Nasa announces new missions for Boeing Starliner spacecraft

NASA has announced plans for new missions using Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, for the first time since the vessel's problematic test flight left two astronauts stranded at the International Space Station (ISS) for months. Last used in June 2024 to transport US astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, the Starliner encountered propulsion issues during orbit, rendering it unsuitable to return the astronauts to Earth and leaving them stranded in orbit for nine months.

In a report evaluating the troubled test flight, NASA classified the engineering vulnerabilities in the Starliner as a Type A mishap, the same categorization given to the catastrophic Challenger and Columbia space shuttle disasters. Both Boeing and NASA have since worked to rectify these issues, with the goal of deploying the spacecraft for two upcoming missions that will play a crucial role in the US space agency's long-term objectives.

The first mission is anticipated to occur by December at the earliest and will focus on an uncrewed return to the ISS, aimed at validating recent remediation efforts. According to NASA administrator Jared Isaacman, the subsequent steps will involve gathering data, implementing remaining changes recommended in the Program Investigation Team report, and ultimately planning for a crewed Starliner Two mission in 2028.

It is vital for a successful crewed Starliner mission to occur, as SpaceX has indicated a plan to cease production of its reusable Crew Dragon capsules, which have been the sole other spacecraft to transport US astronauts to the ISS since 2020.