Astronauts take tough questions at media meet

American astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, who were stuck at the International Space Station (ISS) for nine months and came back last month in Elon Musk’s Space X shuttle, expressed their views at a press conference on Monday.

They parried questions about their delayed return to earth. They did not blame Boeing for the serious mechanical snag that forced them to stay on the space station for nine months instead of 10 days.

Williams answered personal questions about what she did after she returned, Wilmore fielded questions about NASA, President Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Williams said that the first thing she did after she came out after post-landing incubation for the mandatory medical checks – she embraced her husband and her three pet dogs, and she ate a grilled cheese sandwich as her father was a vegetarian, and she did a three-mile run. She was happy she was able to do the run which was an indirect declaration that her health was good in spite of the prolonged stay in the space station.

Wilmore spoke for himself and Williams when he expressed thanks and trust to President Trump and Musk. And he deftly avoided blaming in any way the delay in the return. Speaking to Fox News, Wilmore said, “I have no reason not to believe in anything they say, because they’ve earned my trust. And for that I am grateful that our national leaders are actually coming in and taking part in our human space flight programme, which we see is hugely important global importance, and they take an active role.”

At one level, the remarks of Wilmore, and by implication that of Williams, are to be treated as normal, correct answers because the astronauts are in the service of the United States government.

But Wilmore gave away what he really felt without revealing the real problems. He said, “Okay, in certain respects, we were stuck. In certain respects, maybe we were stranded.” On the issue whether NASA and Boeing were to blame, Wilmore said, “Everybody has a piece in this, because it did not come off.” And he also said that as commander of the Crew Flight Test (CFT) of the mission he should have asked some questions, and that he did not ask at the time. “I didn’t ask, so I’m culpable. I’ll admit that to the nation.” President Trump is not so keen to blame Boeing as much as he did his predecessor, Joe Biden.

It is quite evident that the whole story of the rescue of Wilmore and Williams has not yet come out. Is there an inquiry into Boeing’s Starliner snag, and why did it take Elon Musk so long to send the rescue shuttle? Could he have got into the act much earlier than he did? Space X has done shuttle missions either. And of course, he must have been angry that NASA had favoured Boeing over SpaceX.

These issues need to be discussed and disclosed because they are of importance both to the United States and other countries in the world. Interestingly, both Williams and Wilmore express their trust in the Boeing Starliner. So, the answers did not really go according to Trump White House narrative.

The astronauts, brave human beings with extraordinary technical expertise, had to negotiate a complicated situation. It goes beyond politics. Williams has rightly given the right twist that the world did not revolve around them, but they (Williams and Wilmore) revolved around the world. That was a witty and truthful answer.

What will always remain interesting for everyone else in the world is the personal experience of the astronauts through all the stages, from training to the flight, the stay above there and then the return.