Boeing's Starliner program racks up $1.4B in losses
Boeing took a massive financial hit stemming from the planned crew launch of its Starliner spacecraft this month.
The Starliner program incurred a $257 million loss during the second quarter "primarily due to the impacts of the previously announced launch delay," Boeing reported Wednesday.
It pushes Boeing's total charges for the program to about $1.4 billion, Boeing confirmed with FOX Business on Thursday.
BOEING STARLINER DOCKS WITH INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION FOR FIRST TIME
Boeing will work to launch the Starliner capsule, with astronauts, to and from the International Space Station (ISS) for the first time.
The capsule was scheduled to have a test flight in July with two astronauts. However, the test flight, already behind schedule, was halted yet again when final reviews uncovered issues with the parachute lines and other problems that were present on last year’s test flight with no one on board. Officials said the issues should have been caught years ago.
During the second quarter, Boeing's Defense, Space, & Security division suffered a $527 million loss in part because of the issues with the Starliner.
A search and rescue training exercise with the Boeing CST-100 Starliner training capsule is shown at the Army Wharf at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on April 23, 2019.
Boeing further noted that its Defense, Space & Security second-quarter operating margin was "primarily driven by losses on certain fixed-price development programs, as well as continued operational impacts of labor instability and supply chain disruption on other programs."
Boeing said it is working with NASA to determine a new launch date.
BOEING'S STARLINER RETURNS FROM SPACE STATION
Boeing Program Manager Mark Nappi previously said the test flight could happen by year's end, although he doesn't "want to commit to any dates or time frames" until the problems get fixed.
NASA hired Boeing and SpaceX to transport astronauts to and from the space station, though NASA Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich pleaded for another provider for crew transportation.
SpaceX has now completed 10 crew flights, three of them private. Boeing had to repeat its 2019 test flight without a crew because of software and other issues.
Following a successful test flight with astronauts, NASA previously said it "will begin the final process of certifying the Starliner spacecraft and systems for regular crew rotation flights to the space station."
The goal is to have one SpaceX and one Boeing taxi flight to the station each year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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