Starliner-1's launch date stays under review — no earlier than mid-January
From the Space digest for 2026-10-22
What happened: At the NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel meeting on October 22, 2026, the panel said the Starliner-1 mission's launch date remains under review but is no earlier than mid-January (Jeff Foust, ~2:18 PM ET).
What's genuinely new: The mid-January floor is the first movement on the Starliner-1 clock since the September 28, 2026 NASA–Boeing briefing put the uncrewed flight no earlier than December 2026/January 2027: the front part of that window is effectively gone, and a federal safety panel — not the program office — is carrying the review framing. The crewed Starliner-2-in-2028 plan and the Dragon retirement-planning watch around it stand unchanged.
Watch: Whether the mid-January floor firms into a posted target; the Atlas V availability question earlier coverage raised; Starliner-2-2028 viability.
Links: Foust (X)