SpaceX Capsules were tasked with bringing home two NASA astronauts who spent several months at the International Space Station (ISS) after the thruster issues after the launch of Boeing's Starliner mission last year.
Astronauts Butch Willmore and Suni Williams did not unlock SpaceX Dragon Spacecraft from the Space Surface Port on NASA's ISS Harmony Module early Tuesday Confirmed,
The pair will return this week after the Starliner suffered many issues and then turned into an ISS nine-month mission, starting with the Starliner's problems. The capsule was returned to Earth without crew last September.
Wilmore and Williams have joined the SpaceX capsule by two other astronauts, Nick Hague and Roscosmos astronaut Alexander Golbunov. The four-person crew, part of NASA's Crew 9 mission, is scheduled to splash off the Florida coast Tuesday evening.
The Starliner's first crew mission, which was delayed several times, was launched into space last June. SpaceX was originally scheduled to bring the duo home in February, but later moved the return mission to March.
The return of Wilmore and Williams became political debate earlier this year, claiming that President Trump “waived” former President Biden to the ISS and asked one of his closest advisors, Elon Musk, one of SpaceX CEOs, to speed up their return.
The astronaut pushed back the president's claims and said in an interview with the ISS that he was “not abandoned.”
“We don't feel stuck, we don't feel stuck,” Williams said at the time. “I understand why others think about it. We are ready. We commit.”
Former NASA astronaut Jose Hernandez told News Nation on Monday that SpaceX, which helps astronauts return, is an example of NASA coexisting and supporting “eacher” with the private industry.
“Remember that Sonny and Butch went up on a Starliner Main Flight test flight alongside humans on board, so remember that the eight-day test flight turned into a nine-month test trial for them,” Hernandez told Host Blake Burman on “The Hill.”
“But it's the nature of the game and we create a healthy balance of competition, so I think we need both private industry and government to engage in space,” he added.
