Despite 311 Pages Of Criticism, Nasa Still Won't Can…
By Rich Smith – Mar 14, 2026 at 5:05AM EST
Key Points
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NASA is not happy with the performance of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.
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A 311-page NASA report outlines the space agency’s displeasure and suspends use of Starliner by astronauts.
What NASA says about Starliner
This new NASA report, titled the “Starliner Propulsion System Anomalies during the Crewed Flight Test Investigation Report,” runs to 311 pages and describes how “technical, organizational, and cultural contributors” all added up to a failed Crewed Flight Test (CFT) for Boeing in 2024.
NASA identified four key hardware defects with the Boeing spacecraft: Five thrusters failed on the service module and one on the crew module. Seven of eight helium manifolds had leaky seals. Finally and perhaps most critically, redundancy was lacking in the spacecraft’s propulsion system, such that more than one material failure might have been enough to prevent a safe return to Earth. As NASA associate administrator Amit Kshatriya commented, “[W]e almost did have a really terrible day.”
NASA further faulted Boeing for inadequate testing of the hardware and misdiagnosis of anomalies in Starliner’s previous flights. This was worsened by NASA’s poor oversight of Boeing’s work.
Ultimately, NASA decided to classify the CFT mission as a “Type A mishap,” which can encompass disasters such as the loss of a spacecraft and even crew fatalities. In the instant case, NASA chose “mission failure” as the best description of the incident, based on Starliner losing flight control when docking.
Citing “critical vulnerabilities” discovered with the spacecraft — as well as in how Boeing built it and how NASA oversaw its construction — NASA issued 61 separate formal recommendations for next steps to address the problems it revealed.
And yet, NASA did not cancel the Starliner program outright.
Starliner wins a reprieve
New NASA administrator Jared Isaacman explained that “America benefits from competition and redundancy.” In so doing, he highlighted two reasons NASA might want to give Starliner (yet another) chance to work:
First, so that SpaceX doesn’t become NASA’s sole source of transportation to and from ISS — leaving the space agency with no alternatives if SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets are grounded for some reason. And second, so that SpaceX cannot charge whatever it wants for this service. So long as Boeing is even just technically a rival in this race, SpaceX must compete on price to win its contracts.
But this does not mean NASA is happy with the situation.
“NASA will not fly another crew on Starliner until technical causes are understood and corrected, the propulsion system is fully qualified, and appropriate investigation recommendations are implemented,” says Isaacman. At best, this means the Boeing spacecraft might be used only for uncrewed cargo runs to and from ISS — or not at all — until the anomalies have been addressed.
That said, there’s still a potential worst-case scenario that investors need to anticipate.
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Time’s running out for Starliner
When Boeing was first awarded its $4.2 billion Commercial Crew contract to shuttle astronauts to and from ISS back in 2014, the contract terms envisioned Boeing flying six crewed missions. SpaceX was also awarded six missions (but only $2.6 billion) and has actually flown 13 (with one more scheduled).
At NASA’s current launch rate of two crewed missions per year, with ISS scheduled for retirement after 2030 (although that date may be extended to 2032), there’s really only time left for perhaps nine more flights total (or 13 if ISS retires in 2032). Assuming future flights are divided evenly between the two contractors, the only way I see Boeing running all six flights it’s been allotted (and collecting all $4.2 billion it was awarded) is if ISS does get extended through 2032.
Conversely, if ISS goes away in 2030, Boeing’s going to miss out on at least $1 billion in expected revenue — maybe even more if it takes too long to get Starliner fixed.
Granted, Boeing’s a giant company, doing nearly $90 billion in annual revenue. If its Starliner troubles cost it $1 billion in lost revenue, I think the company will survive just fine. Still, $1 billion is not nothing; the loss is still going to sting.
And the biggest loss of all will be to Boeing’s reputation as a space company.
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About the Author
Rich Smith is a contributing Motley Fool defense and stock market analyst covering publicly traded and emerging companies in defense, space, aerospace, and other sectors. Prior to The Motley Fool, Rich practiced international corporate law for Clifford Chance in Russia, and for the Russian-Ukrainian Legal Group in Moscow, Kyiv, and Washington, D.C. He holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations from the College of William & Mary, a law degree from the University of Baltimore, and a language certification from the International Institute of Russian Language & Culture in Tver, Russian Federation. The Globe and Mail once featured him as “one of the best stock pickers since 2009.”
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