Boeing Starliner

Well it looks increasingly like the first crewed Strainer launch won't happen till 2024, from TheSpaceBucket:


A few months ago in June, we learned that two different issues discovered back around May with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft would delay the first crewed launch. This launch had been pushed back a few times and most recently was set to happen in July. With quite a lot of work still left, the company and agency weren’t exactly sure when Starliner would be ready to launch crew.
Now in early August, they seem to have a better idea with reports coming out that the launch will happen no earlier than March 2024. This is quite a significant delay and based on comments from the agency and Boing officials, even this date is somewhat up in the air depending on upcoming fixes and tests. This is far from ideal and will continue to hurt the Starliner program.
Only recently did the program losses grow to $1.1 billion after being charged for another delay. Here I will go more in-depth into the progress Boeing has made, new comments from NASA and the Starliner program officials, a realistic launch date, and more.
 
update

Here some comparison to Starliner to other Space Capsules
Time from program start to first manned mission:

Vostok 1958-1961 three years
Mercury 1958-1961 (suborbital) 1962 (orbital) four years
Gemini 1961-1965 four years
Soyuz 1962-1968 six years and one dead cosmonaut
Apollo 1961-1968 seven years and three dead astronauts
Shenzhou 1992-2003 eleven years.
Crew Dragon 2014-2020 six years.

Starliner 2010 - ????

Note:
Space Shuttle is glider not capsule,
Dragon 1 Capsule flew only unmanned
 
So Boeing are planning on doing six flights to the ISS despite the ongoing delays Michel Van? I think that they should hurry up about it and get a move on because the ISS is not going to be in space forever.
 
I fear the opposite NMaude sadly, I think that NASA will deorbit the ISS to be on the safe side of things like what the Russians did to Mir when they crashed it into that area of the Pacific Ocean to stop it crashing down onto populated centres.
 
When the ISS is retired I hope that it is boosted into a permanent orbit.

Current plan is to dump ISS in Pacific around 2028.
But with Starship and Elon Musk, you never know...

and until 2028 Boeing manage to launch a Starliner manned to ISS...
 
2028 for the deorbiting of the ISS Michel Van? Let's wait and see what happens about SpaceX and whether or not they are interested in buying the space station from NASA.
 
2028 for the deorbiting of the ISS Michel Van?
it's date the Russian talk about, to deactivate the Russian part of station.
if Axion keep their plans and timetable, until then their Space Station is connected to US part of ISS.

but again this are current plans for 2028.
those can change, like a Starship dock on ISS and push the station into 660 km high storage orbit.
 
Starliner now in Apollo 13 flavour

F4_7LBfXsAAJvhh

Source:
It's from a paper and FISO presentation Boeing put out last year, about a 2033 Mars flyby mission using SLS, Vulcan, and Starliner. Gateway was not explicitly mentioned, but crewed Starliner to lunar orbit was.

here this paper:
 
Whatever I think of Boeing I do hope that the Strainer not only gets to fly again but that we see it carrying astronauts to the ISS, from TheSpaceBucket:


It’s nearly been a decade since Boeing was awarded a hefty $4.2 billion contract from NASA to develop a spacecraft capable of transporting humans to the International Space Station. Unfortunately, in that time period, not only has the vehicle still yet to carry humans once, but it has consistently run into different complications. This begs the question of how a leading aerospace company had so much trouble with this contract.
At the same time as Boeing has continued to try and develop the vehicle, SpaceX has been sending humans to space for years now. When NASA originally picked these companies, they certainly didn’t expect Boeing to end up being the riskier and delayed option. In reality, a combination of test anomalies and frequent mistakes has delayed Starliner’s first crewed launch by years.
These issues have even brought up the possibility of abandoning the Starliner program as it only gets more and more expensive for Boeing to run. A future the company is trying very hard to avoid after investing so much time and money over the last 10 years. Here I will go more in-depth into some of the company’s main issues, problems with Starliner, what the future holds, and more.
 
Whatever I think of Boeing I do hope that the Strainer not only gets to fly again but that we see it carrying astronauts to the ISS, from TheSpaceBucket:
That is what it will do on the next flight. Also, Boeing has been paid for towards 6 flights.
 
So what happened to Boeing's Starliner, from TheSpaceBucket:


It has been quite a long time since we heard anything regarding Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. Last year the vehicle was just weeks away from its first human mission and then a number of problems derailed the company’s plan and schedule.
Now in 2024, we are learning more about Boeing’s recent tests, and the possibility of a launch in the coming months. Unfortunately, these delays have also come at a cost to the company and not just in the form of lost opportunities over the past few years.
Pretty consistently since 2016, the company has been charged hundreds of millions almost every year totaling around $1.5 billion. These overrun costs among other factors are putting extra pressure on the company to get this vehicle off the ground and fully certify it for human missions. Here I will go more in-depth into its current schedule, what needs to be worked on, the first human mission, and more.
 
Last edited:
The Space Bucket has uploaded a new video about the Strainer and its launch readiness:


Boeing and NASA just held a briefing yesterday and it looks like Starliner is finally set to launch crew, and in only a few weeks. The program so far has been far from smooth with budget problems, delays, in-flight anomalies, etc. All of which have pushed back this maiden flight that originally was supposed to happen around 7 years ago. This however is set to change with a launch date scheduled for early May.
For the past few months the company, alongside NASA have been working on a few issues that came up related to flammable tape used inside the spacecraft and its parachute safety margin. By now, they are confident these past concerns are now fixed and are just about ready to liftoff. Here I will go more in-depth into the recent briefing, the significance of this launch, what to expect in the next few weeks, and more.
Chapters:
0:40 - Launch Ready
3:17 - Lots of Fixes


 
NASA's Johnson Space Center
@NASA_Johnson
The dynamic duo is heading to the @Space_Station!️

On this week’s #HWHAP, NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test Commander Butch Wilmore and Pilot Suni Williams discuss their astronaut journeys and preparation to be the first humans to fly Starliner. https://go.nasa.gov/3JqsUWb

View: https://twitter.com/NASA_Johnson/status/1781339254041239728

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YTpQib60Ao
 
Last edited:
View: https://twitter.com/commercial_crew/status/1783507959693066641


Flight incoming!

@NASA’s @BoeingSpace Crew Flight Test astronauts are in route to our Launch and Landing Facility to begin launch preparations!

Watch the crew arrival livestream today at around 1pm ET on @NASAKennedy.

Info:


NASA, Boeing Crew Fly Jet to Florida for Starliner Launch

The two NASA astronauts that will fly aboard a new spacecraft for the first time to the International Space Station are on their way on Thursday to the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to begin final launch preparations.

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are targeting 10:34 p.m. EDT Monday, May 6, for launch of the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

As retired U.S. Navy captains, Wilmore and Williams are flying on a T-38 jet from Ellington Field near NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston for the short flight to Kennedy’s Launch and Landing Facility.

At 1 p.m., NASA will host a crew arrival event at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, with the following participants:

Jennifer Kunz, associate director, NASA Kennedy
Dana Hutcherson, deputy manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore
NASA astronaut Suni Williams

The arrival will air live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV through a variety of platforms including social media.

Following launch, the astronauts will spend about a week at the orbiting laboratory before the crew capsule makes a parachute and airbag-assisted landing in the southwestern United States.

Learn more about NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test by following the mission blog, the commercial crew blog, @commercial_crew on X, and commercial crew on Facebook.

Author Elyna Niles-Carnes
Posted on April 25, 2024
Categories Boeing, Boeing Crew Flight Test, Commercial Crew, Commercial Crew Program, Commercial Spaceflight, Crew Flight Test, Expedition 71, International Space Station, Kennedy Space Center, NASA, NASA Astronauts, United Launch AllianceTags Atlas V, Boeing, Butch Wilmore, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, CCSFS, CFT, Crew Flight Test, International Space Station, NASA, NASA astronauts, SLC-41, Space Launch Complex-41, Starliner, Suni Williams, ULA, United Launch Alliance
 
View: https://twitter.com/_mgde_/status/1783579624670105620


Welcome to the Kennedy Space Center, Butch and Suni!

The pair arrived in a trio of T-38 Talons ahead of their scheduled Crew Flight Test of Boeing’s Starliner capsule, currently scheduled for May 6th.

- @NASASpaceflight

View: https://twitter.com/commercial_crew/status/1783584268859359678


The Flight Test Readiness Review for @NASA’s @BoeingSpace Crew Flight Test mission to the @Space_Station has concluded.

Teams are "go" for launch at 10:34pm ET May 6 from SLC-41.

Tune in at 4:30pm ET for a media teleconference:

 
View: https://twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1783602939069603954


According to NASA's analysis, the probability of loss-of-crew on the first Starliner mission is 1-in-295. That is above the NASA requirement of 1-in-270.
View: https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/1783609727437447299


NASA just wrapped up a media telecon after the Starliner review. No surprises: go for a May 6 launch, and working only minor issues. Backup launch opportunities May 7, 10, and 11.
 

Similar threads

Please donate to support the forum.

Back
Top Bottom