Boeing Starliner

OFT-3 now called CTF (crew test flight) is delay to May
Official its schedule problem do used docking port on ISS
The Launch window is taken for Axion 2 flight provided by SpaceX
CTF happen after Axion 2 mission.

There rumours who say that Boeing need more time for Fixing issue and additional testing Starliner for Manned Flight.
 
it was only a matter of time that rumour becomes insider leak

Starliner has issue with overheating Battery
NASA thinking about redesigning its batteries and adding shielding in the event one overheats,
What push launch date of CTF far into Summer time...

www.theregister.com

Boeing Starliner's crewed trip to the ISS delayed yet again

May fly in the summer, with some presumably pretty nervous pilots
www.theregister.com www.theregister.com
 
March 27, 2023
MEDIA ADVISORY M23-036
NASA, Boeing to Host Media Briefing, Provide Starliner Update

NASA and Boeing will host a media teleconference at 2 p.m. EDT Wednesday, March 29, to provide an update on the Crew Flight Test (CFT) of the CST-100 Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station.

Managers will share a mission status and discuss upcoming milestones ahead of Starliner's first flight with astronauts prior to certifying the spacecraft and systems for regular crew rotation flights to the space station for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.

Audio coverage of the teleconference will livestream on the agency’s website.

The briefing participants are:

Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
Joel Montalbano, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, CST-100 Starliner, Boeing
To participate in the call, media must RSVP no later than one hour prior to the start of the event to: ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.

The Starliner spacecraft will launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The demonstration flight will carry two NASA astronaut test pilots, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, and will prove the end-to-end capabilities of the Starliner system.

Find out more about the Commercial Crew Program at:
 
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TheSpaceBucket has just released another Starliner video concerning about how NASA wants Boeing to conduct additional tests before there's a crewed mission:


Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft has had a much more eventful history than NASA and the company had hoped for. Both of the previous orbital test flights featured various issues that halted the program and in some cases cost the mission. Despite this, we are only months away from the first crewed test flight of Starliner.
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What was originally intended to happen next month in April, has just been delayed no earlier than July 21st. The reasons provided by NASA and the company include traffic at the International Space Station, a busy launch site, and perhaps most importantly, more time to look at Starliner’s components. Specifically, they want to make sure the parachutes on Starliner are perfect and in working order prior to the attempt.
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The mission will launch two astronauts to the ISS for a total mission length of around 7 days. It’s another demonstration mission intended to prove the safety and viability of the system. This being said, based on the history of the spacecraft, some have concerns regarding that claim. Here I will go more in-depth into Starliner’s recent delay, what exactly NASA wants to check before the mission, what to expect in the coming months, and more.
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Full article here - https://thespacebucket.com/is-boeings...
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It looks like there's some good news concerning the upcoming crewed test-flight of the Strainer, from TheSpaceBucket:


For a while now Boeing and NASA have been working to check off a long list of to-dos related to the Boeing Starliner. After the last uncrewed test flight, this list was quite large and included major safety features and alterations to the spacecraft. By now in late May, the agency is still aiming for the first crewed launch to take place just over seven weeks from now in July.
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However, based on new reports from the Agency and Boeing, it looks like quite a bit of work is still necessary before they are ready for Starliner to lift off. This could push the launch back even more depending on exactly how much work needs to be completed. Not long ago the launch was delayed from April to July.
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Something NASA needs to get right as human and astronaut safety is the number one priority on this mission. Here I will go more in-depth into the recent update from Boeing, what still needs to be completed prior to lift-off, what to expect in the coming months, and more.
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Full article here - https://thespacebucket.com/starliners...
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I think the term I am searching for here is dumpster fire.

Boeing Statement on Starliner CFT Status

starlinerupdates.com starlinerupdates.com

Boeing Statement on Starliner CFT Status
June 1, 2023

Boeing’s priority for Starliner’s Crew Flight Test is the safe launch, docking and return of Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. For that reason, we have recommended to NASA that we reevaluate our launch window to allow for closing out the remaining technical and certification items.

We were notified by the parachute supplier of an issue, identified through testing, that reduced our safety margin. Our engineering team provided additional analysis and given that, we determined the safest course of action was to stand down for the July launch opportunity.

We are now determining when we will be ready to launch, but anticipate additional parachute testing. We are committed to the Starliner program and are working closely with NASA to identify a new launch date.
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The issues seem rather serious to have been discovered weeks before Starliner was due to launch on an Atlas V rocket. The first involves "soft links" in the lines that run from Starliner to its parachutes. Boeing discovered that these were not as strong as previously believed.

During a normal flight, these substandard links would not be an issue. But Starliner's parachute system is designed to land a crew safely in case one of the three parachutes fails. However, due to the lower failure load limit with these soft links, if one parachute fails, it's possible the lines between the spacecraft and its remaining two parachutes would snap due to the extra strain.

The second issue involves P-213 glass cloth tape that is wrapped around wiring harnesses throughout the vehicle. These cables run everywhere, and Nappi said there are hundreds of feet of these wiring harnesses. The tape is intended to protect the wiring from nicks. However, during recent tests, it was discovered that under certain circumstances possible in flight, this tape is flammable.
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Not again, just as Starliner was getting ready for it's first launch into space. It will be interesting to see if Boeing can fix those problems before launch day without needing another delay. I am shocked at this news.
 
It's teenagers. The problem is teenagers, as in "My dad used to work here." Yeah, and he probably couldn't talk about what he actually did. Like the technical details. Example:

"Parachute lines? What about them?"

They're not as strong as they're supposed to be.

"Wha, what?"

The strength of the parachute lines is a direct correlation between the expected stress forces and weight involved.

"Wha, what?"

I suspect the actual problem is along these lines.
 
The manned Test flight is delay, maybe even canceled !
NASA found during Inspection of Starliner Program this:

Again issue with valves, this time inside Capsule RCS system (needed for reentry)

Wrong data Evaluation of parachute lanyards strength, what need new certification of parachute for Human use.

and NASA discovered that inflammable tape used to cover wiring harnesses inside capsule to prevent shorts.
all of this Tape is need to be replace in current Starliner and all other Starliner already build.

Starliner either as Gemini 8, Soyuz-1 or as Apollo-1 death trap...


Source: NASA Space Flight Forum.
 
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Well the news has gone from bad to worse, from TheSpaceBucket:


The Boeing Starliner spacecraft has been trying to launch humans for years now. The original plan apart of NASA's Commercial Crew Program was to have this spacecraft along with SpaceX's Crew Dragon competing and both available to transport humans in LEO. Unfortunately, the Starliner has continued to run into different delays and complications with the recent reports following suit.
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Just yesterday a Boeing official commented that they are "standing down" from an attempt to launch the Starliner spacecraft on July 21 to focus on recently discovered issues with the vehicle. These issues include two main problems surrounding the parachute system and flammable tape. While days ago these two specific areas were meant to go through a quick final check, they have turned into a significant delay.
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So much so that no new launch date has been provided and the spacecraft may need to be disassembled to fix everything that's wrong. Here I will go more in-depth into the two main problems, what this means for the future of Starliner, what to expect in the coming months, and more.
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Don’t forget that originally the commercial crew was going to be sole source and that would have been Boeing’s Starliner. So we had a narrow escape there.
 
NMaude said:
Michel Van said:
and NASA discovered that inflammable tape used to cover wiring harnesses inside capsule to prevent shorts.
all of this Tape is need to be replace in current Starliner and all other Starliner already build.
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How could they have forgot the painfully learned lessons of the Apollo-1 fire?
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In their defense, for me as a foreigner with English as my third language any potential confusion is somewhat understandable:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8mD2hsxrhQ
 
martinbayer said:
NMaude said:
Michel Van said:
and NASA discovered that inflammable tape used to cover wiring harnesses inside capsule to prevent shorts.
all of this Tape is need to be replace in current Starliner and all other Starliner already build.
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How could they have forgot the painfully learned lessons of the Apollo-1 fire?
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In their defense, for me as a foreigner with English as my third language any potential confusion is somewhat understandable:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8mD2hsxrhQ
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Yeah. I wanna track down the guy who came up with inflammable and give him a stern talking to.
 
NMaude said:
Michel Van said:
and NASA discovered that inflammable tape used to cover wiring harnesses inside capsule to prevent shorts.
all of this Tape is need to be replace in current Starliner and all other Starliner already build.
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How could they have forgot the painfully learned lessons of the Apollo-1 fire?
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Beat me to it ! From "The space review" yesterday.

The second involved tape used to wrap wire harnesses in the spacecraft to prevent chafing. The adhesive in that tape is flammable, he said. That tape is used “quite extensively” in the spacecraft and could require considerable work to address: “We’ll determine how much the vehicle needs to be disassembled, if any, to address these issues.”
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Hard to think of a worst mistake when working with NASA on a manned spaceship that looks so much like... an Apollo capsule. Boeing truly went in full Homer Simpson mode there. D'oh !
 
Archibald said:
Hard to think of a worst mistake when working with NASA on a manned spaceship that looks so much like... an Apollo capsule. Boeing truly went in full Homer Simpson mode there. D'oh !
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...Firstly they forgot to check the clock, then they forgot that there is water on planet Earth, and now they have flammable materials used around electrics. What's next? The oxygen system that accidentally released cyanide as byproduct?
 
Dilandu said:
Archibald said:
Hard to think of a worst mistake when working with NASA on a manned spaceship that looks so much like... an Apollo capsule. Boeing truly went in full Homer Simpson mode there. D'oh !
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...Firstly they forgot to check the clock, then they forgot that there is water on planet Earth, and now they have flammable materials used around electrics. What's next? The oxygen system that accidentally released cyanide as byproduct?
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Got a good laugh reading this. You nailed it to perfection. Made my day. Who knows, maybe next time they will forget parachutes must open to work properly ?

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_n5E7feJHw0
 
The Strainer's losses are really starting to pile up for Boeing to the tune of $1.1 billion, from TheSpaceBucket:


Since practically the start of the Boeing Starliner program, the company along with the spacecraft have run into different issues. Between general delays and problems during test filgths, Starliner can’t seem to catch a break with bad news. Most recently its first crewed launch scheduled to happen this month was indefinitely delayed as two major problems were discovered.
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These issues had to do with the parachute system and a flammable material used throughout the interior of the spacecraft. With this delay came another loss of $257 million adding to a long list of other complications. On the bright side, new reports coming out highlight that the company is currently in the process of fixing and replacing the necessary components.
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However, despite this work, the future crewed launch date still is unknown as a lot of work is left and this detailed replacement process could reveal more issues. Here I will go more in-depth into current progress on Starliner, the total losses this project has incurred, when we can expect it to fly crew, and more.
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Full article here - https://thespacebucket.com/boeings-st...
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Finally something a bit definite on when Starliner might next fly.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1688528025334538241
View: https://twitter.com/byericmjohnson/status/1688528025334538241


@Boeing aims to have Starliner ready for its first flight to the ISS with astronauts on board around next March, a timeline that hinges on a parachute drop test around November, among other factors, Boeing tells @business
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www.bloomberg.com

Boeing Aims to Get Starliner Spacecraft Ready to Fly Next March

Boeing Co. aims to have its Starliner capsule ready for its first flight to the International Space Station with astronauts on board around next March, with a long-delayed launch following NASA approval.
www.bloomberg.com www.bloomberg.com
 
At least that is something positive for Boeing to be ready for a first flight for Starliner next March, and it all hinges on a parachute test drop test. :eek:
 
Boeing announce next Starliner flight will be in March 2024
only to be corrected by NASA that next ISS docking port are free in April to June 2024

in mean time several pounds of P-213 tape is remove from Starliner electronic
Boeing blame this on NASA database were “a bit inconsistent” about the tape’s flammability
The parachute's system by Airborne is overworked, reenforced and will be tested in November 2023.

At Boeing has for moment three separate investigations by NASA on Starliner:

the NASA Engineering & Safety Center conducting their own independent review of Starliner
NASA's chief engineer, Joseph Pellicciotti, has interviewed every one of Starliner's subsystem managers, to find other issue.
and "independent team" at Boeing reviewing the company's actions

Source:
spacenews.com

First Starliner crewed flight delayed to 2024

Boeing has delayed the first flight of its CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle with astronauts on board to no earlier than March 2024.
spacenews.com spacenews.com

arstechnica.com

Starliner undergoing three independent investigations as flight slips to 2024

"The design changes were, I would say, minimal."
arstechnica.com arstechnica.com
 

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