Starliner crew stranded on the ISS will return to Earth in March 2025

The crew of SpaceX Crew 10 will go to the International Space Station (ISS) no earlier than March 2025, after which the members of the Starliner crew stuck there will be sent to Earth. The corresponding statement was published on December 17 on the website of the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Such dates were set in order to finalize the processing of the new Dragon spacecraft for the mission. Astronauts Anne McClain, Nicole Ayers, Takuya Onishi and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov continue training at the Lyndon Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Starliner was launched June 5 from Cape Canaveral in Florida after being postponed twice. Astronauts Wilmore and Suni Williams were scheduled to stay at the orbiting station for eight days after docking with the ISS.

On June 14, it was reported that the spacecraft failed to undock from the ISS after several malfunctions were discovered on the spacecraft. In addition to helium leaks, four engines failed during the Starliner flight. Experts indicated that NASA would need to launch a rescue mission.

On August 24, NASA head Bill Nelson said that the two astronauts who were stuck in space for 80 days would remain there for several more months. The malfunctioning capsule will have to return to Earth on a SpaceX spacecraft in early 2025.

Then, on September 1, it was reported that astronaut Barry Eugene Wilmore heard a "strange noise" coming from a speaker inside the Starliner spacecraft. The situation caused concern at NASA, so it was decided to send the spacecraft back to Earth without a crew. The next day, NASA spokeswoman Cheryl Warner reported that the strange noise that Starliner was making was due to acoustic feedback from the speaker.

On Sept. 6, the stranded Starliner undocked from the ISS and headed toward Earth without a crew. After a six-hour flight, the craft successfully landed at the White Sands Missile Range in the U.S. state of New Mexico.