NASA has acknowledged that the Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test faced extremely serious conditions.
The agency has now placed the incident in the ‘Type A’ accident category.
Officials consider this classification the most severe level.
Previously, NASA used this category during the Space Shuttle Challenger and Columbia disasters.
Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya stated that the agency narrowly avoided a major mishap.
Mission Timeline and Emerging Problems
Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore launched on June 5, 2024. They traveled aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station. The mission originally carried a ten-day schedule. However, multiple thrusters failed during the flight. Consequently, the situation became complicated. NASA later placed the incident in the Type A category due to these failures.
Jared Isaacman explained that flight rules were properly challenged. He said teams regained control and completed docking with the ISS. However, he admitted that different decisions could have changed the outcome. He added that failure to recover thrusters or dock successfully could have led to severe consequences.
Efforts to Fix Thruster Issues
While the astronauts remained aboard the ISS, NASA teams worked on the problem. They attempted to resolve the thruster malfunction. However, engineers failed to identify a solution.
As a result, NASA decided on September 6 to return Starliner without its crew. Even then, the return journey faced complications. During separation from the ISS, propulsion issues surfaced again. Furthermore, re-entry exposed limited fault tolerance in the thrusters.
Why Type A Classification Came Later
Questions arose about the delayed Type A designation. Officials admitted that NASA initially misjudged the risk level. They acknowledged that early assessments did not fully capture the severity. Concerns about Boeing’s program reputation and certification influenced decisions. Now, NASA and Boeing are jointly investigating the root cause of the thruster failure.
