NASA made the right choice when they elected to bring Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams home next February on a Crew Dragon instead of on the troubled Starliner spacecraft, which is still docked at the ISS.
When I listened to updates on the decision over the past few months, the most prominently used word seemed to be “data.” NASA and Boeing wanted us to know that they were looking at the data, they needed more data, and the decision would be data-driven.
However, I have said numerous times to friends and colleagues, “I understand the need for data, but if I were Bill Nelson (NASA Administrator), my gut feeling would be, ‘This thing is just not safe to fly,” and I wouldn’t risk the lives of two great astronauts, hoping all would go well.
NASA’s Decision to Prioritize Safety
I’m sure Boeing is disappointed about the decision, and they probably opposed it in the many meetings that have been taking place over the past couple of months between NASA and the contractor’s team. Administrator Nelson went to great lengths to say that the agency would continue to work with Boeing to find the root causes of Starliner’s problems, and I’m sure that’s true. Both parties would like for Boeing to fulfill at least some of its contract, which called for several Starliner flights to the ISS.
However, Nelson also mentioned that safety was the highest priority and after the loss of two Shuttles and their crews, there had been an effort to create more open dialogue within NASA about anything that might endanger a mission. (Nelson himself flew on the Shuttle not long before the Challenger accident.) This comment made me wonder if perhaps there was someone who had been giving him and other leaders candid insights about what is wrong with Starliner-information that was not being shared in more formal meetings.
The Future of the Starliner Program
Whatever happened behind the scenes, the agency made the right decision with lives hanging in the balance. The alternative means that Butch and Suni will need to remain on the ISS for seven more months and it won’t be easy to change the schedule and bring them home on a Dragon. Nor will it be easy to bring Starliner back without a crew.
Butch and Suni will be fine-astronauts live to be in outer space, and this will be an opportunity for them to do just that, for a long, long time. However, it won’t be easy for their families, who expected their loved ones to be home after little more than a week.
Regardless of who is happy and who is sad, though, NASA made the right decision and the safe choice, and that’s what really matters.
Editor’s Summary of the Boeing Starliner Program
The Boeing Starliner program, part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, aims to provide a new crewed spacecraft for transporting astronauts to and from the International Space Station (ISS). Designed as a reusable spacecraft, Starliner is Boeing’s entry to compete alongside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon. The program has faced several technical challenges, including software issues and valve problems that have delayed its progress.
The Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission was crucial for proving Starliner’s capabilities. Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were selected to fly on this mission to validate the spacecraft’s safety and reliability. After repeated delays the mission launched on June 5, 2024. Initially intended to be a 10-day mission, the spacecraft remains docked at the ISS, pending further evaluation.
NASA recently decided to bring Wilmore and Williams home on a SpaceX Crew Dragon instead of Starliner due to lingering safety concerns. Although Boeing is under contract to provide several Starliner flights to the ISS, NASA emphasizes resolving the spacecraft’s technical problems first.
As Boeing and NASA work to address these issues, the future of the Starliner program remains uncertain. However, both parties continue their efforts to fulfill the contract and demonstrate that Starliner can be a reliable option for future ISS missions, focusing on resolving all technical concerns before proceeding with future crewed flights.
About the Author
Frank White is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College, a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and a Rhodes Scholar. He earned an M.Phil. in Politics from Oxford University, where he was a member of New College. The fourth edition of Frank’s best-known book, The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution, was published by Multiverse Publishing, a division of Multiverse Media LLC, in 2022. Frank is president of The Human Space Program, Inc., a nonprofit organization based on an idea initially proposed in The Overview Effect. The Overview Effect® is a registered trademark owned by Frank White.
(c) Copyright Frank White, 2024, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Above Space
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