Boeing’s starliner Tonight’s launch has been postponed “out of an abundance of caution” barely two hours before the historic launch. The scrub was reportedly caused by a problem with the oxygen relief valve on the upper stage of the Atlas V rocket.
There are backup launch opportunities on May 7, 10, and 11. After years of delays and cost overruns of more than $1 billion, the mission will be Boeing’s first attempt to carry astronauts to the International Space Station.
Once the problem with the upper stage is resolved, the United Launch Alliance Atlas V will lift the CST-100 Starliner capsule into orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 10:34 p.m. local time with two astronauts on board – Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams. Will go. Monday evening. The mission also marks the first time that ULA’s Atlas will carry a crew. The rocket claims a success rate of 100% in 99 missions. (ULA is a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.)
The astronauts will now arrive at the station on Thursday at the earliest, where they will remain for at least eight days. Both astronauts will return to Earth in the capsule before May 16.
If all goes according to plan, Boeing will finally be able to certify its Starliner for human transportation and begin meeting the terms of its $4.2 billion NASA astronaut taxi contract. That contract, under the agency’s Commercial Crew Program, was awarded in 2014. Elon Musk’s SpaceX was also awarded a contract for the Crew Dragon capsule under that program, and has been carrying astronauts to and from the ISS since 2020.
While SpaceX has ramped up its human transportation services, flying more than a dozen crewed missions and even promoting private flights with Axiom Space and billionaire Jared Isaacman, Boeing has lagged behind sharply. However, the aerospace giant originally attempted an unmanned mission to the ISS in 2019 which failed due to technical reasons, The next attempt was delayed due to further problems, Until it is finally completed in 2022.
As of last year, the long-delayed Starliner program had cost Boeing $1.5 billion.
But despite the technical difficulties, both NASA and Boeing have stressed their commitment to the safety of the mission and the two astronauts.
“The lives of our crew members, Sunny Williams and Butch Wilmore, are in danger,” NASA associate administrator Jim Frey said at a news conference late last month. “We don’t take this lightly at all.”
Indeed, a successful mission for NASA brings the agency one step closer to having two operational transportation providers, creating significant redundancies in the Commercial Crew Program. According to Boeing’s contract, it is in line for six astronaut missions.
Musk took to his proprietary social media platform Already done with it.”
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