Without Astronauts, Boeing’s Starliner Makes Its Return to Earth – Reuters

By Joey Roulette

WASHINGTON – Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft completed an uncrewed landing in the New Mexico desert late Friday, wrapping up a testing mission that lasted three months and faced numerous technical difficulties. These issues have led to the astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) being required to extend their stay until next year.

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, the first crew to pilot Starliner in June, remained on the ISS while the spacecraft autonomously undocked at 6:04 p.m. ET on Friday. The capsule then embarked on a six-hour journey back to Earth, using maneuvering thrusters that were deemed too risky for a crew by NASA last month.

Starliner successfully returned to Earth, executing the critical final phase of its mission without incident, as evidenced by a NASA live stream. The spacecraft reentered Earth’s atmosphere at approximately 11 p.m. ET, traveling at speeds around 17,000 miles (27,400 km) per hour. About 45 minutes later, it deployed parachutes to slow its descent and inflated airbags just before landing at White Sands Space Harbor, an arid location in New Mexico.

Although the mission was initially designed as a final test flight before NASA granted Starliner certification for regular missions, safety concerns regarding crewed travel delayed certification, despite a clean landing performed by Boeing.

Wilmore and Williams, equipped with extra supplies and food on the ISS, are scheduled to return to Earth aboard a SpaceX vehicle in February 2025. What was supposed to be an eight-day test has now extended into an eight-month mission for them.

The ISS, a science laboratory the size of a football field located about 250 miles (402 km) above Earth, currently hosts seven other astronauts who arrived on different spacecraft, including a Russian Soyuz capsule. Wilmore and Williams are anticipated to continue conducting scientific experiments with their fellow crew members.

During their approach to the ISS in June, five out of 28 maneuvering thrusters on Starliner malfunctioned, while the same propulsion system experienced multiple helium leaks, which are necessary for pressurizing the thrusters. Despite successfully docking on June 6, these issues prompted an investigation by Boeing—with support from NASA—that has cost the company $125 million, pushing total cost overruns on the Starliner program above $1.6 billion since 2016.

Boeing’s difficulties with Starliner began with a failed 2019 test flight to the ISS without a crew. The spacecraft’s follow-up mission in 2022 saw mostly successful results, although some thrusters didn’t function as intended.

The ongoing issues with Starliner present significant challenges for Boeing, calling into question the company’s future in the space industry, an area where it once held a dominant position. This shift has largely resulted from SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, offering lower-cost launch options and redefining NASA’s partnerships with private aerospace companies.

After landing, Boeing will retrieve the Starliner capsule to continue its investigation into the thruster failures experienced during the mission. The section housing the thrusters—the "service module" trunk—detached from the capsule as planned before reentry, burning up in the atmosphere. Consequently, Boeing will rely on simulated tests to determine what went wrong with the hardware while in space.