Kit Roberts
A report from NASA has slammed the failure of a Starliner which left two astronauts stranded in space as a 'Type A' error.
This category is the worst that an incident can be placed in, and puts it in the same grouping as fatal shuttle disasters.
Incidents which would be defined as 'Type A' are ones which cause over $2 million in damage, loss of control of a vehicle, loss of a vehicle, or fatalities.
New NASA boss Jared Isaacman slammed Boeing, who built the Starliner shuttle, as well as the space agency itself over the leadership and decisions which contributed to the mission.
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The error led to two astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, becoming stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) for nine months, and they were finally able to return to Earth in March.
In June 2024 the Starliner capsule had been travelling to the ISS when thrusters failed.
This meant that the vehicle was out of control, and fortunately the two astronauts were able to get the propulsion system working again and dock with the ISS.
But while they were able to safely arrive at the ISS, they would not be able to get back to Earth in the spacecraft.
Speaking to a news conference, Isaacman said: "Had different decisions been made, had thrusters not been recovered, or had docking been unsuccessful, the outcome of this mission could have been very, very different."
He criticized the leadership decisions which led to the situation in a statement, saying that Starliner had seen problems during recent missions but was still allowed to continue.
"We are correcting those mistakes," he said. "Today, we are formally declaring a Type A mishap and ensuring leadership accountability so situations like this never reoccur."
The astronauts ended up stuck in space and had to wait for months to catch a lift home on a flight on a SpaceX craft in March 2025.
After their extended stay in space, both astronauts have now stepped back from the space agency.
Isaacman confirmed that NASA has accepted the report, and will now begin taking action to correct the errors which have been found.
And whle he slammed Boeing over the design, he also criticized NASA, saying: "While Boeing built Starliner, Nasa accepted it and launched two astronauts to space.
"To undertake missions that change the world, we must be transparent about both our successes and our shortcomings. We have to own our mistakes and ensure they never happen again."