SpaceX Dragon to Rescue Stranded NASA Crew as Starliner Faces Setback

NASA has confirmed Boeing’s Starliner capsule will return from the International Space Station uncrewed, with astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams stranded until 2025.

The duo will continue working on the ISS, extending their stay to eight months, before returning home on a SpaceX Crew Dragon in February.

The development represents a further significant blow to Boeing’s reputation, regardless of the official version of events from NASA, as well as a humiliating failed crewed test mission after the project encountered several delays.

Starliner’s empty return journey compromises the supposed final step in the spacecraft’s development, which is how the test flight was billed. It was supposed to be a nine-day mission, but the final chapter in the story will expand to almost nine months.

SpaceX’s Crew-9 was scheduled to launch with four crew members in place, but that will be reduced to two to accommodate Wilmore and Williams. The revised mission is now set to depart for the ISS on September 24.

The decision to keep its astronauts on the ISS and to return Starlink uncrewed “is the result of our commitment to safety, our core value, and our North Star,” stated NASA Administrator, Bill Nelson.

Boeing’s Participation in NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Questioned

Boeing officials have stressed that Starliner was safe for the astronauts to fly home in the event of an emergency, despite the return flight being aborted several times.

NASA confirmed a “technical disagreement” between the agency and the aerospace company, ultimately deciding on a change of tack for the project, and the extended stay for the astronauts on ISS.

The official line is that NASA has intimated its support for Boeing, with Nelson “100% certain” of Starliner’s prospects to launch with a crew once again in the future.

Posting on X, SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell confirmed the company was ready and willing to play its part in supporting the US space agency.

Elon Musk’s company will benefit from increased prominence as a result of the setback for Boeing, and with over $1.5b in losses incurred already, its participation in NASA’s Commercial Crew program will come under further scrutiny.

The vision of having two competing companies operating missions to the ISS has also been undermined.