NASA announced on Tuesday that astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who traveled to the International Space Station aboard Boeing’s troubled Starliner in June, will not return to Earth until at least March 2025.
Their mission, originally planned to last 8 to 10 days, was extended due to multiple issues with the Starliner, including propulsion system failures. NASA decided to leave them aboard the space station and return the capsule empty in September.
In place of the Starliner, a SpaceX Crew-9 Dragon capsule launched with a reduced two-person crew and the plan to bring Wilmore and Williams back in February 2025. However, NASA now says the replacement crew aboard the SpaceX Crew-10 will not reach the station until late March 2025, meaning the earliest the two astronauts will return is then. The delay is due to the need for more time to complete processing of a new Dragon spacecraft for the mission.
The Crew-9 team, which includes Wilmore, Williams, NASA astronaut Nick Hague, and cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, must remain on the station until the Crew-10 team arrives and completes a “handover period” to ensure a smooth transition and support ongoing scientific operations. NASA did not specify how long the handover would take.
The Starliner, which faced significant development challenges including technical issues and budget problems, arrived at the space station with its crew but experienced helium leaks and propulsion issues. Wilmore and Williams’ stay, originally set for just over a week, will now extend to at least nine months.
Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, praised SpaceX for its efforts in expanding the Dragon fleet to support these missions, while acknowledging the complex process of preparing a new spacecraft for flight.
