NASA reduced the scope of a program hampered by technical issues and surpassed by Elon Musk's SpaceX on Monday by cutting the number of astronaut trips on Boeing's Starliner contract and announcing that the spacecraft's next journey to the International Space Station will fly without a crew.
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, two NASA astronauts, were on Starliner's first crewed test flight in 2024 when the most recent accident happened. As Starliner approached the ISS, a number of thrusters on its propulsion system failed.
After the error that left the crew on the ISS for nine months, the U.S. space agency and Boeing have been debating the Starliner program's future for months. According to a Boeing representative, the business is still dedicated to the initiative.
Previously valued at $4.5 billion, Boeing's contract under NASA's Commercial Crew Program called for six post certification operational flights that would transport astronauts to and from the International Space Station.
According to a statement from NASA, the most recent change lowers the number of Starliner missions to four, including an uncrewed flight in April of next year and up to three astronaut flights
According to the agency, two more flights are optional. According to a NASA representative, these changes lowered Boeing's contract's worth by $768 million, to $3.732 billion. Reuters' analysis of contract data shows that NASA has already paid $2.2 billion of the total.
In 2014, NASA selected Boeing and SpaceX to construct and operate spacecraft capable of transporting American astronauts to and from the International Space Station (ISS), initiating the creation of two backup capsules.
Boeing's Starliner has been plagued for years by delays, technical issues, and cost overruns, while SpaceX's Dragon capsule has emerged as NASA's main astronaut transport since its first crewed trip in 2020.
"Safety remains our highest priority as we focus on the Starliner-1 mission, which incorporates our findings and learnings from previous flight tests and testing this fall," a representative for Boeing stated.
"NASA and Boeing are continuing to rigorously test the Starliner propulsion system in preparation for two potential flights next year," NASA's Commercial Crew Program manager Steve Stich said in a statement.
"This modification allows NASA and Boeing to focus on safely certifying the system in 2026, execute Starliner's first crew rotation when ready, and align our ongoing flight planning for future Starliner missions based on station's operational needs through 2030."
NASA has given SpaceX additional ISS flights with Dragon in recent years, booking those missions until the station's scheduled retirement in 2030, despite Starliner delays. This raises concerns about Starliner's capacity to compete with SpaceX.
Since 2016, Boeing has invested over $2 billion in the fixed price initiative. In the event that SpaceX's Dragon is grounded, NASA has insisted that it needs two American flights to the International Space Station (ISS) in order to avoid having to rely entirely on Russian capsules.
Although those plans are far off, Boeing sees Starliner as a commercial spacecraft that may eventually replace the International Space Station.
NASA stated that Starliner-1, the next flight scheduled for April 2026, will transport goods rather than humans to the International Space Station.
