Says Elon Musk said, “The Boeing Starliner’s stranded astronauts are not with us anymore,” and “they won’t come back.”
Stand up for the facts!
Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.
I would like to contribute
No, Elon Musk didn’t say the Boeing Starliner astronauts ‘won’t come back’
If Your Time is short
-
This claim is unfounded. NASA said in December that two astronauts who have been at the International Space Station longer than expected because of safety problems with the spacecraft they arrived on will return to Earth after a SpaceX crew arrives at the station.
In June, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams rocketed to the International Space Station aboard the new Boeing Starliner spacecraft. It was the spacecraft’s first crewed test flight, but a couple of months later, NASA announced it was bringing the Starliner back to Earth without the astronauts because of spacecraft safety troubles.
Wilmore and Williams will remain at the Space Station through February 2025, NASA said in an Aug. 24, 2024, press release, and then fly home aboard another spacecraft with two other crew members assigned to a SpaceX mission.
A recent Facebook post claims SpaceX founder Elon Musk said the astronauts "won’t come back" and suggested they’re dead.
"Elon Musk: ‘The Boeing Starliners stranded astronauts are not with us anymore,’" the Jan. 4 post said. "‘They won’t come back.’"
But the astronauts aren’t dead, and we found no evidence Musk said this.
Sign up for PolitiFact texts
This post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads.)
We found no news coverage or public statements from Musk to corroborate the quotes attributed to him in this post.
Featured Fact-check
In December, NASA announced Wilmore and Williams would return after the agency’s new SpaceX crew arrived at the space station.
NASA said that would happen in late March at the earliest so that the agency and SpaceX would have time to finish a new spacecraft for the mission.
We rate claims Musk said the astronauts "are not with us anymore" and "won’t come back" False.
Our Sources
Facebook post, Jan. 4, 2025
NASA, LIFTOFF! NASA Astronauts Pilot First Starliner Crewed Test to Station, June 5, 2024
NASA, NASA Decides to Bring Starliner Spacecraft Back to Earth Without Crew, Aug. 24, 2024
CBS News, Why are astronauts stuck in space? Here's how the Boeing Starliner crew ended up on the space station for months, Dec. 18, 2024
CBS News, Boeing Starliner astronauts stuck at International Space Station must delay return to Earth yet again, Dec. 18, 2024
Browse the Truth-O-Meter
More by Ciara O'Rourke
No, Elon Musk didn’t say the Boeing Starliner astronauts ‘won’t come back’
Support independent fact-checking.
Become a member!
In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.