(Associated Press) — Boeing’s first astronaut mission is finally over.
The company’s empty Starliner capsule landed in the New Mexico desert late Friday night, with its two test pilots left behind at the International Space Station.
NASA judged their return too risky and booked SpaceX to bring them home. That won’t happen until next year, more than eight months after they launched on Starliner.
They were supposed to be away for just eight days, but thruster trouble and helium leaks marred their trip to the space station back in June.
Starliner landed on autopilot six hours after departing the orbiting lab.
