Butch Wilmore, along with the astronaut NASA Suni Williams, piloted the first manned LOT of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft last year. The mission gained global attention when the ship encountered several serious problems on the way to the space station, including engine failures and gas leaks.
It was expected that Williams and Wilmore would remain in orbit about eight days. However, NASA and Boeing spent weeks, trying to determine the cause of the ship's defect and assess whether Starliner is safe enough to transport astronauts home.
The Space Agency ultimately decided that the duo's return to Earth on board Starliner is a too risky undertaking. NASA announced in August last year that Williams and Wilmore will join the next rotation of the crew of the International Space Station along with two other astronauts as part of the SpaceX Crew-9 mission and will remain in space for the next few months.
Williams and Wilmore finally returned home in March – over nine months after leaving the ground. Such a period of stay in orbit is not unusual, because astronauts live at a space station for six months or longer when they have rotational missions.
Wilmore: We were not abandoned
Williams and Wilmore emphasized that they were fully prepared for a longer stay in space, claiming that they both understand the risk and uncertainty associated with the first test flight. Williams and Wilmore have repeatedly tried to overthrow the narratives that they were “abandoned” in space.
“Wilmore's involvement in the NASA mission and its delaying space exploration are really worth imitating,” said Steve Koerner, who was the director of the Space Center, in a statement issued on Wednesday. Johnson NASA in Houston, where astronauts train.
“His durable heritage of the Hang of the Spirit” – added Koerner, “will continue to influence and inspire Johnson's employees, future explorers and the whole nation for generations.”
Wilmore, a naval officer and a pilot who had 21 combat missions, joined the NASA astronauts corps in 2000.
Over the past 25 years, he completed three missions, including the mission of Atlantis shuttle and a journey to the space station of the Russian spacecraft Sojuz.
After returning to Earth in March, the SpaceX Wilmore stated that theoretically he would like to fly again on board one of the Boeing Starliner capsules if he had such an opportunity.
Source: CNN
