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CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida: NASA is throwing extra support and money behind Boeing\u2019s troubled astronaut capsule to get it fixed and flying again as soon as possible.<\/p>\n
Boeing\u2019s Starliner capsule had so many problems in 2024 that its two test pilots were stuck at the International Space Station for nearly a year. NASA later reclassified the botched mission as a crew-endangering \u201cType A mishap,\u201d its most severe ranking.<\/p>\n
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced Monday that Boeing should be ready to launch a new and improved Starliner to the space station \u2014 with cargo but no crew \u2014 by December. Astronauts will not strap in until 2028 because of the need for further safety redesigns that will take months, if not years, to complete.<\/p>\n
Manager Dana Weigel stressed that everyone must be confident that all of Starliner\u2019s problems have been resolved before putting astronauts back on board.<\/p>\n
\u201cBottom line: We\u2019re on the right path,\u201d said NASA astronaut Woody Hoburg, who will command the next Starliner flight.<\/p>\n
Hoburg said Starliner\u2019s original test pilots \u2014 Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, now both retired \u2014 are \u201cAmerican heroes and I am deeply humbled to follow in their footsteps.\u201d<\/p>\n
NASA always wanted two US-based means of getting astronauts to and from orbit. The space agency shelled out billions of dollars to Boeing as well as SpaceX for ferry service once the space shuttles retired.<\/p>\n
Elon Musk\u2019s SpaceX became the first private business to send astronauts to orbit in 2020. His company will launch its 14th crew for NASA later this week. After struggling to carry out a pair of empty Starliner test flights, Boeing\u2019s Starliner flew astronauts Wilmore and Williams, but they had to hitch a ride back with SpaceX nine months later.<\/p>\n
SpaceX intends to phase out its Falcon 9 rockets and Dragon capsules in another few years and focus on its newer, larger Starship, which reached orbit for the first time Monday.<\/p>\n
That is why NASA is so keen to redeem Boeing\u2019s repeatedly bedeviled ride. The extra Starliner upgrades and new rocket certifications will cost NASA another $359 million, Weigel said. Among the many fixes: new valves and seals.<\/p>\n
While the aging space station is due to be abandoned and deorbited by 2031, several private US companies are working on their own orbital outposts that will need reliable taxi service. SpaceX\u2019s Starship is way too big to dock and Musk has moon and Mars travel as the company\u2019s overriding goals.<\/p>\n
Why not simply bag Starliner and shop elsewhere?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe always were committed to seeing this through with Boeing,\u201d Isaacman said, \u201cand now we\u2019re on a very good path.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n