Boeing's Starliner crew capsule, which was and cost overruns amounting to approximately $1.5 billion, is about to make its first flight with humans on board. Boeing was chosen 10 years ago alongside SpaceX to develop a spacecraft capable of transporting astronauts from American soil to the International Space Station (ISS), allowing NASA to end its dependence on of Russia for crewed flights. The companies each received a fixed-price contract under NASA's Commercial Crew program: $4.2 billion to Boeing for its CST-100 (Starliner) and $2.6 billion for SpaceX's Crew Dragon .
Their original deadline of 2017 turned out to be a little too ambitious. EspaceX – and about a dozen since – while Boeing struggles to get its Starliner capsule off the ground. But from May 6, he will finally have a crewed flight under his belt.
Starliner is now at Launch Complex 41 at the Cape Canaveral Space Station, attached to the ULA Atlas V rocket that will send it to the ISS. Liftoff is scheduled for 10:34 p.m. ET on Monday, May 6. The capsule will carry two NASA astronauts: Butch Wilmore, the mission commander, and Suni Williams, who will serve as pilot.
Not only is this the Starliner's first crewed flight, but this test is only its third flight. The spacecraft (without anyone on board) successfully demonstrated its ability to reach, dock, and undock from the ISS in spring 2022 when it completed its second orbital flight test. In its previous attempt, in 2019, Starliner failed to reach the ISS due to a software problem that caused it to burn too much fuel (one of the few problems Boeing missed after opting at the time). ).
The company also experienced many other problems in the years after Boeing won the NASA contract, causing the company to slip far behind SpaceX. There was a toxic fuel leak during a test in 2018. Then, corrosion caused valves in the propulsion system to become blocked, thwarting Boeing's plans for a 2021 launch, as reported earlier this year. Problems with the spacecraft's parachute deployment system last summer, the team had to remove about a mile of flammable tape.
Boeing also had its share of problems beyond Starliner during this period, facing increased scrutiny of its operations. — notably the 737 Max range — after two fatal accidents in 2018 and 2019, in addition to other less serious incidents. Most recently, a panel caused a 737 Max 9 to explode in mid-flight in January, forcing it to make an emergency landing.
The May 6 flight marks a major step toward certifying the Starliner as a crew transportation system that NASA can actually incorporate into its rotation for trips to the ISS. This will give the space agency the redundancy it seeks; with Crew Dragon and Starliner in operation, he will always have a backup option in case something happens to one of them. NASA and Boeing insisted the capsule had undergone an exhaustive review process and was ready to support astronauts. NASA completed its Starliner crew flight test readiness review on April 25.
“The first crewed flight of a new spacecraft is an absolutely critical milestone,” NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free said during a briefing on the review's completion. “The lives of our crew members Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are at stake – we do not take this lightly.” The latest review is “the culmination of a season of detailed review that has established very thoroughly that we are truly ready to do this flight,” said Emily Nelson, NASA's flight director.
It is expected to take about 24 hours for the Starliner to reach the ISS after liftoff, and since it is a test flight, its crew on board will have a long list of systems and equipment checkout tasks to complete. at each phase of the journey. Although Starliner can operate autonomously, the crew will test its manual controls and ensure it is in good condition for manual abort scenarios. Once Starliner docks with the space station, astronauts will spend about a week there working with the current crew, Expedition 71.
Then they will detach from the orbiting laboratory and return home – and put Starliner through the re-entry and landing test. A few potential landing sites in the southwest United States have been selected, including the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
Wilmore and Williams have been training for Starliner's first flight for years. “They are extremely familiar with the vehicle and have participated in the test environment that developed the Starliner's capabilities,” said Steve Stich, NASA Commercial Crew Program manager. Everyone who participated in last Thursday's briefing recognized that they might face unexpected challenges and that there was much to learn from this first crewed flight. “It's a good reminder for all of us that the team has trained, run simulations, run models, but there's nothing like flying in the space environment,” Free said .
NASA and Boeing officials also expressed confidence that the craft itself and the teams responsible for its journey are well prepared for the task. THE echoed those sentiments upon arriving at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. “We wouldn't be here if it wasn't ready,” Wilmore said, responding to questions from the press. “We are ready, the spacecraft is ready and the teams are ready.”
If Starliner, for whatever reason, cannot launch on the 6th, it will have backup opportunities on May 7, 10 and 11. Once the crew flight test is complete and the astronauts return home, NASA will get to work certifying the spacecraft for future missions bringing crews to and from the ISS. Starliner is currently targeting 2025 to enter service.
“I don't want to go too far because we have yet to conduct a successful mission,” Free said before Starliner's launch, “but when we do, and when we certify Starliner, the United States will have two manned spaces unique transports that provide critical redundancies for access to the ISS.