NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore recently shed light on why Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft returned to Earth without them. Initially scheduled for a short eight-day mission, the astronauts had to adapt to a much longer stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS) after Starliner experienced technical difficulties.
Starliner’s Technical Issues Force Empty Return
The Boeing Starliner faced issues that ultimately forced NASA to send the spacecraft back to Earth without its intended crew. Although the spacecraft experienced helium leaks and propulsion concerns, it landed successfully. Wilmore explained, “We could have gotten to the point where we could have returned on Starliner, but we simply ran out of time.”
NASA made the decision to return the Starliner empty in early September, prioritizing the need to free up the docking port for other spacecraft. Williams expressed relief at the spacecraft’s safe return, saying, “I was so happy it got home with no problems.”
The availability of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon as an alternative played a crucial role in the decision-making process. Wilmore highlighted this advantage: “There’s many cases in the past where there have not been other options.” Both astronauts plan to return to Earth in 2025 aboard the Crew Dragon.
Wilmore said,” Obviously, when you have issues like we’ve had, there’s some changes that need to be made. Boeing’s on board with that. We’re all on board with that.” Acknowledging the risks inherent in testing new spacecraft, Wilmore said, “When you do things with spacecraft that have never been done before, just like Starliner, you’re going to find some things. In this case, we found some things that we just could not get comfortable with.”
Despite the unexpected length of their stay in space, Williams remains upbeat. “This is my happy place. I love being up here in space. It’s just fun,” she shared.