NASA Considers Reusing Troubled Starliner Vehicle for New Missions

NASA is in talks with Boeing to use the Starliner vehicle for new missions, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. The discussion revolves around Starliner handling 10 or more new flights in the years ahead. A Boeing spokesperson stated that the company remains committed to NASA's commercial crew efforts and plans to launch the next Starliner mission based on NASA's requirements.

NASA chose Boeing, along with SpaceX, in 2014 to develop spacecraft capable of carrying astronauts to the space station. The move aimed to give the US a regular domestic launch capability after the space shuttle was retired. Despite Boeing's troubled crewed test mission two years ago, NASA remains committed to maintaining Boeing as a second US crew transportation provider.

The talks suggest that NASA is planning for a sustained presence in low Earth orbit and expects to release details soon. Earlier in the day, NASA awarded SpaceX a $946 million contract to fly three additional astronaut missions to the International Space Station, extending the company's crewed flights through 2030.