NASA confirms that the Boeing Starliner is set to return to the planet after massive delays this week, September 6, but it will be crewless on its flight home. This return date is exactly three months since Boeing's spacecraft docked at the International Space Station last June 6, a mission that saw significant issues as helium leaks manifested along the way.
While the crew vessel from Boeing will make its grand return, astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams' stay on the ISS are extended until next year.
Boeing Starliner to Return Crewless This Week After 3 Months
NASA
The latest announcement from NASA finally announces the Starliner's return, given the green light to undock from the ISS and return to the planet. It was given the window no earlier than Friday, September 6, but its return mission will still depend on the weather and "operational readiness."
It was decided by NASA and Boeing on its latest Delta-Flight Test Readiness Review conducted last Thursday, August 29.
According to NASA, Starliner would take around six hours to land on the planet after undocking from the ISS, targeting White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. Should this remain as Starliner's return schedule, it is expected to land by Saturday, September 7.
Starliner will use parachutes and inflated airbags for its landing.
NASA Astronauts to Stay in the ISS Until Next Year
It also follows the earlier announcement by NASA to have this Starliner return mission crewless, leaving behind astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on the ISS until next year.
The astronauts would stay on the space station until February 2025 as part of the Expedition 71/72 crew, and after this, they will return to the planet aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon.
NASA's Commercial Crew and Boeing Starliner
Years of delays plagued Boeing Starliner's mission and responsibility to deliver its end on NASA's Commercial Crew program which heavily relied on SpaceX's Crew Dragon and Falcon 9. It finally flew to the ISS last early June but this was still a flight test conducted by Boeing and NASA, with Starliner facing significant issues in its approach to the space station because of helium leaks.
Even after Boeing docked the Starliner to the ISS, it still faced massive delays, but this time, centering on its problem of returning to the planet and safely doing so with its crew onboard.
After almost three months of its stay on the ISS, Boeing and NASA decided to push through with Starliner's return, but this time without its crew onboard.
Now, Boeing and Starliner are only counting the days before its eventual return to the planet that will finally conclude its months-delayed first crewed test flight to the ISS. NASA now approved Starliner's return and green-lighted the September 6 mission, but will still depend on the weather and its readiness to do so, all while leaving its crew behind.
