(Bloomberg) -- NASA plans to make a decision as soon as this weekend on whether to allow a pair of astronauts to leave the International Space Station aboard a Boeing Co. spacecraft, ending weeks of speculation about their return trip to Earth.
The aerospace company’s Starliner capsule has been beset with glitches including thruster failures and helium leaks since launching June 5, raising questions about its ability to complete the round-trip crewed mission.
NASA’s review looking into the Starliner’s spaceworthiness will conclude “no earlier than Saturday, Aug. 24,” the space agency said in a statement Thursday posted on its website.
Astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams have been aboard the space station since arriving on June 6, and had been expected to return about one week later. In the event the two are unable to travel on the troubled Boeing craft, NASA has said it was working with Elon Musk’s SpaceX on plans to return the astronauts to Earth in February 2025.
--With assistance from Loren Grush.
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