Boeing employees feel “humiliated” after NASA announced that two astronauts stranded on the International Space Station when the company’s Starliner spacecraft crashed would have to be rescued by Elon Musk’s emerging rival SpaceX, a worker told the Washington Post.
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who departed for the ISS in June for a planned 8-day mission, will have to wait another six months for a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft to bring them safely home because of helium leaks from their original spacecraft and problems with its engines.
The Florida-based Boeing space program official said the decision was another blow to the aerospace giant, which was already struggling with negative reactions to a series of incidents on commercial flights earlier this year.
“We’ve been through so much embarrassment lately, we’re under the microscope. This has made it 100 times worse,” said one worker who asked not to be identified.
“We hate SpaceX,” he added. “We talk shit about them all the time and now they’re bailing us out.”
“It’s shameful. I’m embarrassed, I’m appalled,” the employee said.
Morale is “at rock bottom,” the worker said, and many at Boeing blame NASA for the humiliation.
Boeing is confident its Starliner could return astronauts safely to Earth after delivering them to the ISS on its maiden manned flight on June 5.
However, after more than two months of testing the spacecraft, which is still docked to the ISS, NASA decided to turn to SpaceX for help.
Shortly before launch, a helium leak occurred in the Boeing spacecraft, which worsened when it docked with the ISS.
There were also several engine failures. Although many of these problems have since been resolved, NASA said the safest decision would be for Wilmore and Williams to return in February 2025 as part of SpaceX’s Dragon Crew-9 mission.
“We believed Starliner could bring them home safely, but NASA didn’t want to take any chances,” the employee said.
“They have their own PR problems and don’t need two dead astronauts,” he added. “But we didn’t think there would be dead astronauts. We would never have recommended that they use us if they thought it would be unsafe for them.”
Steve Stich, head of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, said the talks with Boeing “came down to a minor disagreement about risk.”
Boeing did not comment on NASA’s decision to rely on SpaceX, instead telling The Washington Post that it was focused on ensuring the Starliner could return to Earth undamaged.
“Boeing remains primarily focused on crew and spacecraft safety,” the company said.
Boeing has exceeded its original $4.5 billion contract with NASA by about $1.5 billion. NASA hopes to make the Starliner its second mode of transportation to the ISS alongside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon.
The Starliner’s problems could jeopardize that future and further damage Boeing’s already tarnished reputation in the aerospace industry.
The company has been plagued by safety concerns since the beginning of the year after a door panel on an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft was torn off, apparently with four critical screws missing.
Boeing has faced several other high-profile malfunctions on its aircraft, with at least 20 whistleblowers coming forward to raise concerns about safety and quality issues at the aerospace giant – some of them losing their lives in the process.
