NASA announced Saturday that it has decided how to return two astronauts trapped on the International Space Station to Earth: They will be sent on SpaceX's Dragon capsule instead of Boeing's Starliner. Citing past fatalities, NASA officials said the safety of the astronauts was the primary driver of the decision, but The Washington Post reports that the decision is a bitter blow to Boeing, which has maintained it can safely return Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. “We understand that this is not the decision we would have liked, but we are prepared to take any action necessary to support NASA's decision,” Boeing executives said in an email to employees on Saturday.
The decision means the Starliner capsule will undock early next month and attempt to return to Earth empty on autopilot. The plan was for Wilmore and Williams to serve as Starliner test pilots for the final leg of the mission, ultimately landing it in the U.S. desert, according to the Associated Press. “Test flights are by nature not safe or routine, so this decision is a commitment to safety,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Saturday. SpaceX plans to remove two crew members from its Dragon flight to the space station, scheduled to launch around late September, to make room for Williams and Wilmore to return in February.
Boeing's capsule has been plagued by thruster failures and helium leaks. Williams and Wilmore are now set to spend eight months aboard the space station before becoming permanent crew members, according to The New York Times. They were reportedly doing well this week. (More Starliner stories)
