Boeing and NASA postpone the return of the Starliner astronaut to June 22

BoeingNASA announced Friday that the Starliner Calypso capsule will remain on the International Space Station twice as long as originally planned.

This developmental nature of the mission, known as the Boeing Crew Flight Test, is on display as the company and NASA perform a variety of tests on the Starliner while docking with the International Space Station. This mission marks the first time the Starliner has carried a crew, with Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams scheduled to return the spacecraft to Earth next week.

Before the launch on June 5, Boeing and NASA planned for the Starliner to remain in space for nine days.

But the Calypso mission is now expected to return to Earth on June 22, departing the International Space Station at 11:42 PM ET on June 21 before landing about six and a half hours later, at 6:26 AM ET. This means Starliner crew flight testing will now last at least 17 days, about twice as long as the original plan, for more spacecraft testing.

Those tests include operating the capsule's hatch, firing seven of its thrusters, and checking the air temperature in the cabin, all while program managers and astronauts “finalize departure planning and operations,” NASA said.

The agency also noted that Starliner would “repeat some of the 'safe haven' tests,” but did not explain why that was necessary. Safe haven testing is performed when astronauts on the International Space Station use a spacecraft for shelter during emergency situations. NASA said that “the spacecraft does not “It remains ready for emergency crew return scenarios within flight rules,” referring to the possible scenario of an unexpected evacuation of astronauts from the International Space Station.

NASA, after publishing an update on Friday, postponed CNBC's request for further clarification until a press conference to be held on Tuesday before the planned departure.

The crew flight test represents a final major step before NASA certifies Boeing to fly the crew on six-month operational missions. However, as with the previous two unmanned spaceflights, the Starliner encounters several problems during the mission.

Prior to launch, one leak was identified in Calypso's helium propulsion system. The leak was considered stable and did not pose a threat to the capsule's integrity, so the launch went ahead and successfully delivered the Starliner to the International Space Station.

However, since docking with the ISS, the spacecraft has caused four additional helium leaks. NASA wrote earlier this week that Calypso “has a significant margin to support the return flight” based on the current rate of five leaks, with 10 times the required helium capacity in its tanks.

While Boeing was directing the Starliner for docking, another problem — NASA says is separate from helium leaks — arose with the spacecraft's propulsion system. Starliner has 28 jets, known as Reaction Control System, or RCS, thrusters, which help the spacecraft make small movements in orbit.

Five of the 28 thrusters were not working but after troubleshooting, Boeing recovered the four disabled Starliners and NASA allowed the spacecraft to dock.

NASA said Friday that it will conduct a hot fire test before separating from seven of the eight thrusters near the spacecraft's tail. Hot fires are very short bursts of thrusters, as Boeing looks to evaluate the performance of the thrusters. NASA did not specify whether any of the seven propulsion devices that will undergo testing are the same five engines that stopped working before docking.

Boeing Vice President Mark Nappi said in a statement that although the duration of the mission has been doubled, “we have plenty of margin and time left on the station.”

Starliner was previously seen as a competitor to SpaceX's Dragon, which has made 12 crewed flights to the International Space Station over the past four years. However, various setbacks and delays have steadily put the Starliner into a backup position for NASA, with the agency planning to have SpaceX and Boeing astronauts fly on alternating flights.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the duration of the flight test.