NASA to attempt uncrewed and crewed missions with Boeing’s troubled Starliner spacecraft

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA is providing Boeing with additional support and funding to expedite the repair and relaunch of its troubled astronaut capsule, the Starliner. After facing numerous issues in 2024, the two test pilots, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, were stranded at the International Space Station for nearly a year.

The mission was later classified as a "Type A mishap," its highest severity ranking. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced plans for a new and improved Starliner to be launched to the space station, with cargo but no crew, by December. Astronauts will not return until 2028 due to the need for further safety redesigns. NASA astronaut Woody Hoburg stated that everyone must be confident the Starliner's problems have been resolved before putting astronauts back on board.

The issue of replacing Boeing's unreliable Starliner with SpaceX's Starship, due to SpaceX's plans to phase out its smaller rockets, was also discussed.