NASA Downsizes Boeing Starliner Contract
Space agency cuts order from six missions to four, with an uncrewed test flight planned for no sooner than April.
Space agency cuts order from six missions to four, with an uncrewed test flight planned for no sooner than April.
Nearly five-month mission concludes as agency continues its human presence on the International Space Station.
Agency describes the flight as a ‘crew-capable post-certification mission’ but acknowledges the possibility of flying without astronauts.
NASA is considering flying the capsule without a crew on its next test flight.
Arrival of new space station occupants will allow Starliner’s Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to return home.
Acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro says the Department of Government Efficiency will review the space agency’s payments.
Following splashdown, crewmembers were flown to a local hospital, where one remains in ‘stable condition,’ NASA says.
Crew spent nearly eight months aboard the International Space Station conducting more than 200 scientific experiments.
Spaceflight will be the ninth Commercial Crew astronaut rotation mission SpaceX has performed for NASA.
The FAA opens a mishap investigation into the company’s workhorse booster after it tipped over while attempting to land on a droneship.