CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Boeing's astronaut taxi has returned to Earth from the International Space Station, completing a repeat test flight with a mannequin on board. The Starliner capsule parachuted into the New Mexico desert just four hours after leaving the orbiting lab
Wednesday.
Aside from a few snags, Starliner appears to have clinched its high-stakes shakedown cruise 2 1/2 years after its botched first attempt. That means NASA test pilots will fly next, perhaps by year's end.
NASA wants two competing U.S. companies ferrying astronauts to and from the space station. SpaceX is already the established leader.