NASA is working on backup plans to return two astronauts who flew to the International Space Station on the new Boeing Starliner spacecraft, amid concerns over the vehicle’s flight readiness.

The trip was supposed to last just eight days — now it could go on as long as eight months, after NASA acknowledged serious problems with the capsule. This is its first crewed flight.

Nasa astronauts stuck on the International Space Station because of problems with Boeing’s troubled Starliner might not come home until next year.

The space agency has been examining whether the two stranded astronauts could come home on board a SpaceX craft – in February of next year.

Nasa said it would also delay its next launch from this month until next, to allow more time to get to grips with the Starliner’s problems.

Boeing named a new CEO after it reported a core operating loss of $1.4 billion in the second quarter – more than triple the loss from a year ago – as increased scrutiny of the safety and quality of its planes kept the troubled company from making enough aircraft to return to profitability.

Boeing executives spent years after two fatal 737 Max crashes trying to convince Wall Street, regulators, airlines and the flying public that they had an eagle eye on quality, reliability and safety.

Then on Jan. 5, about six minutes and 16,000 feet into a packed flight out of Portland, Oregon, a door plug blew out of a nearly new Boeing 737 Max 9. The panel was missing key bolts that hold it in place, which the company had removed to fix damaged rivets, according to early accident reports.

Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to one charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States for its role in two fatal 737 Max crashes, the Justice Department said in a court filing Sunday evening.

It represents yet another black eye for the company after a series of embarrassing safety blunders, but the agreement avoids what could have been more serious consequences.

Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge after the US found the company violated a deal meant to reform it after two fatal crashes by its 737 Max planes that killed 346 passengers and crew.

The Department of Justice (DoJ) said the plane-maker had also agreed to pay a criminal fine of $243.6m (£190m).

However, the families of the people who died on the flights five years ago have criticised it as a "sweetheart deal" that would allow Boeing to avoid full responsibility for the deaths. One called it an "atrocious abomination".

Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge to avoid a criminal trial in connection with a Justice Department investigation into two deadly crashes involving 737 MAX jetliners, FOX Business can confirm.

The criminal case relates to two 737 MAX jetliner crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019 in which 346 people were killed, leading to demands from the victims' families for Boeing to face prosecution.

Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge to resolve a U.S. Justice Department investigation linked to two 737 MAX fatal crashes, a government official said on Sunday.

The plea, which requires a federal judge's approval, would brand the planemaker a convicted felon. Boeing will also pay a criminal fine of $243.6 million, a Justice Department official said.

Prosecutors are reportedly recommending criminal charges against Boeing to the Department of Justice over allegations that the plane manufacturer violated a settlement related to two fatal crashes involving its 737 Max aircraft.

Senior DOJ officials are reviewing the recommendations and have until July 7 to make a final decision about whether to prosecute the company, Reuters and CNN reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Outgoing Boeing CEO David Calhoun apologized Tuesday to the hundreds of families who lost loved ones in crashes of the company’s 737 MAX jets — then faced scathing rebukes from senators who accused the company of placing profits over lives.