CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA - Boeing landed its crew capsule in the New Mexico desert on Sunday after an aborted flight to the International Space Station that threatened to derail the company's effort to launch astronauts for NASA next year.
It was the first US capsule designed for astronauts to return from orbit and land on the ground. NASA's early crew capsules all had splashdowns. SpaceX's Dragon capsule, which made its orbital debut last winter, also aims for the ocean at mission's end. The problem was with the Starliner's internal clock: It did not sync up with the Atlas V rocket, throwing off the capsule's timing.
Last month's parachute problem turned out to be a quick fix. Only two parachutes deployed during an atmospheric test because workers failed to connect a pin in the rigging. As its space shuttle program was winding down, NASA looked to private industry to take over cargo and crew deliveries to the space station. SpaceX kicked off supply runs in 2012. Two years later, NASA hired SpaceX and Boeing to ferry astronauts to the orbiting lab.