NASA OIG report warns Boeing Starliner future uncertain

NASA overconfidence cited in Starliner delays, report says

NASA’s Office of Inspector General released a report Thursday warning that Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft faces unresolved technical challenges and that it is uncertain when or if the vehicle will be certified to carry astronauts to the International Space Station before the station is decommissioned in 2030. The report attributed the problems in part to overconfidence on NASA’s part.

“NASA was overconfident in Boeing’s design and potential success based on the provider’s use of heritage systems and its longstanding spaceflight experience,” the report said, according to Space News.

The OIG said this overconfidence led to an “unrealistic launch and test-flight schedule” and that NASA lacked access to Starliner flight simulator data.

The Starliner has not flown since a crew flight test mission in June 2024, when the spacecraft experienced technical issues that led to astronauts being stranded on the International Space Station for nine months and having to return to Earth on a SpaceX capsule. The spacecraft previously flew two uncrewed test flights. No further flights, crewed or uncrewed, have been scheduled.

Technical issues with the Starliner have included helium leaks, propulsion system failures and parachute anomalies, according to the report.

NASA has contracts with SpaceX and Boeing through its Commercial Crew Program to transport astronauts to and from the ISS. SpaceX has provided steady crew transportation, with its 13th crewed mission planned for September, the report said. It noted that SpaceX “ultimately worked through a variety of its own technical challenges.”

The OIG report questioned when or if Starliner will be certified for crewed missions before 2030, when NASA plans to decommission the space station. Boeing is under contract for three crewed missions before that time.

“Boeing’s and NASA’s development efforts to certify the Starliner continue to face challenges that have delayed progress and increased both costs and risks to sustained crew transportation to the ISS through 2030,” the report said.

NASA’s contracts with SpaceX and Boeing amount to $2.6 billion and $4.2 billion respectively, the report said, and those contracts have increased in value to over $8 billion.