NASA and Boeing managers knew their Starliner rocket had a leak before launch but believed it was too small to pose a threat — as two astronauts remain stuck at the International Space Station over the issue, new reports say.
Officials found a helium leak on the troubled Starliner before its launch June 5, but NASA and Boeing leaders said the rocket was good to go because the issue was supposedly too small to pose a safety threat for the spacecraft, CBS News said. The rocket’s launch date had already been delayed due to another leak.
Once in orbit, four more helium leaks developed, with one thruster officially deemed unusable.
The return trip for astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams has been delayed until at least July 2.
Boeing has borne the brunt of the criticism over Starliner’s current situation.
The company is already under fire after high-profile malfunctions of its planes over the past year, with at least 20 whistleblowers coming forward to voice concerns about safety and quality issues at the aerospace giant.
Wilmore and Williams were supposed to come back home June 13 after a week on the ISS, but their return date remains up in the air as engineers continue to analyze and test the helium leaks and thruster failures on the Starliner, NASA said.
“We are taking our time and following our standard mission management team process,” Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, said in a statement.
“We are letting the data drive our decision-making relative to managing the small helium system leaks and thruster performance we observed during rendezvous and docking,” he added.
Stich claimed that despite the issues, NASA still has confidence in Starliner, claiming the spacecraft is “performing well in orbit while docked to the space station.”
NASA officials rejected the notion that Wilmore and Williams were stuck on the ISS, claiming the duo is still cleared to undock and fly home at any time if a major issue arises.
But the issues and tests run by NASA and Boeing call into question whether Starliner will be able to make its six-hour return trip.
Boeing has spent about $1.5 billion in cost overruns beyond the initial $4.5 billion contract it secured with NASA, which is hoping to make Starliner its second mode of transportation to the ISS alongside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon.
Starliners’ repeated leaking issues may threaten that future and further damage Boeing’s already troubled reputation in the aerospace industry.
The company has been plagued by safety concerns since the start of the year, when a door panel blew off an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 jet after it appeared to be missing four key bolts.
Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, later flagged ongoing issues with Boeing’s production line, with several whistleblowers coming out to say they felt pressured to stay quiet when they spotted defects on the line.
Boeing did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
