After being sidelined, Boeing's Starliner to get starring role in NASA's spaceflight plans
Summary
NASA plans to order two more Boeing Starliner crew missions and help fix its thruster problems. This move comes as SpaceX prepares to retire its Crew Dragon spacecraft by 2030, leaving Starliner as a key option for NASA’s astronaut flights.Key Facts
- NASA will order two additional crewed Starliner missions from Boeing soon.
- NASA will pay some costs to fix Starliner’s thruster problems.
- NASA will support Starliner’s certification to launch on a new rocket after the Atlas V retires.
- SpaceX plans to retire the Crew Dragon spacecraft by 2030 or earlier.
- Crew Dragon is currently NASA’s only operational spacecraft for sending astronauts to low-Earth orbit.
- SpaceX started flying humans in Dragon six years ago and has launched 13 successful missions.
- Boeing’s Starliner has had major delays and problems, including thruster failures on its first crewed flight in June 2024.
- NASA called the 2024 Starliner flight a serious mishap and partly blamed its own decision-making and leadership.
- NASA paid Boeing about $5.1 billion and SpaceX about $3.1 billion to develop their crew spacecraft under the Commercial Crew program.
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