NASA sets December test flight for Boeing Starliner ahead of crewed return

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft is set to return to space in December for an uncrewed test flight as NASA works toward putting astronauts back aboard the capsule.

The announcement was made during a briefing on Monday that included NASA administrator Jared Isaacman, NASA astronaut Woody Hoburg, NASA's Low Earth Orbit Program manager Dana Weigel and Boeing Commercial Crew vice president and program manager John Mulholland.

The news comes nearly two years after the spacecraft's crewed flight in 2024 left two astronauts stranded on the International Space Station for nine months.

When will Boeing send astronauts to the ISS again?

What's next:

If the test is successful, NASA plans to resume crewed Starliner flights in 2028 as part of an agreement that could include up to five missions to the International Space Station.

NASA astronaut Woody Hoburg is expected to command Starliner’s next crewed mission. Hoburg previously piloted SpaceX’s Crew-6 mission to the space station in 2023.

Starliner 1st crewed flight experiences technical issues

The backstory:

The test follows problems during Starliner’s 2024 crewed flight, when thruster failures and helium leaks prompted NASA to return the capsule to Earth without astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. Due to safety concerns, NASA decided to bring Starliner back to Earth without astronauts while working on a different return plan.

The two remained aboard the space station until returning on a SpaceX spacecraft about nine months after launching. They returned to Earth on a SpaceX Crew Dragon in March 2025.

In February of this year, NASA classified the flight as a Type A Mishap, the agency's highest designation for incidents that could have resulted in loss of life.