(NewsNation) — NASA and Boeing leadership confirmed Thursday that a return date for the Starliner crew awaiting voyage back to Earth has yet to be set.
Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, and Mark Nappi, Boeing’s vice president and program manager of the Boeing Commercial Crew Program, provided updates on the Boeing Starliner mission and the two astronauts who are on the 49th day of what was supposed to be eight days in orbit at the International Space Station.
Stich confirmed there is still no return date for the Starliner crew and said NASA’s top priority is to bring the astronauts back to Earth safely.
Engineers last week completed testing on a spare thruster in the New Mexico desert to try to understand what went wrong during docking and to prepare for the trip home. Five thrusters failed as the capsule approached the ISS on June 6, a day after liftoff. Four have since been reactivated.
“The last several weeks have been really helpful in understanding the helium and thruster anomalies and how to address these problems for future flights,” Nappi said. “That’s been the real goal here, is to be able to address future flights and gain the confidence that we needed for this mission.”
Starliner mission problems
The Starliner capsule has been docked at the International Space Station since June 6. It should have returned with its NASA test pilots by mid-June, but thruster failures and helium leaks prompted NASA and Boeing to extend its stay.
Boeing had previously said that astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams could use the Starliner to return to Earth immediately if the situation demands it, but that’s not the case. Both Wilmore and Williams said they were confident they’d return home safely despite the delay.
NASA and Boeing said the capsule’s batteries are performing well despite the extended stay.
“I feel confident that if we had to, if there was a problem with the International Space Station, we could get in our spacecraft, and we could undock, talk to our team, and figure out the best way to come home,” Williams said in a press conference last week.
Safe to stay at ISS: NASA
Although Sunday was the end of the 45-day stay the mission was approved for, NASA and Boeing reassured the public and astronauts it was safe to stay in the capsule at the ISS past the mission’s initial window.
Starliner was plagued with issues before it even launched. The spacecraft’s launch was scrubbed twice, including one right before liftoff. Helium leaks were also reported.
Both agencies did not indicate when the astronauts will return to Earth but are hopeful for a return in the coming weeks. There also has been no word on whether the agencies plan to use another spacecraft to get the astronauts home.
NewsNation affiliate WFLA and The Associated Press contributed to this report.