NASA has announced that the first crewed flight of Boeing Co.’s Starliner spacecraft has been postponed to Tuesday. This delay is to give engineers more time to assess a helium leak in the spacecraft’s propulsion system.
The launch, originally scheduled for May 25, is now on hold with the next launch date still being considered, according to a statement from NASA.
NASA stated, “The team has been meeting over the past two days to evaluate flight principles, system performance, and redundancy. Work is still needed in these areas, and discussions are ongoing about the next possible launch date.”
This delay in the first crewed flight of Starliner comes as mission planners continue to investigate a helium leak in the spacecraft’s propulsion system, which was discovered alongside issues with the Atlas rocket, manufactured by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
After facing years of delays and technical challenges, including two unmanned demonstration flights (one failure in 2019 and one success in 2022), NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are set to be the first crew members on the Starliner to travel to the International Space Station.
This mission, with two experienced test pilots on board, will serve as a final benchmark test for Starliner before NASA certifies the spacecraft for regular crewed missions to the ISS. Since 2021, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, developed under the same NASA program, has been the main mode of transportation to the ISS.
Source: www.nbcnews.com
