Particle.news
Download on the App Store
46 ARTICLES
·
11h ago

NASA Reclassifies Boeing Starliner Crewed Test as Type A Mishap After Independent Probe

NASA says crews will not return to Starliner until its propulsion is fully qualified with recommendations implemented.

© NASA
NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams pose on June 13, 2024 for a portrait inside the vestibule between the forward port on the International Space Station’s Harmony module and Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. On Saturday, August 24, mission controllers announced the pair will return to Earth in February aboard a SpaceX Dragon 9 crew capsule due to safety concerns. The Starliner capsule will return to Earth autonomously. Image via NASA
Jared Isaacman, NASA administrator, stands in front of a television light following an interview outside the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 18, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
NASA duo Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were stuck on the ISS for nine months

Overview

  • An approximately 300‑page independent investigation found propulsion hardware failures and qualification gaps compounded by flawed decision‑making and leadership at both Boeing and NASA.
  • During rendezvous in June 2024, Starliner suffered helium leaks and multiple RCS thruster failures that caused a temporary loss of six‑degree‑of‑freedom control before docking.
  • NASA formally designated the flight a Type A mishap and issued 61 recommendations spanning technical, organizational, and cultural changes.
  • Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams remained on the ISS for about nine months; Starliner returned uncrewed in September 2024, and the pair came home on a SpaceX Dragon in March 2025.
  • NASA and Boeing are continuing ground tests of Starliner thrusters at White Sands, and a cargo‑only Starliner mission to the ISS is planned as soon as April as Boeing reports progress on corrective actions.