“`html
Getty Images
- NASA is set to provide the Boeing Starliner with another opportunity.
- The agency has planned two SpaceX missions—Crew-10 and Crew-11—for 2025.
- Additionally, the Starliner may have a chance for a spaceflight later in 2025.
NASA has unveiled its commercial launch schedule for 2025, which includes another opportunity for the Boeing Starliner to embark on a space mission.
In a recent blog entry, NASA identified the “Next Starliner Flight” as the final of three launches planned for that year.
The agency noted that specific dates for this upcoming flight will be announced after integrating lessons learned from previous Crew Flight Tests and once NASA confirms its operational readiness.
“The timing and configuration of the next flight of Starliner will be established once we gain clarity on Boeing’s path toward system certification,” stated the blog post.
Nasa also mentioned it is exploring various options to achieve system certification, including potential windows for a possible Starliner flight within 2025.
Prospects for the Starliner
The Boeing Starliner returned to New Mexico on September 6 without carrying any crew members due to several complications involving thrusters and helium leaks while attempting to dock with the International Space Station on June 6.
This led NASA to prioritize safety by opting not to send back its crew—NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams—and instead return with an uncrewed vehicle. The astronauts are now scheduled to return home aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft in February 2025.
Ongoing Competition Between SpaceX and Boeing
Boeing and SpaceX have been engaged in fierce competition within commercial space exploration since both companies secured significant contracts from NASA worth $6.8 billion back in 2014.
Nasa’s official announcement from that year revealed that Boeing received $4.2 billion while SpaceX was awarded $2.6 billion as part of its public-private partnership initiative known as the Commercial Crew Program.
Following a successful launch by SpaceX earlier this year, CEO Elon Musk remarked that his company had outpaced Boeing by four years regarding manned missions into space. In fact, it was in May when Musk highlighted this achievement through an X post stating: “SpaceX finished four years sooner.”
Musk has recently accused the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of showing favoritism towards Boeing amid ongoing discussions about regulatory compliance issues related to both companies’ operations. In September, he expressed his views via X regarding FAA penalties imposed on SpaceX following alleged violations during two launches earlier this summer; he suggested more stringent actions should be taken against Boeing instead of merely issuing fines against his company.
Source
“`
