A new report from NASA's Office of Inspector General has delivered the kind of news that surprises absolutely no one who has ever followed a government contract: the new spacesuits for the Artemis moon missions and the International Space Station might not be ready until after 2030. The April 20 report concluded that NASA's commercial services approach for the Exploration Extravehicular Activity Services (xEVAS) program was, in the OIG's polite bureaucratic terms, "not well suited" to the task of developing next-generation spacesuits.

NASA selected Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace in 2022 for the xEVAS program, using the same commercial model it employed for cargo and crew. The plan quickly developed its own gravity. By 2024, NASA and Collins agreed to end the company's participation, neatly removing the 'competitive' part of the competitive contract. This left Axiom as the sole developer, working on a lunar suit that could also be used on the ISS.

The OIG report notes that NASA chose Collins despite a history of "pervasive management and performance issues" with maintaining the current, ancient ISS suits, including a 2023 warning letter from NASA. Collins's xEVAS team was different, but performance issues began less than a year after the 2022 award, leading to a descoped contract after a preliminary design review that was already a year late.

With Collins out, all eyes are on Axiom. The OIG report warns that, based on the historical average development time of 8.7 years for programs like commercial crew and the Space Launch System, Axiom's suit demonstrations could slip to 2031. NASA's original schedules for 2025 and 2026 were deemed "overly optimistic," with both suits already delayed by at least 18 months. The report cautions there is "little to no schedule margin" for the Artemis landing and a "diminishing" margin before the ISS's planned decommissioning.

This gloomy assessment stands in stark contrast to the sunny optimism from NASA and Axiom leadership. Axiom's president, Jonathan Cirtain, stated on April 13 that "we're going to fly a suit next year," either to the ISS or on a test of the Human Landing System. In an April 6 letter, NASA's Lori Glaze expressed "continued confidence" that development is on track for a 2028 lunar mission. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman doubled down on April 20, stating, "I am confident that when NASA is ready to land on the Moon in 2028, our astronauts will be wearing Axiom suits," while also noting NASA is increasing its support to Axiom with experts and facilities.