Two NASA astronauts, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, have finally returned to Earth after nearly 10 months aboard the International Space Station (ISS). While technical problems with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft initially delayed their return, Elon Musk says their extended stay was avoidable.
Musk claimed during a Fox News interview that SpaceX had offered to bring the astronauts home much earlier, but the Biden administration rejected the proposal. “We definitely offered to return the astronauts earlier,” Musk said. “The astronauts were only supposed to be there for eight days, and they’ve been there for almost 10 months.”
#BREAKING : Elon Musk accuses biden of blocking SpaceX mission to bring Sunita Williams home.
"The astronauts were only supposed to be up there for 8 days and now have been there for 8 months," Musk posted on X (formerly Twitter). "SpaceX could have sent up another Dragon and… pic.twitter.com/yahqfhaFUh
— upuknews (@upuknews1) March 19, 2025
Williams and Wilmore were launched into space aboard Starliner on June 5, 2024, for what was expected to be a short mission. However, Boeing’s spacecraft developed helium leaks and suffered thruster failures, making a safe return impossible. Despite these problems, the Biden administration reportedly refused to let SpaceX handle the situation.
Gracias al presidente Trump y a la cápsula espacial Crew Dragon de SpaceX, de Elon Musk, los astronautas que habían sido abandonados en el espacio por Biden durante nueve meses, ya están de regreso en casa. pic.twitter.com/h3i50EACSz
— James Nava (@JamesNavaCom) March 19, 2025
President Donald Trump weighed in earlier this year, accusing Biden of abandoning the astronauts in space. Trump later announced he had personally asked Musk to carry out the rescue mission, saying the administration had failed to act.
Good morning !
Astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita "Suni" Williams are safely back on Earth after nine months in space, thanks to Elon Musk and his SpaceX team. While the Biden administration left them stranded, Elon stepped up and his Dragon Crew brought our heroes… pic.twitter.com/lfs3LceJN5
— Zelena✨WECKER (@wonamby) March 19, 2025
After months of delay, the astronauts finally returned Tuesday, landing safely in the Gulf of Mexico aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule alongside Crew-9 Commander Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov.
Never forget:
Joe Biden hates Elon Musk so much, he left 2 astronauts stranded on the ISS for 9 months, basically to die. #NASA Dragon landing! @SpaceX https://t.co/JY4IFI8Cu6
— Prof. Whitey McPriviledged 𝕏 (@WhiteBoySpicy) March 18, 2025
When asked about the decision to block an earlier return, NASA official Joel Montalbano declined to address the claim, saying only that the agency followed instructions from the administration.
