Boeing's infamous Starliner spacecraft could launch again in 2026 – but this time with no humans on board.

NASA announced that it is working with Boeing toward an uncrewed launch of the Starliner capsule as early as April.

And the destination would be familiar territory.

The vehicle is one in the same that launched in June 2024 for the International Space Station on its maiden human spaceflight with two NASA astronauts on board. But rather than depart for Earth a few days after arriving at the iconic orbital outpost, astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore became fixtures of the news cycle as the Starliner saga stretched on for months.

Now, a Starliner capsule could be heading back to the space station on the vehicle's first flight since the botched test that ended in March 2025 with Williams and Wilmore hitching a ride home with competitor SpaceX.

Here's everything to know about the Boeing Starliner, and when the spacecraft could launch on another NASA flight test.

Will Starliner launch again? NASA, Boeing plan 2026 uncrewed flight

The next Starliner flight, a mission known as Starliner-1, could be launching in April 2026, NASA announced in a blog post Monday, Nov. 24. The spaceflight would be the first of potentially two Starliner missions next year.

This time around, NASA will use the flight to transport cargo to the International Space Station while conducting "in-flight validation of the system upgrades" implemented since the previous failed spaceflight, the agency said. NASA did not announce where the Starliner would launch, but the vehicle last got off the ground atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral, Florida.

NASA and Boeing also announced plans to modify a 2014 contract that awarded the aerospace company up to six crewed flights to the orbital complex. Now, Boeing agreed to just four crewed missions with the remaining two being optional, NASA said.

“This modification allows NASA and Boeing to focus on safely certifying the system in 2026, execute Starliner’s first crew rotation when ready, and align our ongoing flight planning for future Starliner missions based on station’s operational needs through 2030," Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, said in a statement.

What is the Boeing Starliner?

Boeing is developing the Starliner spacecraft with the goal of it becoming a second operational vehicle for NASA to transport crews and cargo to the International Space Station. The missions would be contracted under the U.S. space agency's commercial crew program, under which NASA pays private companies to conduct orbital spaceflights using their own commercial vehicles.

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore were selected for the debut crewed flight aboard the Starliner, which was propelled in June 2024 to the space station atop atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Launching from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the mission was meant to last about 10 days.

SpaceX has already been making routine trips since 2020 to the space station under NASA's program using its Dragon capsule. Standing nearly 27 feet tall and about 13 feet wide, Dragon capsules can carry up to seven astronauts into orbit, though most of SpaceX's Crew missions feature a contingent of four.

The Crew missions launch on SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket – one of the most active in the world – from the Kennedy Space Center.

"Certification of Boeing’s Starliner remains important to NASA’s goal of sustained human presence in low Earth orbit," the space agency said in its recent blog post.

What happened with Starliner? Astronauts were 'stuck' at ISS

The crewed Starliner test flight mission ended in failure when engineers discovered a slew of helium leaks and problems with the craft's propulsion system that stalled the vehicle's return to Earth.

NASA ultimately determined that the troubled Starliner capsule wasn't safe enough for a crew. In September 2024, the empty spacecraft undocked and made its way back to Earth for a parachute-assisted landing in the New Mexico desert.

NASA also opted to keep Williams and Wilmore at the station a few extra months rather than launch an emergency mission to return them to Earth and leave the station understaffed.

Williams and Wilmore – the latter of whom has since retired – were ultimately at the space station for 286 days before returning in March with a SpaceX mission known as Crew-9 on a Dragon capsule for a water landing in Florida.

Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When could Starliner launch again? NASA, Boeing plan 2026 uncrewed mission

Reporting by Eric Lagatta and Brooke Edwards, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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