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Boeing Starliner astronauts finally headed back to Earth

By Joe Hiti Mar 18, 2025

Starliner astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita Williams will return to Earth on Tuesday after a prolonged trip that was supposed to last eight days was stretched to 286 days in space.

Want to get caught up on what's happening in SoCal every weekday afternoon? Click to follow The L.A. Local wherever you get podcasts.

After taking off from Earth aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule last June, Wilmore and Williams found themselves stuck in space after questions were raised about the capsule and its safety.

As a result, the pair found themselves stuck aboard the International Space Station, as it was decided to return them on another spacecraft, one built by SpaceX, instead. The pair then found themselves waiting out a shift change aboard the ISS.

Just after 1 a.m. EST on Tuesday, the pair boarded a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule and took off on the 17-hour ride home, accompanied by Crew 9 commander Nick Hague and cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov.

“On behalf of Crew 9, I’d like to say it was a privilege to call the station home, to live and work and be a part of a mission and a team that spans the globe, working together in cooperation for the benefit of humanity,” Hague radioed as the Crew Dragon drifted away from the station.

“To our colleagues and dear friends who remain on the station ... we know the station’s in great hands. We're excited to see what you guys are going to accomplish.”

The four are expected to touch down off Florida’s Gulf Coast, just south of Tallahassee, at around 6 p.m. EST.

Wilmore and Williams have spent a bit more time in the sky than they had originally planned to. In total, their trip was stretched to 286 days and 7 hours, spanning 4,576 orbits and traveling 121 million miles.

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