Boeing’s Troubled Starliner Forces NASA to Delay Astronaut Mission to ISS

NASA has postponed the launch of its next crew of astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) due to ongoing issues with the Starliner CST-100 spacecraft. The Starliner has been parked outside the space station for two months, with no update on when it will return.

The launch of Crew 9 is now scheduled for September 24, more than a month later than its original liftoff date of August 18. “This adjustment allows more time for mission managers to finalize return planning for the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test currently docked to the orbiting laboratory,” NASA wrote in a blog update.

Boeing’s Starliner launched to the ISS on June 5, carrying NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunni Williams. Mission controllers detected one helium leak before launch and discovered four more leaks during the crew ship’s journey to the space station. Adding insult to injury, five of the spacecraft’s thrusters failed. The mission was originally set to last for eight days, but Starliner still has no return date.

During its lengthy stay in orbit, NASA and Boeing have been running tests on the spacecraft to try and identify the root cause behind the thruster failure. “Starliner ground teams are taking their time to analyze the results of recent docked hot-fire testing, finalize flight rationale for the spacecraft’s integrated propulsion system, and confirm system reliability ahead of Starliner’s return to Earth,” NASA wrote. “NASA and Boeing continue to evaluate the spacecraft’s readiness, and no decisions have been made regarding Starliner’s return.”

It’s not clear whether the two astronauts, Wilmore and Williams, will still ride on board Starliner for their journey back to Earth. NASA officials have reiterated that the Starliner crew is not stranded in space, and that the crew ship is safe to transport them back at any time. Recent reports, however, suggest NASA might be looking to use SpaceX’s Dragon crew ship instead to carry its astronauts back home.

The move would be a tremendous embarrassment to Boeing and its Starliner program, which has suffered numerous delays and glitches since its inception more than a decade ago. Starliner’s first crewed flight test is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program and is meant to transport crew and cargo to and from the ISS under a $4.3 billion contract with the space agency. NASA’s other commercial partner, SpaceX, has so far launched eight crews to the space station, and is waiting for Boeing to clear the way so that it can launch its ninth crew, and possibly bring home Starliner’s own crew.