NASA boss says 'no doubt' SpaceX explosion delays flight programme

FILE PHOTO: NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine leaves after a news conference at the U.S. embassy in Moscow, Russia October 12, 2018. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

LE BOURGET, France (Reuters) - The explosion that destroyed a SpaceX astronaut taxi in April "no doubt" delays NASA's drive to return Americans to the International Space Station from U.S. soil later this year, the U.S. space agency's chief said on Tuesday.

But NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine stopped short of offering a clear flight timeline for its multibillion-dollar Commercial Crew Programme, and said he would not prejudge the results of an investigation into the incident.