Boeing's accident-prone space capsule Starliner is finally returning to Earth – without astronauts.
Starliner was plagued by a series of problems during its journey to the International Space Station, ISS, which led the American space agency NASA to decide to let the astronauts stay on the ISS until another spacecraft can pick them up in February. The risk of something happening to them is simply considered too great.
But Starliner is making the return journey on its own. The spacecraft will leave the ISS at midnight on Friday, Swedish time, and is expected to land in the USA about six hours later.
A smooth return journey is not only important for Boeing's pride, but can also determine the company's prospects of getting certified to fly astronauts in the future.
