Artemis Lunar Lander Timeline Slips Despite Cost Discipline

NASA’s OIG finds that fixed-price HLS contracts kept costs in check but allowed schedule slips: SpaceX’s Artemis III Starship is delayed by about two years and Blue Origin’s Blue Moon by around eight months, with cryogenic fluid-management and in-space propellant transfer tests behind schedule (SpaceX’s key transfer test moved from March 2025 to March 2026). NASA’s Feb. 27 plan to accelerate Artemis architecture adds uncertainty, and the OIG cannot yet quantify cost or schedule impacts; it urges flight-like testing before crewed landings.