- Sep 28
- 3 min read

StarLiner Slip Up

By Joshua Yan Sep 25 2024

Surrounding two astronauts is nothing but metal, glass and the deep, cold, expanse of space. Colder still is the Boeing logo, staring them down as they realize they have been stranded. Any semblance of home is no less than 250 miles straight down, and all the pair can do is wait until a voice can reach them telling them when rescue is near. This is no movie synopsis; this terrifying scene has now become a reality for two astronauts stranded aboard the International Space Station, as they wait for help from Earth.

When Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams set aboard Boeing’s Starliner vessel on June 5, they only planned to stay on the ISS for eight days. However, due to persisting thruster failures, helium leaks and other issues, NASA conducted a flight readiness review on Aug. 23, ruling that the transport vessel was unsuitable to bring the two home. Instead, the Starliner will be autonomously flown home and the astronauts will have to remain in space until they can hitch a ride home aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft in February of next year. Meanwhile, Wilmore and Williams have been working alongside the Expedition 71 crew, doing fluid dynamics research, plant facility maintenance and more.

“I am not surprised by the news. Boeing to me seems very disorganized and incompetent, especially with the mid-flight door incident and plane crashes in past years,” Junior Maggie Shen said.

The Starliner is Boeing’s reusable low-Earth orbit transport vessel, designed to accommodate up to seven passengers. The vehicle was meant to make Boeing the second private company—the first being SpaceX—to provide NASA with a means of transporting astronauts to and from the ISS. The manned flight on June 5 was its first successful crewed launch attempt and took place following several years of delays and failed launches costing Boeing a total of over $1 billion.

This incident will undoubtedly worsen Boeing’s reputation. The company has already been criticized for poor safety in the past, most notably when two Boeing 737 Max airplanes crashed between 2019 and 2020. It could also potentially harm the Artemis Project, which intends to send astronauts to the moon by 2026. Boeing is partnered with NASA in the endeavor, tasked with providing vital components in its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft. With growing safety concerns, NASA may delay the mission’s timeline. This could cause the space agency to drop Boeing altogether, instead relying more on SpaceX, whose Falcon Heavy rocket and Dragon spacecraft have already proven the company’s value as a spacecraft manufacturer.

“Boeing represents legacy space travel. Their funding is largely driven by politics and their goal is to extract as much money as possible, rather than to advance humanity. This incident is a perfect example of them not being able to compete with companies like SpaceX, even while receiving almost double the money from the government,” Kevin Tibbs, Science Department, said.

In any case, the future is bleak for Boeing. What happens next will determine the future of the company’s involvement in the American space program—whether they will make it to the stars or lose their wings trying.

About the Contributors

Joshua Yan is a Senior at Leland High School. This is his second year as a staff writer for the school newspaper. He likes playing piano, playing games with friends, and pen spinning.

Caitlynn Sue is a Junior at Leland High School and a page editor for journalism. This is her second year in journalism and she loves writing and eating snacks during print night. Outside of journalism, she enjoys baking, violin, and dance.