

Wright brothers. That’s a sacrilegious misspelling.

 

[SO16]

I dont think they could do it in Elon's timeframe. Although we know what Elon time is like

Tesla didn’t build the first electric car. SpaceX didn’t build the first rocket. But they have built pretty good cars and rockets. Even if SpaceX isn’t first to Mars, they will be the ones to make Mars a more economical destination.

 

[Brass Guy]

Elon didn't start Space-X to put the first people on Mars. He did it because nobody else was trying. Whoever is first, Elon succeeds in his mission. That's how I choose to interpret his two word reply.

It'll still be Space-X anyway.

 

[DragonWatch]

Wright brothers. That’s a sacrilegious misspelling.

My bad, no excuses Earned me my one and only “D” in college. College ~ right

Maybe it was a Freudian slip

 

[hockeythug]

SLS block 2 isn't even planned until the 2030's

 

[bxr140]

Did the KSC visitors center thing last week. SLS is the rocket that’s going to launch us into the future.

On a marginally related note, I was happy to see that blue origin built it’s facility within eyeshot of every arriving carload of KSC visitors.