In a significant setback for Boeing's space programme, NASA has confirmed that the company's Starliner capsule will not carry astronauts on its next journey to the International Space Station.
The decision, announced on Monday 24th November 2025, means the upcoming flight will be an uncrewed cargo mission. This trial run is designed to prove the spacecraft's safety following a litany of problems that plagued its first and only crewed mission.
From Crew to Cargo: A Safety-Driven Decision
The announcement comes eight months after NASA test pilots Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams returned to Earth. Their 2024 mission was intended to be a routine flight, but it turned into a prolonged ordeal.
Although Wilmore and Williams successfully docked the Starliner capsule with the International Space Station, the vehicle experienced so many technical issues that NASA ordered it to return to Earth empty. This left the two astronauts stranded aboard the station for more than nine months before they eventually returned aboard a SpaceX capsule.
Since that troubled flight, engineers from both Boeing and NASA have been meticulously analysing the root causes of the failures, with a particular focus on the spacecraft's thruster systems.
A Reduced Future for the Starliner Programme
The repercussions of these technical woes extend beyond the immediate next flight. NASA is also substantially scaling back its plans for the Starliner spacecraft.
The space agency is slashing the total number of planned Starliner flights from six to just four. If the crucial cargo demonstration mission, scheduled for no earlier than April, is successful, the remaining three flights will be dedicated to crew exchanges.
This condensed schedule puts pressure on the programme to demonstrate reliability before the International Space Station is decommissioned in 2030. This decision underscores the heightened scrutiny and caution now surrounding the Starliner project as it works to regain NASA's full confidence.
