NASA: Boeing Starliner Could Fly Again Later This Year

Agency describes the flight as a ‘crew-capable post-certification mission’ but acknowledges the possibility of flying without astronauts.

Friday, March 28, 2025 at 01:11 PM ET

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NASA and Boeing are planning testing of Starliner’s systems and hope for the spacecraft to fly again with crew later this year. [Courtesy: NASA]

Key Takeaways:

Boeing's Starliner spacecraft experienced significant issues, including helium leaks and degraded thrusters traced to a design flaw causing overheating, during its inaugural crew flight test, leading to an extended mission for astronauts and their return by SpaceX.
Despite these setbacks, NASA plans for Starliner to fly again as early as this year, pending ground testing and system upgrades to address the identified problems, with certification targeted for late 2025.
NASA reaffirms Boeing's commitment to the Starliner program, despite the company accumulating over $2 billion in losses while rival SpaceX's Crew Dragon has successfully flown all prior Commercial Crew missions.

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Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft has been under the microscope after SpaceX stepped in to return NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams—who made the vehicle’s inaugural crew flight test (CFT)—from the International Space Station (ISS) after their sojourn was extended from about one week to more than nine months.

NASA on Thursday, though, said Starliner—which suffered helium leaks and degraded thrusters on orbit—could fly again as soon as this year. The timeline will depend upon the completion of testing at White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico, targeted for spring or summer.

Jack Daleo

Jack is a staff writer covering advanced air mobility, including everything from drones to unmanned aircraft systems to space travel—and a whole lot more. He spent close to two years reporting on drone delivery for FreightWaves, covering the biggest news and developments in the space and connecting with industry executives and experts. Jack is also a basketball aficionado, a frequent traveler and a lover of all things logistics.