Why It Took Boeing A Decade To Launch NASA Astronauts On Starliner

Boeing’s Starliner is a human-grade space capsule designed to take astronauts to and from the International Space Station. Boeing began work on the capsule in 2014, when it signed a $4.2 billion contract with NASA under the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. NASA also selected SpaceX for the job, giving Elon Musk’s company $2.6 billion to develop its Crew Dragon capsule. In the decade since, Boeing has struggled to deliver on the six missions it’s contracted to fly with NASA amid a myriad of delays and technical issues. SpaceX, meanwhile, has completed over a dozen crewed missions to space since 2020, launching both NASA astronauts and private citizens. In early June, Boeing launched its last test, a milestone crewed mission, which it needs to complete before NASA can certify Starliner to begin operational missions. Watch the video to learn more about the obstacles that Boeing has faced with its Starliner project and what the future may hold for its long-awaited capsule. Chapters: 0:00 - Introduction 3:00 - Legacy space player 6:13 - Delays and hurdles 9:44 - SpaceX competition 11:27 - Future of Starliner Produced and edited by: Magdalena Petrova Supervising producer: Jeniece Pettitt Additional footage: NASA, Getty Images