In September 2014, NASA awarded firm-fixed-price contracts to Boeing  and SpaceX, valued at up to $4.2 billion and $2.6 billion, respectively, for  the Commercial Crew Transportation Capability phase. Under the contracts, NASA and  the companies originally planned to complete the certification review for  each system by 2017. Contract Line Item 002 covers any service missions that NASA  orders to transport astronauts to and from the ISS. We found that the  schedule pressures were amplified by NASA’s need to provide a  viable crew transportation option to the ISS before its current contract  with Russia’s space agency runs out in 2019. In order to ensure that the United States had continued access to the ISS  if the Commercial Crew Program’s contractors experienced additional  schedule delays, we recommended that the NASA Administrator develop  a contingency plan for maintaining a presence on the ISS beyond 2018,  including options to purchase additional Russian Soyuz seats, and report  to Congress on the results. NASA concurred with this recommendation,  and in February 2017, NASA executed a contract modification to procure  an option for three crewmember seats from Boeing on the Russian Soyuz  vehicle. Both Contractors Have Made Progress but Continue to Experience Schedule Delays

		Contractors Continue to Advance Development of Their Crew Transportation Systems

Both Boeing and SpaceX have continued to make progress finalizing their  designs and building hardware as they work toward final certification of  their crew transportation systems, since we last reported in February  2017. Schedule Delays Continue, and Risks Remain to Final Certification Dates

The contractors have notified NASA that final certification dates have  slipped to the first quarter of calendar year 2019 and, through our ongoing  work, we have identified three key risk areas that could further delay  certification of each contractor’s crew transportation system. These are  consistent with the challenges we found facing the contractors and  program in our February 2017 report. Aggressive schedules. Programmatic and safety risks. These risks are not unusual; there are inherent  technical, design, and integration risks in all NASA’s major acquisitions,  as these projects are highly complex and specialized and often push the  state of the art in space technology. As part of our  ongoing work, we will continue to assess the extent to which the  contractors are meeting this requirement and what tools the program and  NASA will use to determine if the contractors meet the requirement. Program office workload. At that time, program officials told us  that one of their greatest upcoming challenges will be to keep pace with  the contractors’ schedules so that the program does not delay  certification. The  program’s ability to smooth its workload is limited because the contractors  generally control their development schedules. In February 2017, we  found, however, that proposed changes to the Boeing and SpaceX  schedules could help alleviate some of the concurrency between the  program’s phased safety reviews and verification closure process. Delays and uncertain final certification dates raise questions  about whether the United States will have uninterrupted access to the  International Space Station beyond 2019, and may lessen NASA’s return  on investment with the contractors.
Why GAO Did This Study

Since the Space Shuttle was retired in 2011, the United States has been relying on Russia to carry astronauts to and from the space station. NASA's Commercial Crew Program is facilitating private development of a domestic system to meet that need safely, reliably, and cost-effectively before the seats it has contracted for on a Russian spacecraft run out in 2019.
In 2014, NASA awarded two firm-fixed-price contracts to Boeing and SpaceX worth a combined total of up to $6.8 billion to develop crew transportation systems and conduct initial missions to the space station. In February 2017, GAO found that both contractors had made progress, but their schedules were under mounting pressure.
This statement provides preliminary observations on the extent to which the contractors and the program are making progress toward meeting NASA's standards for human spaceflight, a process called certification.
This statement is based on ongoing work and information contained in GAO's February 2017 report on this program ( GAO-17-137 ). To do this work, GAO analyzed contracts, schedules, and other documentation.

What GAO Found

Both Boeing and Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) are making progress toward their goal of being able to transport American astronauts to and from the International Space Station (ISS). However, both continue to experience schedule delays. Such delays could jeopardize the ability of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Commercial Crew Program to certify either company's option—that is, to ensure that either option meets NASA standards for human spaceflight—before the seats the agency has contracted for on Russia's Soyuz spacecraft run out in 2019. (See figure.)
GAO's ongoing work has identified three key risks, which are consistent with challenges reported in February 2017 that could further delay certification of each contractor's crew transportation system:
Aggressive schedules —NASA, Boeing, SpaceX, and independent review bodies have all noted that the contractors' schedule plans are aggressive. The anticipated schedule risks have since materialized.
Programmatic and safety risks —SpaceX and Boeing are addressing technical risks, which is not uncommon for NASA projects as they often push the state of the art in space technology. In addition, the contractors' systems must meet a standard for crew safety. Additional work remains to determine whether the contractors will meet this requirement.
Program office workload —Program officials told GAO that one of their greatest upcoming challenges will be to complete two oversight activities—conducting phased safety reviews and verifying that contractors meet requirements—concurrently. The program's ability to smooth its workload is limited, as the contractors generally control their development schedules. In February 2017, GAO found that proposed schedule changes could alleviate some overlap.
Delays and uncertain final certification dates raise questions about whether the United States will have uninterrupted access to the ISS after 2019, and may lessen NASA's return on investment with the contractors. GAO will continue to assess the contractors' and program's progress.

What GAO Recommends

GAO is not making any new recommendations. In February 2017, GAO recommended that NASA develop a contingency plan to maintain access to the ISS beyond 2018, when its contract with Russia for seats on the Soyuz was scheduled to end. NASA agreed with this recommendation and purchased Soyuz seats through 2019.