NASA eliminates Boeing from next round of ISS resupply contracts

Verge : NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services 2 (CRS2) program is scheduled to cover cargo missions to the International Space Station between 2018 and 2024. For CRS2, NASA accepted bids from five companies, including SpaceX and Orbital ATK, which were awarded the two contracts for CRS1 in 2008. The other three companies vying for the contracts are Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Sierra Nevada Corporation. Earlier this week, after rumors began spreading, NASA announced that Boeing’s cargo-only CST-100 Starliner was eliminated from consideration. The agency also announced that it had pushed back the final decision to 30 January 2016. Of the other competitors, Lockheed Martin is also rumored to have been eliminated, but no announcement has yet been made. NASA did not give a reason for the delay in the selection process, but it has likely been influenced by the failed launches of both SpaceX and Orbital ATK as well as budget concerns.