Because SpaceX’s next crew rotation mission to the International Space Station will use a new Dragon spacecraft that won’t be ready by a previously planned February launch date, NASA announced Tuesday that it has opted to delay the launch now until no earlier than late March.

What that means is an even longer stay for the two NASA astronauts who flew up last June to the ISS aboard Boeing’s beleaguered Starliner spacecraft. They launched on the first crewed mission of Starliner on June 5 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V, arriving at the ISS one day later for what was supposed to be as short as an eight-day stay.

Because of concerns with Starliner’s thrusters and helium leaks on its propulsion module, NASA elected to play it safe and keep Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on board the ISS while sending Starliner home without a crew.

Their ride home is now set to be aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon Freedom, which flew up to the ISS and docked in September, but with only two crew on board instead of the normal four so that Williams and Wilmore would have a ride home.

That mission had been aiming for a flight home after Crew-10’s arrival in late February.

NASA, though, announced Crew-10 won’t launch until late March now with its replacement crew, which gives SpaceX and NASA time to get the new Dragon spacecraft, which has yet to be named, ready for the mission. It’s expected to arrive in Florida in early January.

“Fabrication, assembly, testing, and final integration of a new spacecraft is a painstaking endeavor that requires great attention to detail,” said NASA Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich. “We appreciate the hard work by the SpaceX team to expand the Dragon fleet in support of our missions and the flexibility of the station program and expedition crews as we work together to complete the new capsule’s readiness for flight.”

This would be the fifth crew Dragon spacecraft. The first crewed flight came in May 2020, and its fleet of four current Dragon spacecraft have now flown 15 times carrying 56 humans to space, including two who were two-time fliers. The crew of each spacecraft’s first flight are given the right to name the spacecraft.

NASA said teams looked at using the other available crew Dragon spacecraft, but determined moving the launch date for Crew-10 was the best option.

Its crew will be NASA astronaut and commander Anne McClain, making her second trip to space; NASA astronaut and pilot Nichole Ayers, set to become the first of the 2021 astronaut candidate class to make it to space; JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut and mission specialist Takuya Onishi making his second spaceflight; and Roscosmos cosmonaut and mission specialist Kirill Peskov making his first spaceflight.

The delay could mean close to a nine-month stay on board for Wilmore and Williams, as Crew-9 won’t fly home until a handover period after Crew-10’s arrival.

Most ISS rotations last about six months.

NASA’s Commercial Crew Program aims to have two providers for U.S.-based rotation missions with SpaceX and Boeing, but after the incomplete launch of the Crew Flight Test mission, it’s unclear when and how Starliner will get its final certification so it can begin trading off with SpaceX the regular ferry service.

Boeing’s contract calls for it to provide six flights to the ISS before the end of the space station’s service, currently targeting 2030.

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