“NASA has decided that Butch and Suni will return with Crew 9 next February and that the Starliner will return uncrewed. A test flight is by its nature neither safe nor routine. And so the decision to keep Butch and Suni on board the International Space Station and bring the Boeing Starliner home uncrewed is the result of a commitment to safety.” “I spoke with Butch and Suni yesterday and today. They fully support the agency’s decision and are ready to continue this mission aboard the ISS as members of the Expedition 71 crew. Their families are doing well. Their families understand, just as the crew members did at launch, that there is always a chance that they could be up there much longer than they expect. So the families understand that. I’m not saying it’s not hard. It is hard. It is difficult.”