Starliner’s Uncertain Future: A Troubled Spacecraft and NASA’s Dilemma
The Boeing Starliner spacecraft’s future hangs precariously in the balance. The recent return of its two-astronaut crew, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, via a SpaceX Dragon capsule underscores the profound challenges plaguing the program. What was intended as a pivotal step towards NASA certification for routine orbital trips has morphed into a saga of technical setbacks, safety concerns, and fundamental questions about the program’s very necessity.
Boeing officials undoubtedly envisioned the Starliner’s maiden crewed voyage in June as a resounding success, solidifying its position as a reliable partner in NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Instead, the mission was marred by a series of technical glitches encountered upon reaching the International Space Station (ISS). Helium leaks and thruster malfunctions raised serious safety concerns, leading NASA to deem the spacecraft unfit for the astronauts’ return journey.
The subsequent decision, announced in August, to send the Starliner back to Earth unmanned was a stark acknowledgment of the mission’s failure. The spacecraft undocked autonomously from the ISS, completing a parachute-assisted landing in the New Mexico desert. Wilmore and Williams, initially slated for a short stay in orbit, were left to await alternative transportation back to Earth, effectively extending their mission by several months.
This week marked the end of their prolonged sojourn in space. Wilmore and Williams finally returned aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule, which had been docked at the ISS since September. They shared the ride with NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, members of the Crew-9 mission. The 17-hour journey culminated in a water landing off the coast of Florida, bringing the two astronauts home after a nine-month spaceflight that was initially intended to last only a few days.
Despite the successful return of Wilmore and Williams, the shadow of the Starliner’s troubled mission looms large. An independent watchdog report released earlier this year casts serious doubt on the program’s viability, suggesting that NASA not only made the right decision in sending the Starliner home without its crew, but that the agency may not even need the spacecraft at all.
The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP), an advisory committee reporting to both NASA and Congress, conducted a thorough review of the Starliner mission. Its 2024 annual report unequivocally endorsed NASA’s decision to undock the Starliner without its crew, describing it as "one of the most complex and challenging crew safety decisions NASA has faced in years." The panel praised NASA’s "thoughtful and effective approach" in prioritizing crew safety.
The report highlighted a separate thruster failure detected during the Starliner’s autonomous landing. The panel concluded that had the crew been on board, this failure would have "significantly increased the risk during reentry," further justifying the decision to send the spacecraft back unmanned.
Beyond the immediate safety concerns, the ASAP report raises fundamental questions about the long-term need for the Starliner program. With the ISS slated for decommissioning and deorbiting in the coming years, the report questions whether the significant investment in Starliner is justified. "Until the Starliner certification plan is well understood, it remains unclear as to whether a second provider will be available prior to the end of the ISS’s operational life," the report states.
The report acknowledges the potential benefits of having a reliable second provider for crew transportation but urges NASA to "regularly review its risk-benefit analysis to ensure the overall risks of its plans remain acceptable." This suggests a growing skepticism within the oversight community about the Starliner’s long-term value proposition.
NASA, however, appears committed to continuing its partnership with Boeing. The agency plans to conduct further tests on the Starliner this summer at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico, focusing on addressing the identified technical issues and making modifications to prepare the spacecraft for routine spaceflight.
While engineers are primarily focused on resolving the thruster problems, the ASAP report emphasizes that other issues with the Starliner also require attention before the spacecraft can be certified. These include a battery redesign plan and efforts to strengthen the landing airbag backing panel.
The timeline for Starliner’s next flight remains uncertain, with no firm date established for either an uncrewed or crewed mission. A NASA spokesman indicated that once the ongoing test campaigns are complete, the agency will develop a potential Starliner flight schedule based on the ISS’s current mission schedule.
The Starliner program was conceived as a key component of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which aims to leverage the expertise and resources of private companies to transport astronauts and cargo to orbit. This initiative allows NASA to focus its resources on ambitious deep space exploration missions, such as the Artemis lunar program and future crewed expeditions to Mars.
SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft has been successfully transporting crews to the ISS since 2020 under the Commercial Crew Program, with most missions lasting approximately six months. However, the Starliner’s path to certification has been significantly hampered by the botched inaugural crewed flight test.
The program has also faced criticism from figures like former President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who have placed blame on the Biden administration for the Starliner’s struggles. However, Wilmore and Williams have consistently defended NASA’s decisions and downplayed their extended stay in space as simply part of the job.
The future of the Starliner remains uncertain, with a cloud of technical challenges and doubts about its long-term necessity hanging over the program. While NASA is committed to working with Boeing to address the identified issues and prepare the spacecraft for routine spaceflight, the agency must carefully weigh the risks and benefits of continuing to invest in a program that faces significant challenges and questions about its ultimate utility. The success, or failure, of the Starliner program will have a significant impact on the future of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program and its ability to achieve its ambitious goals for space exploration.
