Boeing’s first spacecraft carrying a human crew is scheduled to launch on Saturday. If all goes as planned, the mission will bring astronauts to the International Space Station and prove to NASA that Boeing can be a reliable transportation partner.
It’s been a long journey to get to this point: NASA rescheduled the launch several times this month amid technical concerns. What follows is years of delays and $1 billion over budget costs.
Why did we write this?
Boeing’s brand has taken hits from several troubling incidents. On Saturday, the company plans to launch a painted spacecraft to prove it can successfully transport astronauts to the space station.
Safely transporting astronauts Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams is a critical priority. A successful launch of the Starliner capsule would also provide NASA with a second American spacecraft capable of carrying astronauts to and from the space station.
Boeing could use a PR win now after a series of negative news about its commercial aviation business.
“A successful launch “builds trust with our customers and employees,” says Kay Sears, vice president and general manager of Boeing Defense, Space & Security, who notes that a successful launch “builds trust with our customers and employees.”
Boeing’s first spacecraft carrying a human crew is scheduled to launch Saturday from Florida. If all goes as planned, the mission will bring astronauts to the International Space Station and prove to NASA that Boeing can be a reliable transportation partner.
The Starliner capsule is scheduled to take off just after 12:25 p.m. on June 1. It’s been a long journey to get to this point: NASA rescheduled the launch five times this month amid technical concerns. What follows is years of delays and $1 billion over budget costs.
Astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita Williams are expected to test the spacecraft’s systems while on the space station for approx seven Days, before Landing In the southwestern United States.
Why did we write this?
Boeing’s brand has taken hits from several troubling incidents. On Saturday, the company plans to launch a painted spacecraft to prove it can successfully transport astronauts to the space station.
A successful launch will be a landmark moment for Boeing and help establish a new era of commercial spaceflight. The Starliner is the second of two contracts NASA has awarded to private companies for shuttle astronauts to the Space Station.
Why is this Starliner launch important?
Relocating Mr. Wilmore and Ms. Williams safely is a critical priority. A successful launch would also provide NASA with a second American spacecraft capable of carrying astronauts to and from the space station.
“It was really important for the nation to have a strategy where we would have multiple companies that had the capability to take humans into outer space,” says Kay Sears, vice president and general manager of Boeing Defense, Space and Security.
Ms. Sears says Starliner also has some distinct capabilities such as allowing astronauts to maneuver the capsule as if they were flying an airplane. “There are some situations where we really want astronauts to be able to take control if they need to, so this is a unique feature.”
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon has launched 50 people on 13 flights to the space station since 2020, while Boeing’s endeavor is fraught with challenges.
Boeing has completed successful testing of an unmanned Starliner mission to the space station in 2022. Once the Starliner completes this crewed flight, NASA intends to use the craft for regular missions carrying four astronauts at a time to the space station.
The Starliner launch aims to reduce NASA’s dependence on… Russia For low orbit space light. Since NASA retired its space shuttle fleet in 2011, it has used Russian shuttles to send American astronauts to the space station, most recently with American Tracy Dyson joining Belarus and a Russian space shuttle in a March 2024 He releases. Although the United States and Russia currently cooperate when it comes to space, the tense political situation between the two powers has increased the urgency of ending America’s dependence on the Russian space program.
A reliable interchange spacecraft would allow the United States to maintain a consistent human presence on the space station, which NASA and its international partners have operated since 1998.
“You can’t lead and you can’t shape the rules if you don’t show up. So human space light is about showing up in an area that we already depend on — but don’t control. We want to shape the rules of that environment,” says Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University.
How does it fit into NASA’s overall plans?
NASA is focusing on Commercial crew program Since the retirement of the Space Shuttle fleet in 2011. Its goal is to develop safe and cost-effective human transportation to the space station through partnerships with private companies. NASA hopes to allow these companies to operate shuttle missions while it focuses on deep space endeavors.
“The real question is, what comes after the space station?” says Mr. Pace. He points out that there have been a number of proposals to build small commercial space stations in low Earth orbit that could help with technology development or space tourism.
NASA is planning to Retirement Space station in 2030 by crashing into the ocean. What the International Space Station might look like in the future is unclear, with three companies — Axiom Space, Voyager Space and Blue Origin — vying to win the NASA partnership.
“I think it’s a natural progression for our space program. It saves taxpayers a lot of dollars because these companies have an incentive to innovate and lower costs so they can bring on additional customers,” says Lori Garver, a former deputy administrator at NASA and a senior fellow at Harvard’s Bluff Center.
Why is this a big test for Boeing in particular?
Boeing could use a PR win now after a A series of negative news About the business of commercial aviation. Boeing is facing intense public scrutiny after several issues with its 737 Jets, including a blowing panel on a January Alaska Airlines flight shortly after takeoff.
Landing the Starliner capsule safely on Earth would be the successful completion of a multi-billion dollar, years-long project. The first two private contracts were awarded to Boeing and SpaceX in 2014, $4.2 billion and $2.6 billion, respectively.
Spacex has seen a bunch of Failure Before its successful launch from the crew, it also dealt with years-long delays and budget overruns. Most recently, the Starliner launch on May 6 was shut down about two hours before liftoff due to a malfunctioning valve on the Atlas V rocket carrying the capsule into space. A second launch attempt scheduled for May 17 was canceled when a small helium leak was found in the Starliner’s propulsion system.
Boeing and NASA will learn from this test flight, says Ms. Sears, who notes that a successful launch “will build trust with our customers and employees.”
Mr. Pace says finding problems before launch is part of being diligent. “Nobody likes delay, but it’s simply part of the process of doing it right,” says Mr. Pace. He notes that the cost of operating Boeing’s space program may ultimately prove more important to the company than the delay.
“There’s definitely a question as to whether they will continue with the program after meeting their obligations to NASA because it was a big, expensive hit for the company,” he says. “I think they can overcome the reputation issues. I think they can overcome their technical problems and solve them, but you know the finances are the finances.”
