Boeing Incurs an Additional $125M in Starliner Project Losses, Total Deficit Reaches $1.6 Billion

Boeing has encountered a $125 million setback in its Starliner astronaut capsule project, exacerbated by protracted delays in completing its inaugural manned space flight. Originally intended to last a mere eight days, this mission has unexpectedly extended to nearly two months in orbit.

The aerospace behemoth has seen a cumulative loss of $1.6 billion on the Starliner initiative, with the recent $125 million loss disclosed to authorities in a quarterly report. Despite securing a hefty contract of $4.2 billion in 2014 to expedite the development of Starliner, the deal was locked in at a fixed price, leaving Boeing to shoulder any financial overages on its own.

In a parallel development, SpaceX acquired a fixed-price agreement worth $2.6 billion to deliver astronaut transport services at the same time and has been successfully executing its commitments under this contract with the Crew Dragon capsule since 2020.

While SpaceX’s manned missions have achieved remarkable success, embarking on journeys for NASA as well as private entities, Boeing has faced significant hurdles. Despite NASA’s original plan to commission six crewed launches each from both Boeing and SpaceX, the persistent delays with Starliner have compelled NASA to procure an additional eight missions exclusively from SpaceX, thereby making it the sole provider of astronaut transport services for the agency.

Complications identified during a 2019 unmanned test flight resulted in a two-year postponement of another trial. Although Boeing celebrated a successful uncrewed mission in 2022, subsequent issues have delayed the scheduled crewed test flight to June of the same year.

This particular mission, initiated on June 5, successfully transported NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station (ISS). However, it faced several challenges, including issues with the thrusters, leading to a postponement in the astronauts’ return by several weeks.

These setbacks have made Boeing’s leadership cautious about engaging in future fixed-price contracts. Outgoing CEO Dave Calhoun voiced this stance during an earnings call, highlighting a strategic shift in contracting based on past experiences with fixed-price development projects.

Further financial dampeners for Boeing’s Starliner program are anticipated. NASA has announced another delay, pushing the maiden Starliner mission to no sooner than August 2025. Should extensive modifications to the capsule’s propulsion systems be required, the costs could escalate significantly.

Currently, there is no confirmed return date for the Starliner to Earth. NASA is looking to complete a final readiness assessment in early August to decide on a potential return timeline. A recent thruster test conducted in orbit yielded optimistic results, with NASA reporting on July 30 that thruster performance has been restored to preflight levels.