NASA/Cory Huston via Reuters
- Two NASA astronauts are still in space after Boeing's Starliner spacecraft faced delays.
- The spacecraft's plight adds to the pressure on Boeing.
- The company faces questions over safety after a door plug on one of its planes blew out in midair.
When Boeing announced in 2015 that its $4.2 billion spacecraft would be named Starliner, NASA officials hailed the manufacturer's innovation as a "great victory" that heralded the start of a new age of space exploration.
Nearly a decade later, that new era is off to a rocky start.
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni William are still in space after the Starliner spacecraft, which was designed to ferry NASA personnel to and from the International Space Station, was hit by a series of issues on its maiden crewed voyage.
The aviation giant's first commercial spaceship experienced malfunctioning thrusters and several helium leaks as it docked with the ISS.
The two astronauts aboard Starliner were planned to be at the space station for a little over a week, but Boeing and NASA have delayed their return to Earth to sometime in July.
The FT reported on Wednesday that Boeing said Starliner was performing well and the astronauts were not stranded. "It is a test flight," the company said. "The mission is still going and it is going well."
It echoes similar previous comments by both Boeing and NASA that Starliner is safe and operating effectively.
Officials have stressed that the latest delay is simply to allow ground teams to assess the five helium leaks and thruster issues the craft has experienced.
Still, Starliner's teething issues add to the multitude of woes facing outgoing Boeing CEO David Calhoun.
The airplane maker has been in a state of crisis since the door plug on a Boeing 737 Max 9 plane flown by Alaska Airlines blew out in midair earlier this year.
Since then, a series of whistleblowers have come forward with allegations about Boeing's approach to safety, with one describing a "schedule over safety" culture in which employees were pressured to "overlook" concerns.
The company previously told BI that those allegations were not representative of the work it has done to "ensure the quality and long-term safety of the aircraft."
Boeing is facing federal investigations into the door blowout incident and a Southwest Airlines flight, which experienced a potentially dangerous "Dutch roll" movement while in the air.
The company could also soon be hit by criminal charges after the Department of Justice accused it of violating a settlement agreement over two 737 Max 8 crashes that killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019.
It's no wonder that Boeing is reportedly struggling to recruit Calhoun's successor.
The company has faced furious criticism from lawmakers and airlines, with the CEO of Boeing's biggest customer, United, describing the Alaska Airlines incident as "the straw that broke the camel's back."
At a Senate hearing last week, the company was accused of "cutting corners" on safety. Sen. Richard Blumenthal described it as a "moment of reckoning" for the company.
Understandably, repeated Starliner delays are a setback that Boeing does not need. When it launched earlier this month, the spacecraft was already years late and $1.5 billion over budget. Boeing is also lagging behind rival SpaceX, which has been transporting astronauts to the ISS since 2020.
SpaceX founder Elon Musk never misses an opportunity to trash-talk a rival, and Boeing's plight is no exception.
The billionaire has frequently criticized Boeing on X, posting that the company had too many "non-technical managers" and calling out Calhoun's lack of an engineering background.
NASA and Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment made outside normal working hours.